Sarah Webster Fabio

Poetry & Music

As the ‘title song poetry’ challenge—hosted by

Writer Pilgrim by So Elite

—runs its final days and while we’re still in the mood, I want to share with you poetry and music in all its glory.

I came to know Sarah Webster Fabio back in the day when the radio was playing at all hours and Shazam was an unknown word. The thrill of listening to a new song, the haste to write down somewhere/anywhere the artist’s name and the occasional frustration if you weren’t quick enough—all of this—is still embedded in my system. That doesn’t mean I’m not enjoying the marvels of technology, I’m just being old and reminiscing, the system, you see, has its own rules.

But I digress.

These two poems/songs are just a few introductory pieces. On Smithsonian Folkways Recordings you’ll find her full discography and the album liners in pdf files so you can read the poems.

‘Glimpses’ from Boss Soul was the first piece I heard on the radio one late winter afternoon. Up to this day, it remains my favourite. ‘Work it Out’ I dig very much!

‘If We Come Soft as Rain’ from Jujus / Alchemy of the Blues is a poem I love and the whole album plays on repeat at all times.

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Here are some links for further reading:

A great essay on the Poetry Foundation’s website titled Mother of Black Studies by Kyla Marshell.

Biography links on SWFCenter - Sarah Webster Fabio Center for Social Justice and Chapter 16.

An excerpt from the liner notes of the reissued album Jujus / Alchemy of the Blues, written by Webster Fabio’s daughter, Cheryl Fabio.

And a poem for wrapping things up:

Evil Is No Black Thing by Sarah Webster Fabio

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