Southern trees bear a strange fruit
Blood on the leaves and blood at the root
Black body swinging in the southern breeze
Stange fruit hanging from the poplar trees

Pastoral scene of the gallant south
The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth
Scent of magnolia, sweet and fresh
Then the sudden smell of burning flesh

Here is a fruit for the crows to pluck,
For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,
For the sun to rot, for the tree to drop
Here is a strange and bitter crop

This song, originally written as a poem by Abel Meeropol, is a blunt and roar-intending account on the horrors of lynching. "Strange Fruit" was given its legacy by legendary Jazz singer Billie Holiday and is regarded by some to be the kickstarter for the Civil Rights movement.

In my Music 121 class, my professor decided to place the majority of the semester's lesson on this one song. She stated her reason being she wanted to make it imperative the impact music can have on a nation, and ultimately the world.

I had known very little of this song until this semester, and now I find myself listening to it multiple times on a nearly daily basis. It isn't so much as that I am an African American, rather than that I can hear Holiday's pain as she sings the song. The nature of the song is very powerful, and I very much applaud and admire Holiday for being able to sing this song in the 1930s, and for tweny years afterward.



I often wonder how many people know of this song and its history, so I made this thread for us to share our thoughts on it. I know it has been a long time since such times, and racism today is generally viewed with the upmost disgust, but I felt this song deserved due recognition.

Below is a link to what may be Billie Holiday's greatest performance of the song.

Billie Holiday - Strange Fruit