As we discuss safe places for the homeless during the COVID Crisis, one of our favorite songs by one of our favorite vocalist Grammy award-winning phenom Gregory Porter sings about our homeless neighbors.
You may have heard of Porter, in this past, for his hit, On My Way Too Harlem, that he won a Grammy for in 2017.
Here are the lyrics to Gregory Porter’s Take Me to the Alley:
Well, they guild their houses in preparation for the King
And they line the sidewalks
With every sort of shiny thing
They will be surprised
When they hear him sayTake me to the alley
Take me to the afflicted ones
Take me to the lonely ones
That somehow lost their wayLet them hear me say
I am your friend
Come to my table
Rest here in my garden
You will have a pardonTake me to the alley
Take me to the afflicted ones
Take me to the lonely ones
That somehow lost their wayLet them hear me say
I am your friend
Come to my table
Rest here in my garden
You will have a pardonThey will be surprised
When they hear him sayTake me to the alley
Take me to the afflicted ones
Take me to the lonely ones
That somehow lost their wayLet them hear me say
I am your friend
Come to my table
Rest here in my gardenYou will have a pardon
You will have a pardon
Oh, take me to the alley (Take me to the alley)
Take me to the afflicted ones (afflicted ones)
Take me, take me, take me, take me, take me
Porter started performing in Harlem in 2004, where he started performing in neighborhood venues including Sista’s Place and Solomon’s Porch and moved on to Harlem club St. Nick’s Pub, where he maintained a weekly residency.
His debut album, Water, was nominated for Best Jazz Vocal Album at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards. He was also a member of the original Broadway cast of It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues.
His second album, Be Good, which contains many of Porter’s compositions, garnered critical acclaim for both his distinctive singing and his compositions, such as Be Good (Lion’s Song), Real Good Hands, and On My Way Too Harlem, 2012.
Well, they guild their houses in preparation for the King.
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