The 24 songs in Swedish were composed between 1943 and 1945.[1] At this time, Pettersson was violist at the Stockholm Concert Society.[1] The text of the songs was written by Pettersson himself and is partly autobiographical.[2] The main topic of the song cycle is his youth in poverty. The diatonic songs were kept simple, but the text is not easy to understand and uses a highly poetic and cryptic language.[1] Pettersson wrote over 100 poems, but only 24 were set to music.[3] The Swedish Broadcasting Corporation and his publisher Nordiska Musikförlaget initially refused to publish the songs.[2][3] The cycle was first published in 1976.[4] Musicologist Andreas Krause has posited that the name Barefoot Songs is a reminiscence and tribute to Schubert's Winterreise.[5][1] "Barefoot on the ice" is a quotation from the 24th and last song Der Leiermann.[1] Some songs are reminiscent of ballads or romances, folk songs or hymns and Schubert's Winterreise.[6]
Pettersson quoted songs from his 24 Barefoot Songs in several of his larger scale compositions. His 6th Symphony cites the song Han ska släcka min lykta (He Will Extinguish My Light), the 14th Symphony cites Klokar och knythänder (Wise Men and Clenched Hands) and Violin Concerto No. 2 cites Herren går på ängen (The Lord Walks in the Meadow).[3]
^ abcdeMeyer, Andreas K.W. (1998). Allan Pettersson: Complete Songs (booklet). Groop, Garben. CPO. OCLC313257791. cpo 999 499-2.
^ abHedman, Frank (1974). Allan Pettersson: 6 Sånger, Barfotasånger (booklet). Rödin, Saedén, Östman. Stockholm: Swedish Society Discofil. OCLC7385656. SCD 1033.
^ abcdKube, Michael (2009). Allan Pettersson: 8 Barfotasånger (booklet). Larsson, Lindberg, Nordic Chamber Orchestra. BIS Records. OCLC611391849. BIS-CD-1690.
Hedman, Frank; Pettersson, Allan (1976). Tjugofyra Barfotasånger och andra dikter [24 Barefoot songs and other poems] (in Swedish). Stockholm: Rabén & Sjögren. ISBN978-91-29-46121-3.
Krause, Andreas (1989). "Pettersson – Schubert – Leibowitz". In Im Auftrag der Internationalen Allan-Pettersson-Gesellschaft von Michael Kube (ed.). Allan Pettersson Jahrbuch. 1989 (in German). Saarbrücken: Pfau Verlag. pp. 85–100. ISBN978-3-89727-195-1.