My Old Kentucky Home
My Old Kentucky Home written by Stephen Foster in 1853, is the official anthem of the U.S. state of Kentucky.
On March 19, 1928, was adopted by resolution of the federal legislature as the official song of Kentucky.
A visit to Forster's in Federal Hill Mansion, the home of his cousins from the Rowan family in Bardstown, had inspired him. Senator Rowan's wife had brought the surrounding land as a dowry to her father William Lytle, a member of High Society Cincinnati into the marriage, and Senator Rown built their needs following the " famous " ( "famous home") in the former West. This building is now a museum, part of the My Old Kentucky Home State Park.
The song originally describes a scene of everyday life on a slave plantation and was a popular song in racist minstrel shows. In this description, always with mixed reactions. While some saw the song as a racist description of the apparent idyll of slavery, interpreted other - in accordance with the famous abolitionist Frederick Douglass - the text as a sympathy expression compared to the African-American slaves, but the stereotyped and romanticized, as always cheerful singing and their owner loving fools are presented.
Since this question of interpretation were never to be clarified with certainty decided in 1986, the General Assembly of Kentucky to defuse the song by using the word " darkies " replaced by " people".
My Old Kentucky Home is the traditional song of the Kentucky Derby. Here it is sung by the " University of Louisville " marching band. The University of Kentucky leaves the hymn also their basketball and football tournaments to play.
1970 Randy Newman wrote a revised version of this song. The recording contains a less sentimental view of life in Kentucky.
Text ( first verse and chorus )
The sun shines bright in the old Kentucky home, Tis summer, the people are gay *; The corn - top's ripe and the meadow 's in the bloom While the birds make music all the day. The young folks roll on the little cabin floor All merry, all happy and bright; By'n by hard times comes a knocking at the door Then my old Kentucky home, good- night! Weep no more my lady. Oh! Weep no more today! We will sing one song for my old Kentucky home For the old Kentucky home, far away.
- In the original: " darkies "