Florida may get a new state song..

..and it may be this one.

I haven't heard the new one yet, but it's got to beat the current "Old Folks at Home". No, it's not about retirement villages in Sebring.

Actually, the songwriter never set foot in this state. The only connection with Florida the song has is the Suwannee River, a name that Stephen Foster found in a map.

The song was written in 1851. The words have been cleaned up over the years, but let me show you the original words and you'll understand why The Sunshine State can do better:

Way down upon de Swanee ribber,
Far, far away,
Dere's wha my heart is turning ebber,
Dere's wha de old folks stay.
All up and down de whole creation
Sadly I roam,
Still longing for de old plantation
And for de old folks at home.

Chorus

All de world am sad and dreary,
Ebry where I roam,
Oh! darkies how my heart grows weary,
Far from de old folks at home.

All round de little farm I wandered
When I was young,
Den many happy days I squandered,
Many de songs I sung.
When I was playing wid my brudder
Happy was I
Oh! take me to my kind old mudder,
Dere let me live and die.

Chorus

One little hut amond de bushes,
One dat I love,
Still sadly to my mem'ry rushes,
No matter where I rove
When will I see de bees a humming
All round de comb?
When will I hear de banjo tumming
Down in my good old home?

Chorus

"Oh! darkies how my heart grows weary". That line just rolls right off the tongue, don't it? What ever succeeds it will be an improvement.

What's Jersey's state song? Springsteen's Born to Run?