Hello, I'm Christy Young, and this is a podcast from the Desert Island Discs Archive.

For rights reasons, we've had to shorten the music.

The program was originally broadcast in 1987, and the presenter was Michael Parkinson.

Autobiography can be stranger than fiction.

Indeed, it would take a novelist of exceptionally imagination to invent the story as extraordinary

as our castaways. And even if he came close, the chances are he wouldn't be believed.

Our castaways' first volume of autobiography, called I Know Why The Cage's Bird Things,

was a best seller both here and in her native America. Her fifth volume, called All God's

Children Need Traveling Shoes, has just been published. The books begin with a child growing up

with prejudice and abuse in the American South, an ending garner where the adult seeks a homecoming

in what she imagines to be the promised land. In between times she's been a writer, stripper,

political activist, waitress, editor, singer, actress, and a dancer, and a few more things besides.

She is Maya Angelou. Maya, we're going to put you on this desert island with these eight records.

Now, I assume coming from where you did to the deep South America that music, in fact,

has played a very significant part in your life. Very, yes. When do you first remember

its influence? How old would you be? Oh, probably about four or five. My grandmother had a

wonderful voice and she sang in church and she'd sing around the house unless she was asked to sing.

If I'd ask her, Mama, would you please sing? She's a not-going girl. You know Mama can't sing.

But if you'd leave her alone, she'd open this magnificent voice up and put it out in the air like

hot gold, you know, like melting gold, it seemed to me. And the only voice similar to hers that I can

remember, I mean, as I remember her voice, is Mahalia Jackson. Yeah, the first choice never

to be there has got to be Mahalia Jackson singing what? How great though art.

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