Novel Soundtrack: Track 10

10) River Stay ‘Way from My Door by Paul Robeson

Event: The event that this song relates to is the hurricane towards the end of the novel. Janie and Tea Cake don’t think that the hurricane is going to reach their house so they don’t leave with the Indians and the animals. Instead, they stay at home. Once they see the waters rising, they realize that they have made a mistake and that they must leave or they will die.

Lyrics:

You're just a lonely little river,

But I have heard somebody say

That someday you may

Squeeze my home away.

So roll along you lonely river

And find your way to the sea,

I don't bother you,

Don't you bother me!

You keep goin' your way,

I'll keep goin' my way,

River, stay 'way from my door!

I just got a cabin,

You don't need a cabin,

River, stay 'way from my door!

Don't come up any higher,

I'm so all alone.

Leave my bed and my fire,

That's all I'll ever own!

I ain't breakin' your heart,

Don't start breakin' my heart,

River, stay 'way from my door!

Novel Soundtrack: Track 11

11) Seasons of Love by the RENT Cast

Event: The event that this story represents is the reuniting of friends after the hurricane. Tea Cake and Janie go back to the Everglades and find many of their friends. Having thought that they were dead, this is surprising, and exciting news to the couple. This song is all about appreciating life and spending life in a way that means something. At the end of the song it says, “Let’s celebrate, and remember a year in the life of friends.” I think when the friends in the novel reunited they were all recounting what happened to them during the hurricane.

Link to Song: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x8iTeDl_Wug

Lyrics:

Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes.

Five hundred twenty five thousand moments so dear.

Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes.

How do you measure- measure a year.

In daylights, in sunsets,

In midnights, in cups of coffee.

In inches, in miles, in laughter, in strife.

Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes

How do you measure a year in the life?

How about love?

How about love?

How about love?

Measure in love.

Seasons of love.

Seasons of love.

Five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes.

Five hundred twenty five thousand journeys to plan.

five hundred twenty five thousand six hundred minutes.

How do you measure the life of a woman or a man.

In truth that she learned

or in times that he cried

In the bridges he burned

or the way that she died

Its time now to sing out

though the story never ends

lets celebrate, remember a year

in the life of friends