Rhiannon Giddens plays her song "At The Purchaser's Option" live in concert before a sold-out audience at SF Jazz in San Francisco, California on February 13, 2020. At The Purchaser's Option appeared on Giddens' second solo album, Freedom Highway (2017). NPR named this song one of its 200 Greatest Songs By 21st Century Women+, placing it at #30 on the list and describing it as follows: "Giddens creates a vivid picture of a slave woman in colonial America who is about to be sold and is trying decide whether to fall in love with her child. She created the tale based on an actual advertisement for a slave woman with a newborn baby, who could accompany the mother 'at the purchaser’s option.' In Giddens' determined lyrics and melody, this haunting song portrays a strong narrator who has nearly met her breaking point, but claims her soul as her own."
Joining her onstage was Francesco Turrisi (piano) and Jason Sypher (bass).
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Official Show Description
Singer, violinist, banjo player, actress, Grammy-winner, and founding member of the Carolina Chocolate Drops, Rhiannon Giddens returns with music from her new Nonesuch album, There Is No Other. The Greensboro, North Carolina native has assimilated a rich diversity of music traditions, from the country songs of her youth and the world of opera she was immersed in at Ohio’s Oberlin Conservatory to Celtic music and the gamut of African American song styles with roots in the Piedmont and the whole of the rural South. Born out of the success of the trio Sankofa Strings, Carolina Chocolate Drops have rightfully become a global phenomenon, and Giddens remains the group’s sole original member and driving force.
The multi-instrumentalist made a memorable step outside the group with her show-stopping performance at producer T Bone Burnett’s 2013 Town Hall concert, leading to Giddens’ Burnett-produced, Grammy-nominated full-length Nonesuch debut, Tomorrow is My Turn. On the heels of her 2017 MacArthur Foundation “Genius Grant” fellowship, her deeply rewarding sophomore album Freedom Highway, and this year’s Songs of Our Native Daughters, her collaborative project with fellow string masters Amythyst Kiah, Leyla McCalla, and Allison Russell, Giddens returns with There Is No Other. Produced by eminent singer and songwriter Joe Henry, the session traces the movement of sound from Africa and the Middle East to influence the musical traditions of Europe and the Americas, recorded in collaboration with Italian pianist and multi-instrumentalist Francesco Turrisi, who joins Giddens for these dates along with bassist Jason Sypher.
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At The Purchaser's Option lyrics:
I've got a babe, but shall I keep him?
'Twill come the day when I'll be weepin'
But how can I love him any less?
This little babe upon my breast
You can take my body
You can take my bones
You can take my blood
But not my soul
You can take my body
You can take my bones
You can take my blood
But not my soul
I've got a body, dark and strong
I was young but not for long
You took me to bed a little girl
Left me in a woman's world
You can take my body
You can take my bones
You can take my blood
But not my soul
You can take my body
You can take my bones
You can take my blood
But not my soul
Day by day, I work the line
Every minute overtime
Fingers nimble, fingers quick
My fingers bleed to make you rich
You can take my body
You can take my bones
You can take my blood
But not my soul
You can take my body
You can take my bones
You can take my blood
But not my soul
You can take my body
You can take my bones
You can take my blood
But not my soul
Written by Rhiannon Giddens / Joey Ryan
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Rhiannon Giddens - Live Tour Dates (2019-2020)
Dec. 1 - Edinburgh, UK @ Usher Hall
Dec. 3 - Utrecht, Netherlands @ TivoliVredenburg
Dec. 4 - Hamburg, Germany @ Fabrik
Dec. 5 - Darmstadt, Germany @ Centralstation
Dec. 7 - Cologne, Germany @ Kulturkirche
Dec. 8 - Leuven, Belgium @ Het Depot
Dec. 9 - Paris, France @ Café de la Danse
Dec. 10 - Amsterdam, Netherlands @ De Duif
Jan. 17-18 - Turin, Italy @ Torino Folk Club
Feb. 7 - Stanford, CA @ Bing Concert Hall
Feb. 13-16 - San Francisco, CA @ SFJAZZ Center
Mar. 4 - Wellington, New Zealand @ New Zealand Festival
Mar. 7 - Adelaide, Australia @ WOMADelaide Festival
Mar. 8 - Port Fairy, Australia @ Port Fairy Folk Festival
Mar. 11 - Hobart, Australia @ Museum of Old and New Art
Mar. 14 - Melbourne, Australia @ Melbourne Recital Centre
Mar. 15 - Katoomba, Australia @ Blue Mountains Music Festival
Mar. 17 - Sydney, Australia @ Metro Theatre
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