LibriVox volunteers bring you 11 recordings of:
“A Song For New Year’s Eve” by William Cullen Bryant (1794-1878).
This was the weekly poetry project for December 30th, 2012 to January 6th, 2013.
William Cullen Bryant was an American Romantic poet. He wrote this poem in 1859. We are recording it to celebrate the end of 2012 and the beginning of 2013. (Summary by Charlotte Duckett)
This project is catalogued at:
LibriVox and Internet Archive.
The poem text can also be found at this address.
My recording of this week’s poem has a running time of 1m 49s.
You can listen to it now, by clicking the following play button;
or feel free to download it in a choice of 3 formats:
mp3 128kb : mp3 64kb : ogg vorbis
The entire project, featuring all 11 readers of this week’s poem, is also available at this link.
The zip file size is 10.2MB with a total running time of 21m 22s.
All the files contained inside the zip are mp3, all with a bitrate of 64kb.
In addition to the readers, this audio book was produced by:
Book Coordinator: Charlotte Duckett
Meta-Coordinator/Cataloging: David Lawrence
A Song For New Year’s Eve
Stay yet, my friends, a moment stay‚—
Stay till the good old year,
So long companion of our way,
Shakes hands, and leaves us here.
Oh stay, oh stay,
One little hour, and then away.The year, whose hopes were high and strong,
Has now no hopes to wake;
Yet one hour more of jest and song
For his familiar sake.
Oh stay, oh stay,
One mirthful hour, and then away.The kindly year, his liberal hands
Have lavished all his store.
And shall we turn from where he stands,
Because he gives no more?
Oh stay, oh stay,
One grateful hour, and then away.Days brightly came and calmly went,
While yet he was our guest;
How cheerfully the week was spent!
How sweet the seventh day’s rest!
Oh stay, oh stay,
One golden hour, and then away.Dear friends were with us, some who sleep
Beneath the coffin-lid:
What pleasant memories we keep
Of all they said and did!
Oh stay, oh stay,
One tender hour, and then away.Even while we sing, he smiles his last,
And leaves our sphere behind.
The good old year is with the past;
Oh be the new as kind!
Oh stay, oh stay,
One parting strain, and then away.
