African American Poetry: A Digital Anthology

Langston Hughes, "Harlem Night Club" (1926)

Sleek black boys in a cabaret.
Jazz-band , jazz-band,----
Play, plAY, PLAY!
Tomorrow. . . . who knows?
Dance today!

White girls' eyes
Call gay black boys.
Black boys' lips
Grin jungle joys.

Dark brown girls
In blond men's arms.
Jazz-band, jazz-band,----
Sing Eve's charms!

White ones, brown ones,
What do you know
About tomorrow
Where all paths go?

Jazz-boys, jazz-boys,
Play, plAY, PLAY!
Tomorrow. . . . is darkness.
Joy today!


Published in The Weary Blues, 1926

This page has paths:

This page has tags: