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Jane Ross Fallon - Before The Fire

from Songs On Purpose by Jane Fallon

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about

This song tells the story of Rosewood, FL, a town that was destroyed in a racially motivated attack in 1923. Won First Place in The Will McClean Folk Festival Songwriting Competition.

lyrics

Before The Fire (Rosewood)

My name is Fannie Taylor and in 1923
I lived next to a sawmill somewhere north of Cedar Key
In the little town of Sumner, divided by race
From the nearby town of Rosewood- such a peaceful place
Before the fire, before the noise.
Before I heard the Sheriff call "Let's go get him boys."
Before the deaths. Before the screams.
I walk the streets of Rosewood in my dreams.
A hundred angry men sent their dogs into the night
To find a black man that they said attacked a woman who was white.
They tortured and they killed and terrorized the town
They took their torches with them and they burned it to the ground.
The Rosewood I remember was a happy place to be.
With 3 churches and two schools, and a baseball team.
Houses always painted, roses everywhere,
And at night piano music filled the air, Before the fire.
The South it was a hotbed of violence that year
There were lynchings, there were riots
Hearts and minds filled with prejudice and fear
You can not blame me.
My husband went to work very early every day
And came home very late at night.
I also had a lover who came through my back door
One day he hit me hard with all his might.
To tell the truth about my bruises would have led to my disgrace,
So I said just what came quickest to my tongue
That it was a black man who hit me in the face;
God forgive me I was young.
Before the fire, before the noise.
Before I heard the Sheriff call "Let's go get him boys."
Before the deaths. Before the screams.
I walk the streets of Rosewood in my dreams.
One day it was a place where children went to school
The next I saw it burn before my eyes.
Once upon a time a community with pride,
Before the fire.
Before my lies.

credits

from Songs On Purpose, released November 15, 2016
Paul Beck, guitar; Jacky Damsky, violin.

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about

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Jane Fallon Dunedin, Florida

Award winning songwriter whose literate lyrics are set to melodies in genres that include blues, country, western, fok and pop. Her voice has been called “smooth and mesmerizing” and Indie Music Magazine called her “powerful, inspirational, uplifting, delightful, and impressive . . . one of the good artists in a sea of soulless clutter.” ... more

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