"If You Miss Me at the Back of the Bus" | |
---|---|
Single by Pete Seeger | |
from the album We Shall Overcome | |
Released | 1963 |
Label | Columbia |
Songwriter(s) | Charles Neblett |
"If You Miss Me at The Back of the Bus" was a song written by Charles Neblett and recorded by Pete Seeger on his album We Shall Overcome in 1963.[1] The song was written in response to attempts to desegregate a public swimming pool in Cairo, Illinois, after a young African-American man drowned while swimming in a local river due to the pool not allowing any African-Americans to use it.[2] The song depicts the attitude of the African-American community towards the Civil Rights Movement during the 1960s.[3] In his book with Bob Reiser, Everybody Says Freedom, Seeger commented that people would improvise new lyrics to the song to reflect on various situations.[4] The song's popularity grew after it began to be used as one of the anthems for the civil rights movement.[5]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ Sapon-Shevin, Mara (2010). Because We Can Change the World. Corwin Press. p. 217. ISBN 978-1412978385.
- ^ Martin, Bradford (2004). The Theater Is in the Street: Politics and Public Performance in 1960s America. University of Massachusetts Press. pp. 25, 41–42. ISBN 1558494588.
- ^ "IF YOU MISS ME FROM THE BACK OF THE BUS". olemiss.edu. Archived from the original on 2010-09-23. Retrieved 5 June 2012.
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value (help) - ^ Seeger, Pete (2009). Everybody Says Freedom. W. W. Norton & Company. p. 72. ISBN 978-0393306040.
- ^ Young, Ralph (2009). Dissent in America: Voices That Shaped a Nation. Longman. p. 340. ISBN 978-0205605415.