Maybe I’m wrong, but there don’t seem to be all that many Thanksgiving songs-- certainly not compared to the gazillions of Christmas-themed tunes.  The old standards “We Gather Together” and “Come, Ye Thankful People, Come” that I remember from the Methodist hymnal are deeply ingrained, of course.   I recommend to you David Roth’s “May The Light Of Love.”  And there is Ken Hicks’s “All The Good People,” although that is a more general song of gratitude than specific to the annual American November feast-day.  Someday I’ll post a good recording of an earlier attempt of mine called “Give A Little Thanks.”  

For the moment, though, here is my addition to what I think of as a limited genre. 

 

© 2015 Steven E. Cutts 
a Studio C recording, Fall 2015 

 

Let’s think a minute about this Thanksgiving 

And about our existence that’s got very little missing – 

Of the opportunities in this lucky life we’re living; 

Is there gratitude deep inside your soul? 

  
We sing of America’s great autumn tradition 

From back through the centuries, a humble recognition 

Of the bounty of the field and the gifts from the kitchen; 

Can you feel the Pilgrims’ pride down in your soul? 

  
It’s a time for family, friends, and neighbors; 

It’s a brief pause, a rest from our labors 

Full of warmth, grace, recipes we savor. 

It’s a feast meant to fill up the soul. 

  
The gathering in again  --  coming home in November – 

Relations who have passed whom we pause to remember – 

Sitting ‘round the picture-perfect table Norman Rockwell rendered – 

Do the ties that bind wind around your soul?   

  
Cranberries, pumpkin, the turkey on a platter,  

Or vegan, Italian, it really doesn’t matter; 

Every new dish makes the holiday grow a little grander. 

Will this very special meal refresh your soul?