by Miles Peter Andrews (1742 - 1814)
A smile and a tear : a favorite song
Language: English
You own I'm complacent, but tell me I'm cold, Then must I my youth's early sorrows unfold, Must waken remembrance to joys that are fled, Now hope is extinguished and passion is dead. I have lost in life's morn all that life could endear, And if I seem cheerful, I smile thro' a tear. My parents, tho' humble, were happy and good, We could boast of our honour, if not of our blood; My lover, ah! how the sad tale shall I tell, for his country he fought - for his country he fell. He was brave, he was true, to my soul he was dear, his fame claims a smile, but it shines tro' a tear. In vain would I picture my agonized heart, My parents' soft soothings no balm could impart; They sunk o'er the child whom they could not relieve, And the cold hand of death left me only to grieve. Thus fated to suffer, that moment draws near, When you'll neither distinguish a smile nor a tear.
Authorship:
- by Miles Peter Andrews (1742 - 1814) [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Harriet Abrams (1760 - 1825), "A smile and a tear : a favorite song", published 1800? [ voice and piano or harp ], London : L. Lavenu [sung text checked 1 time]
Researcher for this page: Johann Winkler
This text was added to the website: 2020-04-07
Line count: 18
Word count: 171