Poetry Explorer


Classic and Contemporary Poetry


THE BANJO PLAYER by FENTON JOHNSON

First Line: THERE IS MUSIC IN ME, THE MUSIC OF A PEASANT PEOPLE
Last Line: WHAT IS A TROUBADOUR?
Subject(s): BANJOS; MUSICAL INSTRUMENTS;

There is music in me, the music of a peasant people.
I wander through the levee, picking my banjo and singing
my songs of the cabin and the field. At the Last Chance
Saloon I am as welcome as the violets in March;
there is always food and drink for me there, and the
dimes of those who love honest music. Behind the
railroad tracks the little children clap their hands
and love me as they love Kris Kringle.
But I fear that I am a failure.
Last night a woman called me a troubadour.
What is a troubadour?



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