Malvina Reynolds: Song Lyrics and Poems  



God Bless the Grass

Notes: words and music by Malvina Reynolds; copyright 1964 Schroder Music Company, renewed 1992. People often think of this as an ecology song, but Malvina wrote it after reading Mark Lane’s comments about the John F. Kennedy assassination.


God bless the grass that grows thru the crack.
They roll the concrete over it to try and keep it back.
The concrete gets tired of what it has to do,
It breaks and it buckles and the grass grows thru,
And God bless the grass.

God bless the truth that fights toward the sun,
They roll the lies over it and think that it is done.
It moves through the ground and reaches for the air,
And after a while it is growing everywhere,
And God bless the grass.

God bless the grass that grows through cement.
It's green and it's tender and it's easily bent.
But after a while it lifts up its head,
For the grass is living and the stone is dead,
And God bless the grass.

God bless the grass that's gentle and low,
Its roots they are deep and its will is to grow.
And God bless the truth, the friend of the poor,
And the wild grass growing at the poor man's door,
And God bless the grass.


Malvina Reynolds songbook(s) in which the music to this song appears:
---- The Muse of Parker Street
---- The Malvina Reynolds Songbook
---- There's Music in the Air: Songs for the Middle-Young

Other place(s) where the music to this song appears:
---- Peter Blood-Patterson: Rise Up Singing: The Group-Singing Song Book [lyrics & guitar chords only] (Bethlehem, PA: Sing Out Corp., 1988), pp. 35-36
---- Broadside No. 64 (15 November 1965)
---- Broadside No. 106 (April-May 1970)
---- For the Beauty of the Earth; An Environmental Songbook (Mendham, NJ: The Folk Project, 1993)
---- Beatrice Harrop: Someone's Singing, Lord: Hymns and Songs for Children (London: A. & C. Black, 1984)
---- Jim Morse and Nancy Mathews: The Sierra Club Songbook (San Francisco and New York: The Sierra Club, 1971)
---- Jean Ritchie and Alfred d'Auberge: The Newport Folk Festival Songbook (New York: Alfred Music, 1965)
---- Sing Out!, Volume 32(2) (1986), p. 1
---- Evelyn Weiss et al.: Children's Songs for a Friendly Planet (Burnsville, NC: World Around Songs, 1986)

Malvina Reynolds recording(s) on which this song is performed:
---- Malvina Reynolds Sings the Truth
---- Held Over
---- Malvina Reynolds...Sings the Truth (2008)
---- listen to youtube.com video

Recordings by other artists on which this song is performed:
---- Barry Bernstein: Songs of the Spirit (Healthy Sounds HS 101, 1996)
---- Mark Dvorak: Old Songs & New People (Depot Recordings, 1995)
---- Leslie Fish: It's Sister Jenny's Turn to Throw the Bomb (OCP-99, 1987)
---- John Gage: Earth Heart (Falk Recording Studios, 1997)
---- Joe Glazer: Build and Sing (Collector Records 1950C, 1991)
---- Growing Songs (Classroom Materials Co., 1973)
---- Coco Kallis: Environmental Songs for Kids (Smithsonian/Folkways Recordings SFW 45048, 1999)
---- Tom Paxton and Anne Hills: Under American Skies (Appleseed Recordings APR CD 1052, 2001)
---- Pete Seeger: God Bless the Grass (Columbia CL 2432, 1966)
---- Pete Seeger: Banks of Marble and Other Songs (Folkways FTS 31040, 1974)
---- Pete Seeger: The Essential Pete Seeger (Vanguard VSD 97 & VSD 98, 1978)
---- Dean Stevens: Love Comes to the Simple Heart (Volcano Records VR2002, 1985)
---- listen to youtube.com video
---- listen to youtube.com video
---- listen to youtube.com video
---- listen to youtube.com video
---- listen to youtube.com video
---- listen to youtube.com video
---- listen to youtube.com video


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