"Rivers of My Fathers" is a song by American recording artist Gil Scott-Heron and musician Brian Jackson. It was written and composed by Scott-Heron and Jackson for their first collaborative album, Winter in America (1974). The song was recorded on October 15, 1973 at D&B Sound Studio in Silver Spring, Maryland and produced by Scott-Heron and Jackson with assistance from engineer Jose Williams.
"Rivers of My Fathers" is a soul song with a jazz arrangement and bluesy, minor chords piano by Jackson. Scott-Heron's Afrocentric lyrics make references to African-American cultural roots and slavery. Although it was not released as a single, the song was recognized by writers for its instrumentation and theme of cultural significance, and regarded as one of Scott-Heron's best compositions.
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Famous quotes containing the words rivers of, rivers and/or fathers:
“I remember once dreaming of pushing a canoe up the rivers of Maine, and that, when I had got so high that the channels were dry, I kept on through the ravines and gorges, nearly as well as before, by pushing a little harder, and now it seemed to me that my dream was partially realized.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down, yea, we wept: when we remembered Zion.”
—Bible: Hebrew Psalms, 137:1.
“The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”
—Bible: Hebrew Ezekiel 18:2.