BREATHS
written by Birago Diop and Ysaye Barnwell
performed by Sweet Honey In The Rock
Listen more often to things than to beings
Listen more often to things than to beings
' Tis the ancestor's breath when the fire's voice is heard
' Tis the ancestor's breath in the voice of the water
Those who have died have never never left
The dead are not under the earth
They are in the rustling trees, they are in the groaning woods
They are in the crying grass, they are in the moaning rocks
The dead are not under the earth
So listen more often to things than to beings
Listen more often to things than to beings
' Tis the ancestor's breath when the fire's voice is heard
' Tis the ancestor's breath in the voice of the water
Those who have died have never never left
The dead have a pact with the living
They are in the woman's breast, they are in the waiting child
They are with us in the home, they are with us in the ground
The dead have a pact with the living
So listen more often to things than to beings
Listen more often to things than to beings
' Tis the ancestor's breath when the fire's voice is heard
' Tis the ancestor's breath in the voice of the water
Listen more often to things than to beings
Listen more often to things than to beings
' Tis the ancestor's breath when the fire's voice is heard
' Tis the ancestor's breath in the voice of the water
from The 1980 Vancouver Folk Music Festival
©1980 Ysaye Barnwell; Vancouver Folk Music Festival Society