Song of Louisiana

LA State Symbols
Song of Louisiana
By Nora Kirkeby
Jun 30, 2006, 12:25 PST

Give Me Louisiana (State Song)

Words and Music by Doralice Fontane
Adopted in 1970

Give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
The state of snowy cotton,
The best I've ever known;
A state of sweet magnolias
And creole melodies
Oh give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
Oh what sweet old mem'ries
The mossy old oaks bring
It brings us the story of our Evangeline
A state of old tradition,
Of old plantation days
Makes good old Louisiana
The sweetest of all states.

Give me Louisiana,
A state prepared to share
That good old southern custom,
Hospitality so rare;
A state of fruit and flowers,
Of sunshine and spring showers
Oh give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
Its woodlands, Its marshes
Where humble trappers live
Its rivers, Its valleys,
A place to always give
A state where work is pleasure,
With blessings in full measure
Makes good old Louisiana
The dearest of all states.

Give me Louisiana,
Where love birds always sing
In shady lanes or pastures,
The cowbells softly ring;
The softness of the sunset
Brings peace and blissful rest
Oh give me Louisiana,
The state where I was born
The smell of sweet clover
Which blossoms ev'rywhere
The fresh new mown hay
Where children romp and play
A state of love and laughter,
A state for all here after
Makes good old Louisiana
The grandest of all states.

Listen to the music for Give Me Louisiana
Courtesy of HomewithGod

Photo courtesy of the Public Domain

You Are My Sunshine (State Song)

Words and Music by Jimmie H. Davis and Charles Mitchell

The other night, dear
As I lay sleeping
I dreamed I held you in my arms.
When I awoke, dear
I was mistaken
And I hung my head and cried;

CHORUS:
YOU ARE MY SUNSHINE
My only sunshine
You make me happy
When skies are grey
You'll never know dear
How much I love you
Please don't take my sunshine away.

I'll always love you
And make you happy
If you will only say the same
But if you leave me
To love another
You'll regret it all some day;

Chorus

You told me once, dear
You really loved me
And no one else could come between
But now you've left me
And love another
You have shattered all my dreams;

Chorus

Louisiana my Louisiana
the place where I was borne.
White fields of cotton
-- green fields clover,
the best fishing
and long tall corn;

Chorus

Crawfish gumbo and jambalaya
the biggest shrimp and sugar cane,
the finest oysters
and sweet strawberries
from Toledo Bend to New Orleans;

Chorus

Listen to the music for You Are My Sunshine
Courtesy of HomewithGod

Photo of Bayou Cocodrie National Wildlife Refuge, Louisiana
Courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Digital Library System

Louisiana My Home Sweet Home

Lyrings by Sammie McKenzie and Lou Levoy
Music by Castro Carazo

Kissed by the Gulf's mighty stream,
A lovely state, LOUISIANA,
Where sweet magnolias, so rare,
Perfume the air
With fragrance that's supreme.
God bless our lovely state.
It's a paradise right here on earth.

CHORUS:
LOUISIANA, LOUISIANA,
It's beauty's always aglow.
Moss covered shade trees
Sway in the cool breeze
While lazy bayous flow.
The sugar cane gleams
Beneath the moonbeams
That light the Heaven's silvr'y dome.
Deep in the Southland
There is a dreamland:
LOUISIANA, my home, sweet home.

Photo Courtesy of the Public Domain

The Gifts of Earth (State Environmental Song)

Lyrics and Music by Frances LeBeau of East Carroll Parish
Adopted in 1990

See the world around you,
All the wonders of the land,
The woods and fields and flowers,
Sunny skies and seas and sands.

It's a gift for all the people,
To live in this great land,
Where the beauty all around us,
Teaches us to understand...

That the gifts of earth are in our hands.
To life we hold the key.
So let's clean America, make our land
A home for you and me.

Take a look around you,
All the wonders of the land.
Think about tomorrow.
Take the time to understand...

That the gifts of earth are in our hands.
To life we hold the key.
So let's clean America, make our land
A home for you and me.

Photo by Gary M. Stolz
From the Washington DC Library
Courtesy of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service Digital Library System