“Silver Threads Among the Gold”
Darling, I am growing old,
Silver threads among the gold
Shine upon my brow today,
Life is fading fast away.
But, my darling, you will be, will be,
Always young and fair to me,
Yes, my darling, you will be,
Always young and fair to me.
Chorus:
Darling, I am growing old,
Silver threads among the gold,
Shine upon my brow today,
Life is fading fast away.
When your hair is silver white,
And your cheeks no longer bright,
With the roses of the May,
I will kiss your lips and say:
Oh! my darling, mine alone, alone,
You have never older grown,
Yes, my darling, mine alone,
You have never older grown.
Chorus:
Love can never more grow old.
Locks may lose their brown and gold,
Cheeks may fade and hollow grow,
But the hearts that love will know,
Never, never, winter's frost and chill,
Summer warmth is in them still;
Never winter's frost and chill,
Summer warmth is in them still.
Chorus:
Love is always young and fair.
What to us is silver hair,
Faded cheeks or steps grown slow,
To the heart that beats below?
Since I kissed you, mine alone, alone,
You have never older grown;
Since I kissed you, mine alone,
You have never older grown.
“Silver Threads Among the Gold” was written by H.
P. Danks in 1872, based on a poem by Eben Rexford. Its pattern of alternating
verses with a repeated chorus, first found in minstrel songs of the 1840s,
had become the standard popular song form by the 1870s. Danks, already one
of the nation’s most successful songwriters, scored a huge hit with “Silver
Threads.” He sold over 300,000 copies of the song in America directly
following its release. Sales topped 2,000,000 by the turn of the century.
You can examine “Silver Threads” within the historical
context of the sheet music industry of the 1870s, but there are many other
ways of understanding the song. Through its long life, the song has been sung
by a variety of singers in dramatically different contexts. Can you guess
the contexts in which the song was found?
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here to
read
the lyrics to “The Old Toiler’s Message”
