STRANGEFRUIT Sung by Billie Holiday

Southern trees bear strange fruit,

Blood on the leaves and blood at the root,

Black bodies swinging in the southern breeze,

Strange fruit hanging from the poplar trees.

Pastoral scene of the gallant south,

The bulging eyes and the twisted mouth,

Scent of magnolias, sweet and fresh,

Then the sudden smell of burning flesh.

Here is fruit for the crows to pluck,

For the rain to gather, for the wind to suck,

For the sun to rot, for the trees to drop,

Here is a strange and bitter crop.

Lyrics © EMI Music Publishing, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.

Written by Frost,Damon/Phiri,Aaron

Lyrics data provided by LyricFind

For non-commercial use only

Strange Fruit

(1939 Single Version)

LYRICS by Billie Holiday

This song is an example of how the words in Negro spirituals of slavery were used to convey hidden messages for those who knew how to interpret them.