The Music of Sweet Honey in the Rock
Ranked #1,216 in Music, #32,928 overall
A Cappella Group Sweet Honey in the Rock
Sweet Honey in the Rock is the Grammy award-winning African American female a cappella ensemble founded in 1973 by, Bernice Johnson Reagon, who retired from the group in 2004.
The songs of Sweet Honey in the Rock focus on social justice, civil rights and the need for change, but also on their own experiences as women. Their music style incorporates elements of gospel music and spirituals, as well as more contemporary music styles and rhythms. Members compose most of their own music.
Currently there are five singing members. The sixth member is an American Sign Language interpreter who accompanies them in concert.
The first time I heard Sweet Honey in the Rock in concert was in 1977 or '78 while I was a grad student at the University of Michigan, living in a student housing co-op with a mixed group of social activist house-mates. A number of us went to that concert, and I was enthralled with their strong, beautiful voices and complex harmonies accompanying their messages of the need for social change.
I've included here a few YouTube videos of Sweet Honey in the Rock performing, and links for finding more of their music online.
Photo: singitonline CC BY-SA 2.0
Updated 5/10/12
The songs of Sweet Honey in the Rock focus on social justice, civil rights and the need for change, but also on their own experiences as women. Their music style incorporates elements of gospel music and spirituals, as well as more contemporary music styles and rhythms. Members compose most of their own music.
Currently there are five singing members. The sixth member is an American Sign Language interpreter who accompanies them in concert.
The first time I heard Sweet Honey in the Rock in concert was in 1977 or '78 while I was a grad student at the University of Michigan, living in a student housing co-op with a mixed group of social activist house-mates. A number of us went to that concert, and I was enthralled with their strong, beautiful voices and complex harmonies accompanying their messages of the need for social change.
I've included here a few YouTube videos of Sweet Honey in the Rock performing, and links for finding more of their music online.
Photo: singitonline CC BY-SA 2.0
Updated 5/10/12
Featured Music from Sweet Honey in the Rock
These are the featured songs I've included on this page, and are among my favorite pieces by Sweet Honey in the Rock.
Indaba: We Believe in You
The first time I heard Indaba: We Believe In You
was when I found this YouTube video by accident (I was looking for another piece of music song by VocalEssence, the chorus that is also featured on the video). I've watched it countless times now.I also love the version on Sweet Honey in the Rock's album Experience...101
.The song is of the elders talking to the children, telling them that they support them...that they believe in them. Words and music to this song are by Dr. Ysaye M. Barnwell, member of Sweet Honey in the Rock.
"Listen up, listen up young ones, listen up.....
God has sent us you beautiful young ones
In answer to our prayers
We will guide you through life's journey
You are the blessings that we all share"
We Believe in You! from Indaba
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Ella's Song
Ella Baker, of the Civil Rights Movement
The words to Ella's Song are words that were spoken by activist Ella Baker, and put to music by Bernice Johnson Reagon, founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock.Ella Baker, 1903 -- 1986, was a behind-the-scenes activist and Civil Rights Movement organizer. In the 1960's she was a strong advocate for young people and their involvement in the Civil Rights movement.
Read more on the website for the Ella Baker Center for Human Rights.
Photo of Ella Baker on Wikimedia Commons, CC 3.0 Unported retrieved from the The Ella Baker Center for Human Rights.
Ella's Song On YouTube
"We who believe in freedom can not rest,
We who believe in freedom can not rest until it comes
...
The older I get the better I know that the secret of my going on
Is when the reins are in the hand of the young who dare to run against the storm"
~ words of Ella Baker
Read the rest of the lyrics to Ella's Song on Bernice Johnson Reagon's lyrics page
The version here is also from the same VocalEssence concert as the video above of "We Believe in You".
Click Ella's Song alternate version to listen to a lovely, quieter version of this song on YouTube.
We who believe in freedom can not rest until it comes
...
The older I get the better I know that the secret of my going on
Is when the reins are in the hand of the young who dare to run against the storm"
~ words of Ella Baker
Read the rest of the lyrics to Ella's Song on Bernice Johnson Reagon's lyrics page
The version here is also from the same VocalEssence concert as the video above of "We Believe in You".
Click Ella's Song alternate version to listen to a lovely, quieter version of this song on YouTube.
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What's in a Name?
The name "Sweet Honey in the Rock" comes from Psalms 81:16
Sweet Honey in the Rock is sweet and nurturing, but also has an enduring strength and steadiness.
The Women Gather
Heart-breaking, but beautiful, powerful song on the senseless violent loss of loved ones. Breaks into another song partway through, the Nature Song (life goes on despite the tragedies), but returns to "The Women Gather".
The women gather crying
Tears that fill a million oceans
It doesn't matter where you're living
The women gather crying
Tears that fill a million oceans
It doesn't matter where you're livin'
The women gather crying
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Are We a Nation?
Sweet Honey in the Rock's response to the passage of Arizona's controversial immigration bill earlier this year, April 2010.
(Written lyrics are included in this video.)
We need a nation, joined heart to hand
We need a nation where we understand
That we are a nation.
Come together, heed the call!
(Written lyrics are included in this video.)
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On Children
Khalil Gibran's poem On Children put to music and sung by Sweet Honey in the Rock.
(Note this song ends halfway through the video....)
(Note this song ends halfway through the video....)
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Khalil Gibran On Children
On Children
Kahlil Gibran
Kahlil Gibran
Your children are not your children.
They are the sons and daughters of Life's longing for itself.
They come through you but not from you,
And though they are with you yet they belong not to you.
There Were No Mirrors in My Nana's House
Light, sweet song.
Lyrics by Ysaye M. Barnwell, member of Sweet Honey in the Rock.
See full lyrics on Ysaye M. Barnwell Lyrics Page
There were no mirrors in my Nana's house,
no mirrors in my Nana's house.
And the beauty that I saw in everything
was in her eyes (like the rising of the sun).
Lyrics by Ysaye M. Barnwell, member of Sweet Honey in the Rock.
See full lyrics on Ysaye M. Barnwell Lyrics Page
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Old Ship of Zion
Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon's last performance with Sweet Honey in the Rock
Founder Bernice Johnson Reagon retired from Sweet Honey in the Rock in 2004, after 30 years with the group. It was time to move on.
Here they're singing an encore number, "Old Ship of Zion".
Here they're singing an encore number, "Old Ship of Zion".
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Let There Be Peace
"Most people want the same thing...peace...
We don't always have to fight -- sometimes we can stand for peace."
Stand up for freedom,
Freedom til he come.
Stand up for freedom
Freedom til he come.
We don't always have to fight -- sometimes we can stand for peace."
Stand up for freedom,
Freedom til he come.
Stand up for freedom
Freedom til he come.
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What is your favorite song on this page?
Let me know what your favorite YouTube video is on this page.
If you have another favorite Sweet Honey in the Rock song, or another favorite version of one of the songs here, let me know in the Comments section below.
Image from Wikipedia, CC 2.0
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Sweet Honey in the Rock in Concert
My husband and I had the wonderful opportunity to hear Sweet Honey in the Rock in concert at Hill Auditorium in Ann Arbor Michigan, on February 17, 2012. I was particularly thrilled because it had been a number of years since I've heard them in concert.
The only song from this page that they also sang in their concert was "Ella's Song", which was the encore.
The concert was very enjoyable, including 13 songs from the spiritual "I've Been 'Buked and I've Been Scorned" at the beginning, to "Ella's Song". A couple of interesting selections. My favorite was probably Nina Simone's "See Line Woman" (or Sea Lion, or Sielah -- apparently it's spelled a few different ways), sung by Ysaye Barnwell, as a "cautionary tale about fast living" (and she can move!).
The only song from this page that they also sang in their concert was "Ella's Song", which was the encore.
The concert was very enjoyable, including 13 songs from the spiritual "I've Been 'Buked and I've Been Scorned" at the beginning, to "Ella's Song". A couple of interesting selections. My favorite was probably Nina Simone's "See Line Woman" (or Sea Lion, or Sielah -- apparently it's spelled a few different ways), sung by Ysaye Barnwell, as a "cautionary tale about fast living" (and she can move!).
Sweet Honey in the Rock in the News
Check out recent news items about Sweet Honey in the Rock.
- Wanda's Picks for June 2012
- They went with a group of 20 to UC Berkeley to hear Sweet Honey in the Rock, Wanda's first concert in 27 years. The next three photos are from the same event. ? Photo: Wanda Sabir I would like to wish all the fathers a blessed and happy Fathers' Day ...
- In song and struggle, Barbara Dane a singular voice
- Bernice Johnson Reagon, the singer, composer, cultural scholar, and founder of the a cappella group Sweet Honey in the Rock, witnessed Dane's powerful performances first hand. (Dane also produced Reagon's 1975 album, ?Give Your Hands to Struggle,? for ...
- Young people: Whose eyes are on the prize?
- She reminded me of a song by the a cappella group called Sweet Honey in the Rock, six black women who blend their voices in a way I find simply astonishing. The song is "Ella's Song," and it is, like all of Sweet Honey in the Rock's music, ...
- Johnny Clegg coming to Infinity Music Hall
- Singer, songwriter, guitarist, dancer, and anthropologist Clegg's groundbreaking fusion of Western pop/rock, traditional Zulu and contemporary rhythms and instrumentation, sociopolitical lyrics, and his formation in the late'70s of Juluka, ...
Sweet Honey in the Rock on Amazon.com
Sweet Honey in the Rock albums can be purchased in most cases either as CDs or mp3 downloads.
Sweet Honey in the Rock on iTunes
Most of the songs featured on this page can be purchased through iTunes.
| Track | Artist | Album | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Indaba: We Believe In You | Sweet Honey In the Rock | Experience 101 | |
| Ella's Song | Sweet Honey In the Rock | Breaths | |
| Are We A Nation? | Sweet Honey In the Rock | Are We A Nation? - Single | |
| On Children | Sweet Honey In the Rock | Breaths | |
| Old Ship of Zion | Sweet Honey In the Rock | Raise Your Voice |
Sweet Honey in the Rock on eBay
Read More About Sweet Honey in the Rock
These are some of the sources I used for the information on this page.
- Sweet Honey In The Rock
- Website of Sweet Honey in the Rock
Includes audio. - Bernice Johnson Reagon: songtalker
- The official website for Dr. Bernice Johnson Reagon: composer, musician, songtalker, scholar, performer, historian, teacher, producer, director, author, public speaker, activist. Founder of Sweet Honey in the Rock
Includes audio. - Dr. Ysaye M Barnwell & Barnwell's Notes, Inc, Barnwell's Notes Publishing
- Dr. Ysaye M Barnwell is a member of Sweet Honey in the Rock. She is a singer, composer, arranger, teacher, researcher, and author.
Includes audio. - Sweet Honey in the Rock - About Sweet Honey in the Rock | American Masters
- Sweet Honey In The Rock is uniquely distinct from all of these groups. She is even different from Mamie Forehand, though, like Forehand and these groups, she makes melody, harmony, rhythm and message.
- Sweet Honey in the Rock hits Hill tonight | The Michigan Daily
- A group formed during an era of prominent social protests, Sweet Honey in the Rock makes music inspired by a belief in openly expressing the need for a more equal and unified world.
- Sweet Honey In The Rock womens vocal ensemble | www.Singers.com
- Sweet Honey in the Rock - The acclaimed womens a cappella vocal ensemble
- Interview with Bernice Johnson Reagon in 2003
- Bernice Johnson Reagon talks about her decision to leave Sweet Honey in the Rock after 30 years.
Have You Listened to Sweet Honey in the Rock?
What did you think?
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MTF-briguy
Dec 19, 2010 @ 3:49 pm | delete
- Thanks for introducing me to the group, Sweet Honey in the Rock! They have such great voices!
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Jodi_k Dec 19, 2010 @ 3:43 pm | delete
- Yes, and I saw them in concert at Carnegie Hall. Blessed by a squid angel.
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Irenemaria
Dec 19, 2010 @ 5:47 am | delete
- Thank you for this introduction to a group that is owning my ears.
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ohcaroline
Dec 18, 2010 @ 10:25 pm | delete
- Some amazing women walking out their passion.
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ohcaroline
Dec 18, 2010 @ 10:25 pm | delete
- Some amazing women walking out their passion.
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by kajohu
I went to my first "Sweet Honey in the Rock" concert in 1977 or 1978, when they were still a rather young group. I loved them even back then. more »
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There Were No Mirrors in My Nana's House
No Mirrors in My Nana's House
Amazon Price: $22.19 (as of 06/04/2012)
Beautifully illustrated chidren's book with the words of Ysaye M. Barnwell's song of the same name.
A CD of the song, sung by Sweet Honey in the Rock, is included with the book.
Singing in the African American Tradition
Ysaye Barnwell, author
Singing in the African American Tradition (Vocal Method)
Amazon Price: $31.75 (as of 06/04/2012)
Product Description
Anyone who loves to sing will be thrilled by the material on these four CDs! A founding member of Sweet Honey in the Rock teaches multiple part-singing - melodies, harmonies, rhythms and counter-melodies - to more than 20 inspiring songs: African chants, spirituals, gospel songs and anthems of the American Civil Rights and African freedom movements.
