Uncertain are your days here below, here below,Uncertain are your days here below,Uncertain are your days, for God hath many waysTo bring you to your graves here below, here below,To bring you to your graves here below.
Uncertain are your days here below, here below,
Uncertain are your days here below,
Uncertain are your days, for God hath many ways
To bring you to your graves here below, here below,
To bring you to your graves here below.
The God that built the sky, great I AM, great I AM,The God that built the sky, great I AM,The God that built the sky, hath said, (and cannot lie),Impenitents shall die, and be damn’d, and be damn’d,Impenitents shall die, and be damn’d.
The God that built the sky, great I AM, great I AM,
The God that built the sky, great I AM,
The God that built the sky, hath said, (and cannot lie),
Impenitents shall die, and be damn’d, and be damn’d,
Impenitents shall die, and be damn’d.
And, O my friends, don’t you, I entreat, I entreat,And, O my friends, don’t you, I entreat,And, O my friends, don’t you your carnal mirth pursue,Your guilty souls undo, I entreat, I entreat,Your guilty souls undo, I entreat.
And, O my friends, don’t you, I entreat, I entreat,
And, O my friends, don’t you, I entreat,
And, O my friends, don’t you your carnal mirth pursue,
Your guilty souls undo, I entreat, I entreat,
Your guilty souls undo, I entreat.
Unto the Saviour flee, ’scape for life! ’scape for life!Unto the Saviour flee, ’scape for life!Unto the Saviour flee, lest death eternal beYour final destiny, ’scape for life! ’scape for life!Your final destiny, ’scape for life!
Unto the Saviour flee, ’scape for life! ’scape for life!
Unto the Saviour flee, ’scape for life!
Unto the Saviour flee, lest death eternal be
Your final destiny, ’scape for life! ’scape for life!
Your final destiny, ’scape for life!
The mood of the poem indicates a considerable age for it. That the song as a whole was decidedly among the stock of orally transmitted ones is indicated by the many claimants to its authorship. Such claimants in the southern books are F. Price, William Caldwell, James Carrell and Ananias Davisson. Found also, UH 56, KNH 108, HH 225, SKH 66, CHH 361. The stanzaic form is that of ‘Captain Kidd’ in this collection. In hisChristian Harmony, William Walker adds the note that “I learned it [the tune] from my dear mother (who now sings in heaven) when I was only three years old,—the first tune I ever learned.” That was in 1812. That the song was even older, however, is shown by its appearance in Ingalls’Christian Harmonyof 1805, p. 39.
Hexatonic, mode 2 A (I II 3 IV V — 7)
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Did Christ o’er sinners weep?And shall our cheeks be dry?Let floods of penitential griefBurst forth from every eye.
Did Christ o’er sinners weep?
And shall our cheeks be dry?
Let floods of penitential grief
Burst forth from every eye.
The Son of God in tears,Angels with wonder see;Be thou astonished, O my soul;He shed those tears for thee.
The Son of God in tears,
Angels with wonder see;
Be thou astonished, O my soul;
He shed those tears for thee.
He wept that we might weep;Each sin demands a tear;In heav’n alone no sin is found,And there’s no weeping there.
He wept that we might weep;
Each sin demands a tear;
In heav’n alone no sin is found,
And there’s no weeping there.
The text is attributed to Benjamin Beddome, and the tune to Joseph Barnby, and to E. J. King. The first, sixth, and seventh measures had only quarter notes in theSacred Harp. The slurred eighth notes are inserted from a variant of the tune found in theOlive Leaf. They represent probably an effort on the part of the editor of that song book to present the tune as really sung.
Hexatonic, mode 2, b (I — 3 IV V 6 7)
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Do I not love thee, O my Lord?Behold my heart and see;And turn each cursed idol out,That dares to rival thee.
Do I not love thee, O my Lord?
Behold my heart and see;
And turn each cursed idol out,
That dares to rival thee.
Hast thou a lamb in all thy flockI would disdain to feed?Hast thou a foe before whose faceI fear thy cause to plead?
Hast thou a lamb in all thy flock
I would disdain to feed?
Hast thou a foe before whose face
I fear thy cause to plead?
Would not my ardent spirit vieWith angels ’round thy throne,To execute thy sacred will,And make thy glory known?
Would not my ardent spirit vie
With angels ’round thy throne,
To execute thy sacred will,
And make thy glory known?
Thou know’st I love thee, dearest Lord,But Oh! I long to soarFar from the sphere of mortal joys,That I may love thee more.
Thou know’st I love thee, dearest Lord,
But Oh! I long to soar
Far from the sphere of mortal joys,
That I may love thee more.
Philip Doddridge is credited with the words. The tune is attributed to ‘Bradshaw’ in theSouthern Harmony. Found also, UH 33, KNH 23, OSH 39, HH 158, SOC 175, HOC 22, WP 24, SKH 85, GOS 282. The melody is similar to a number of those given by Sharp (i., 150ff.) with ‘The Wife of Usher’s Well’.
Hexatonic, mode 4 b minorized (I II 3 IV V — 7 [VII])
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If I in thy likeness, O Lord, may awake,And shine a pure image of thee;Then I shall be satisfied when I can breakThese fetters of flesh and be free.I know this stain’d tablet must first be wash’d white,To let thy bright features be drawn,I know I must suffer the darkness of night,To welcome the coming of dawn.
If I in thy likeness, O Lord, may awake,
And shine a pure image of thee;
Then I shall be satisfied when I can break
These fetters of flesh and be free.
I know this stain’d tablet must first be wash’d white,
To let thy bright features be drawn,
I know I must suffer the darkness of night,
To welcome the coming of dawn.
Then I shall be satisfied when I can castThe shadows of nature all by,When this cold dreary world from my vision is past,And let this soul open her eye.I gladly shall feel the blest morn drawing near,When time’s dreary fancy shall fade,If then in thy likeness I may but appear,I rise with thy beauty arrayed.
Then I shall be satisfied when I can cast
The shadows of nature all by,
When this cold dreary world from my vision is past,
And let this soul open her eye.
I gladly shall feel the blest morn drawing near,
When time’s dreary fancy shall fade,
If then in thy likeness I may but appear,
I rise with thy beauty arrayed.
One more stanza of text in theRevivalist. The song is used “as sung by Rev. G. C. Wells.” It is reminiscent of the ‘Henry Martin’ tune; see Gould and Sharp,English Folk-Songs for Schools, p. 22.
Heptatonic aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)
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How tedious and tasteless the hoursWhen Jesus no longer I see!Sweet prospects, sweet birds, and sweet flowersHave all lost their sweetness to me,Have all lost their sweetness to me.
How tedious and tasteless the hours
When Jesus no longer I see!
Sweet prospects, sweet birds, and sweet flowers
Have all lost their sweetness to me,
Have all lost their sweetness to me.
The tune is attributed, in theSacred Harp, to J. T. White, a Georgian, and is dated 1844. It is a variant of ‘When the Cock Crows it is Day’, Petrie, No. 478. The fuller text, attributed to John Newton, is given under the song ‘Green Fields’ in this collection.
From its first appearance in 1835 up to the time of the Civil War, 600,000 copies ofThe Southern Harmonywent into southern homes. Twenty-four songs from this book are in the present collection.
From its first appearance in 1835 up to the time of the Civil War, 600,000 copies ofThe Southern Harmonywent into southern homes. Twenty-four songs from this book are in the present collection.
William (Singin’ Billy) Walker, of Spartanburg, South Carolina, was perhaps the foremost among those singing masters who welded folk to folk-song. In all his singing schools throughout the southeastern states his handbook was his own excellent collection of spiritual folk-tunes,The Southern Harmony.
William (Singin’ Billy) Walker, of Spartanburg, South Carolina, was perhaps the foremost among those singing masters who welded folk to folk-song. In all his singing schools throughout the southeastern states his handbook was his own excellent collection of spiritual folk-tunes,The Southern Harmony.
In the neglected Magnolia Cemetery in Spartanburgthis grave stone was recently found lying flat on the ground. The wording below the representation of Walker’s last song book,The Christian Harmony, reads:INMemory ofWm. WALKER, A. S. H.[17]Died Sept. 24th, 1875, in the 67th year of his age. He was a devoted Husband & kind Father. A consistent Baptist 47 years. Taught music 45 yrs. The Author of 4 Books of sacred music. He rests from his labors. He died in the triumphs of faith.Sing praises unto the Lord.
In the neglected Magnolia Cemetery in Spartanburgthis grave stone was recently found lying flat on the ground. The wording below the representation of Walker’s last song book,The Christian Harmony, reads:
INMemory ofWm. WALKER, A. S. H.[17]
Died Sept. 24th, 1875, in the 67th year of his age. He was a devoted Husband & kind Father. A consistent Baptist 47 years. Taught music 45 yrs. The Author of 4 Books of sacred music. He rests from his labors. He died in the triumphs of faith.
Sing praises unto the Lord.
Hexatonic, mode 3 A (I II III — V VI VII)
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Come life, come death, come then what will,Jesus is my friend.His foot-steps I will follow still,Jesus is my friend.Jesus is my friend,O hallelujah!Jesus is my friend.
Come life, come death, come then what will,
Jesus is my friend.
His foot-steps I will follow still,
Jesus is my friend.
Jesus is my friend,
O hallelujah!
Jesus is my friend.
In theSacred Harpof 1859 this song, tune and words, is attributed to the Georgian, J. P. Rees. I have heard my negro servant, Annie Ware, singing it, or fragments of it including the final phrase, “Jesus is my friend,” in Nashville, Tennessee, 1932. It is found also GOS 652.
Heptatonic ionian, mode 3 A + b (I II III IV V VI VII)
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O when shall I see JesusAnd reign with him above,And from the flowing fountainDrink everlasting love,And to glory I will go,And to glory I will go, will go, will go,And to glory I will go.
O when shall I see Jesus
And reign with him above,
And from the flowing fountain
Drink everlasting love,
And to glory I will go,
And to glory I will go, will go, will go,
And to glory I will go.
The words are by John Leland. The old tune seems to have been wedded to the above text by E. L. King, about 1844, according to theOriginal Sacred Harp. John G. McCurry applied the same tune to a text beginning:
I’d rather live a beggarWhile here on earth I stay
I’d rather live a beggar
While here on earth I stay
and ending with the refrain
And to begging I will go.
And to begging I will go.
See ‘Beggar’ in this collection where there are references to the seventeenth century prototype of the above song. Further stanzas of the above spiritual text are given under ‘Faithful Soldier’.
Pentatonic, mode 2 (I — 3 IV V — 7)
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Farewell, vain world, I’m going home,To play on the golden harp;My Savior smiles and bids me come,To play on the golden harp.ChorusI want to be where Jesus is,To play on the golden harp.To play on the golden harp,To play on the golden harp;I want to be where Jesus is,To play on the golden harp.
Farewell, vain world, I’m going home,
To play on the golden harp;
My Savior smiles and bids me come,
To play on the golden harp.
Chorus
I want to be where Jesus is,
To play on the golden harp.
To play on the golden harp,
To play on the golden harp;
I want to be where Jesus is,
To play on the golden harp.
Sweet angels beckon me awayTo sing God’s praise in endless day.
Sweet angels beckon me away
To sing God’s praise in endless day.
I’m glad that I am born to die,From grief and woe my soul shall fly.
I’m glad that I am born to die,
From grief and woe my soul shall fly.
Bright angels shall convey me home,Away to New Jerusalem.
Bright angels shall convey me home,
Away to New Jerusalem.
I’ll praise my Master while I’ve breath,I hope to praise him after death.
I’ll praise my Master while I’ve breath,
I hope to praise him after death.
I hope to praise him when I die,And shout salvation as I fly.
I hope to praise him when I die,
And shout salvation as I fly.
I soon shall pass this vale of death,And in his arms I’ll lose my breath.
I soon shall pass this vale of death,
And in his arms I’ll lose my breath.
And then my happy soul shall tellMy Jesus hath done all things well.
And then my happy soul shall tell
My Jesus hath done all things well.
Recorded in 1869 for the edition of theSacred Harpwhich appeared in that year. The tune stems from some variants of ‘Come all ye Faithful Christians’, cf. JFSS, ii., 115ff.
Heptatonic aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)
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Farewell, vain world, I’m going home,I can’t stay away,My Savior smiles and bids me come,I can’t stay away.I can not stay much longer here,I can’t stay away,For the gospel ship is passing by,I can’t stay away.
Farewell, vain world, I’m going home,
I can’t stay away,
My Savior smiles and bids me come,
I can’t stay away.
I can not stay much longer here,
I can’t stay away,
For the gospel ship is passing by,
I can’t stay away.
Further stanzas of the text are given under ‘Golden Harp’. Compare, for melodic similarities ‘Little Musgrave and Lady Barnard’, Sharp, i., 161, 162, 164, 168, and 170.
Pentachordal, cannot be classified (I II 3 IV V — —)
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My home is over Jordan,My home is over Jordan,My home is over Jordan,Where pleasures never die.
My home is over Jordan,
My home is over Jordan,
My home is over Jordan,
Where pleasures never die.
Where the wicked cease from troubling,etc.And the weary are at rest.
Where the wicked cease from troubling,etc.
And the weary are at rest.
Farewell to sin and sorrow,etc.I bid you all adieu.
Farewell to sin and sorrow,etc.
I bid you all adieu.
And you, my friends, prove faithful,etc.And on your way pursue.
And you, my friends, prove faithful,etc.
And on your way pursue.
This spiritual tune has been widely used as a chorus to other songs. An example is ‘Wings of the Morning’ in this collection.
Pentatonic, mode 1 (I II — IV V VI —)
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O I am so happy in Jesus,His blood has redeem’d me from sin;I shout and I sing in my gladness,To know he is dwelling within.
O I am so happy in Jesus,
His blood has redeem’d me from sin;
I shout and I sing in my gladness,
To know he is dwelling within.
O I am so happy in Jesus,His blood has redeem’d me from sin,So happy that he is my Savior,So happy he’s dwelling within.
O I am so happy in Jesus,
His blood has redeem’d me from sin,
So happy that he is my Savior,
So happy he’s dwelling within.
Recorded by the author, September 21, 1932, in Nashville, Tennessee, from the singing of Samuel E. Asbury who learned it from hearing it sung at camp meetings in western North Carolina in the 1880’s. The tune is quite evidently an orally transmitted version of that of ‘Faithful Soldier’, in this collection, which first appeared in theSouthern Harmony(1835) and was claimed by William Walker, the compiler of that collection. See also ‘Hallelujah’ in this collection, a type tune to which the above melody is organically related, for further data as to kindred tunes.
Hexatonic, mode 3 A (I II III — V VI VII)
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Go, preachers, and tell it to the world;Go, preachers, and tell it to the world;Go, preachers, and tell it to the world:Poor mourner’s found a home at last.
Go, preachers, and tell it to the world;
Go, preachers, and tell it to the world;
Go, preachers, and tell it to the world:
Poor mourner’s found a home at last.
Through free grace and a dying Lamb;Through free grace and a dying Lamb;Through free grace and a dying Lamb,Poor mourner’s found a home at last.
Through free grace and a dying Lamb;
Through free grace and a dying Lamb;
Through free grace and a dying Lamb,
Poor mourner’s found a home at last.
This typical spiritual was taken into the 1859 edition of theSacred Harp. Other stanzas were added by simply substituting in the place of “preachers,” the words “fathers,” “mothers,” etc. A negro version of tune and words is inSlave Songs, No. 24.
Heptatonic, essentially aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 [III] IV V 6 [VI] 7)
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Sinners, turn, why will ye die?God, your maker asks you why.God who did your being give,Made you with himself to live.ChorusOh! turn, sinners, turn!May the Lord help you turn,Oh! turn, sinners, turn,Why will you die?
Sinners, turn, why will ye die?
God, your maker asks you why.
God who did your being give,
Made you with himself to live.
Chorus
Oh! turn, sinners, turn!
May the Lord help you turn,
Oh! turn, sinners, turn,
Why will you die?
He the fatal cause demands,Asks the work of his own hands,Why, ye thankless creatures, whyWill you cross his love and die?Chorus
He the fatal cause demands,
Asks the work of his own hands,
Why, ye thankless creatures, why
Will you cross his love and die?
Chorus
Sinners, turn, why will ye die?God, your Savior, asks you why!God, who did your souls retrieve,Died himself that ye might live.Chorus
Sinners, turn, why will ye die?
God, your Savior, asks you why!
God, who did your souls retrieve,
Died himself that ye might live.
Chorus
This tune is closely related to ‘Animation’ and, like it, to the worldly tune ‘Ropesman’ in Thomas, p. 164. The melody of the above chorus seems to have been derived from ‘Willy Taylor’, Petrie, No. 745. Compare for similarities ‘Run Nigger Run’, SS 89.
Pentachordal, cannot be classified (I II III IV V — —)
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Death, ain’t you got no shame, shame?Death, ain’t you got no shame, shame?Death, ain’t you got no shame, shame?Death, ain’t you got no shame?
Death, ain’t you got no shame, shame?
Death, ain’t you got no shame, shame?
Death, ain’t you got no shame, shame?
Death, ain’t you got no shame?
Recorded by the compiler of this collection from the singing of Francis Arthur Robinson, Nashville, Tennessee, as he had heard it in the backwoods of Wayne County, Tennessee, in 1926. Mr. Robinson called it a “barefoot white” song. The tied notes are sung in a skid or scoop. Subsequent stanzas:
Left his pappy to moan, moan,etc.Left his widder alone, lone,etc.Left his mammy to weep, weep,etc.
Left his pappy to moan, moan,etc.
Left his widder alone, lone,etc.
Left his mammy to weep, weep,etc.
and many more. InThe Carolina Low-Country, page 249, a version of the song is given as sung by a negro congregation in Beaufort, South Carolina.
This song is one of the most primitive in the present collection. It is valuable, however, in that it exemplifies well a lyric level which suited both whites and blacks of a certain cultural status.
Hexatonic, 6th missing, cannot be classified but obviously ionian (I II III IV V — VII)
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Come to Jesus, come to Jesus,Come to Jesus just now,Just now come to Jesus,Come to Jesus just now.
Come to Jesus, come to Jesus,
Come to Jesus just now,
Just now come to Jesus,
Come to Jesus just now.
Subsequent verses are built up on: He will save you; O, believe him; He is able; He is willing; He’ll receive you; Call upon him; He will hear you; Look unto him; He’ll forgive you; He will cleanse you; He will clothe you; Jesus loves you; Don’t reject him; and, Only trust him. A negro version of tune and text is inSlave Songs, No. 85.
Was ‘Come to Jesus’ a tune importation from Germany? Erk and Böhme (Deutscher Liederhort, vol. iii., p. 735) bring several variants of what is called an “altes Fastenlied.” I reproduce one of them:
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Es sangen drei Engel einen süßen Gesang,sie sangen, daß es Gott in dem Himmel erklang.
Es sangen drei Engel einen süßen Gesang,
sie sangen, daß es Gott in dem Himmel erklang.
The first part of the German tune is almost identical with the corresponding part of the one, heard widely among American students, with such texts as ‘O My Darling Clementine’ and ‘Found a Horseshoe Just Now’—evident parodies on the ‘Come to Jesus’ tune and words. The second part of the German melody is strikingly like that of the above mentioned negro version inSlave Songs.
Hexatonic, mode 3 A (I II III — V VI VII)
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Come, Thou fount of every blessing,Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;Streams of mercy never ceasing,Call for songs of loudest praise.
Come, Thou fount of every blessing,
Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;
Streams of mercy never ceasing,
Call for songs of loudest praise.
And we’ll land on shore,Yes, we’ll land on shore,And we’ll land on shoreAnd be safe for evermore.
And we’ll land on shore,
Yes, we’ll land on shore,
And we’ll land on shore
And be safe for evermore.
A variant of the above text and tune is ‘when we pass over Jordan’, Mason’sHarp of the South, p. 295.
Heptatonic ionian, mode 3 A + b (I II III IV V VI VII)
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We have our trials here below,O glory hallelujah!We have our trials here below,O glory hallelujah!There’s a better day a-coming,Hallelujah!There’s a better day a-coming,Hallelujah!
We have our trials here below,
O glory hallelujah!
We have our trials here below,
O glory hallelujah!
There’s a better day a-coming,
Hallelujah!
There’s a better day a-coming,
Hallelujah!
A few more beating winds and rains,O glory hallelujah!A few more beating winds and rains,O glory hallelujah!And the winter will be over,Hallelujah!And the winter will be over,Hallelujah!
A few more beating winds and rains,
O glory hallelujah!
A few more beating winds and rains,
O glory hallelujah!
And the winter will be over,
Hallelujah!
And the winter will be over,
Hallelujah!
A few more rising and setting sunsAnd we’ll all cross over Jordan.
A few more rising and setting suns
And we’ll all cross over Jordan.
I feel no ways like getting tired,I am making for the harbor.
I feel no ways like getting tired,
I am making for the harbor.
I hope to get there by and by,My home is over Jordan.
I hope to get there by and by,
My home is over Jordan.
There are four more stanzas. The song is found also in KNH 52. Both Walker, compiler of theSouthern Harmony, and Davisson, compiler of theKentucky Harmony, laid claim to its authorship.
They were doubtlessly both recorders of this same piece of unwritten music. That was in the 1830’s. See the first phrase of ‘Glorishears’ (Sharp,Morris DancesSet 5, No. 6) for melodic similarities. The above song, both tune and words, inspired the composition of ‘Christian’s Hope’ in this collection. A negro remake of tune and words is in Dett, p. 36.
Heptatonic ionian, mode 3 A + b (I II III IV V VI VII)
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We have our troubles here below,We’re trav’ling through this world of woe,To that bright world where loved ones go,Where all is peace and love.
We have our troubles here below,
We’re trav’ling through this world of woe,
To that bright world where loved ones go,
Where all is peace and love.
Where all is peace and love,To that bright world where loved ones go,Where all is peace and love.
Where all is peace and love,
To that bright world where loved ones go,
Where all is peace and love.
We’re fettered and chained up in clay,While in this body here we stay;By faith we know a world above,Where all is peace and love.
We’re fettered and chained up in clay,
While in this body here we stay;
By faith we know a world above,
Where all is peace and love.
I feel no way like getting tired,I’m trusting in his holy word,To guide my weary feet above,Where all is peace and love.
I feel no way like getting tired,
I’m trusting in his holy word,
To guide my weary feet above,
Where all is peace and love.
TheSacred Harp, edition of 1911, has the following note: “H. A. Parris, who composed the words and music to the ‘Christian’s Hope’, resides at this time, 1911, at Helicon, Alabama. He is a great lover of the oldSacred Harptunes.” Mr. Parris composed the song by assembling, happily withal, wandering distichs and melodic phrases from songs of much older times. His chief source, both tonally and textually, was ‘Christian Prospect’ in this collection. I have been told that this spiritual grips theSacred Harpsingers’ emotions so deeply that they can hardly get to the third verse before many burst into tears.
Heptatonic ionian, mode 3 A + b (I II III IV V VI VII)
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O thou in whose presence my soul takes delight,On whom in afflictions I call,My comfort by day and my song in the night,My hope, my salvation, my all.
O thou in whose presence my soul takes delight,
On whom in afflictions I call,
My comfort by day and my song in the night,
My hope, my salvation, my all.
The poem is by Joseph Swain of England (1762-1796). The tune is attributed to Freeman Lewis whom Tillett calls merely “an American musician.” His dates are 1780-1859. Found also GCM 65,Baptist Hymnal(1902), No. 389.Methodist Hymnal(1905), No. 530; GOS 102, SOH 15. Miss Gilchrist (op. cit.) compares this tune with ‘Fair Rosie Ann’ in Greig’sLast Leaves of Traditional Ballads, p. 771. The chorus of ‘The Sinking of the Titanic’ a phonograph-recorded song of wide popularity in America during the 1920’s, is practically the same melodic trend as that of ‘Dulcimer’. Its text is:
It was bad when that great ship went down,It was bad when that great ship went down,There was husbands and wives,Little child’en lost their lives,It was bad when that great ship went down.
It was bad when that great ship went down,
It was bad when that great ship went down,
There was husbands and wives,
Little child’en lost their lives,
It was bad when that great ship went down.
A song curiously similar to the ‘Titanic’ song is inThe Carolina Low-Country, page 296, as sung by the negroes on the Santee River in South Carolina. The tune is changed but little. The words are:
It was sad w’en duh grabe sinkin’ down,It was sad w’en duh grabe sinkin’ down,Ain’ dat uh awful time,People keep awake all night,It was sad w’en duh grabe sinkin’ down.
It was sad w’en duh grabe sinkin’ down,
It was sad w’en duh grabe sinkin’ down,
Ain’ dat uh awful time,
People keep awake all night,
It was sad w’en duh grabe sinkin’ down.
The tune of ‘Dulcimer’ is of the ‘Lord Lovel’ type mentioned in the Introduction,p. 14. Other songs in this collection belonging to this type are ‘Yongst’, ‘Dunlap’s Creek’, ‘Liverpool’, ‘Ester’, ‘Lonesome Grove’, and ‘Land of Rest’. Other spiritual folk-tunes of the same type are ‘Eden’, GOS 558; ‘Thy Way O God’, PB 29; ‘Charlestown’, GOS 255; ‘Lord of Glory’, PB 374; ‘New Hope’, PB 373; ‘Golden Hill’, HH 211; ‘Webster’, OSH 31; ‘Hollis’, GOS 73; ‘Edneyville’, HH 193; ‘Blissful Hope’, REV 140; and ‘Tedious Hours’, SOC 69. Further secular tunes of the type are ‘Lord Lovel’, Sharp, i., 148; ‘The Two Brothers’, Davis, 563; ‘The Mermaid’, Sharp, i., 293; ‘Every Night When the Sun Goes In’, Sharp, ii., 269; ‘Three Little Babes’, Davis, 576; ‘Come All You Fair and Tender Ladies’, Sharp, ii., 135; ‘Barbara Allen’, Sharp, i., 195; ‘Gypsy Laddie’, Sharp, i., 237; ‘Horn Fair’, JFSS, ii., 204; and ‘The Cuckoo’, Sharp, ii., 177.
Heptatonic aeolian, mode 2 A + b (I II 3 IV V 6 7)
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Are there anybody here like Mary a-weeping?Call to my Jesus and he’ll draw nigh.Are there anybody here like Peter a-sinking?Call to my Jesus and he’ll draw nigh.
Are there anybody here like Mary a-weeping?
Call to my Jesus and he’ll draw nigh.
Are there anybody here like Peter a-sinking?
Call to my Jesus and he’ll draw nigh.
Glory, glory, glory, glory,Glory be to my God on high.
Glory, glory, glory, glory,
Glory be to my God on high.
Attributed in theSacred Harpto “John G. McCurry & Power” and dated 1852. For a variant of this tune used among the negroes seeWhite Spirituals, 256. Miss Gilchrist states that the text of this song is No. 51 in the firstEnglish Primitive Methodist Hymn Book, about 1823.
Pentachordal, cannot be classified (I II 3 IV V — —)
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I’ve a long time heard that there will be a judgmentThat there will be a judgment in that day.O there will be a judgment in that day,O sinner, where will you stand in that day?
I’ve a long time heard that there will be a judgment
That there will be a judgment in that day.
O there will be a judgment in that day,
O sinner, where will you stand in that day?
I’ve a long time heard that the moon will be bleeding,That the moon will be bleeding in that day.
I’ve a long time heard that the moon will be bleeding,
That the moon will be bleeding in that day.
I’ve a long time heard that the stars will be falling,etc.
I’ve a long time heard that the stars will be falling,etc.
I’ve a long time heard that the earth will be burning,etc.
I’ve a long time heard that the earth will be burning,etc.
This song bears the date 1859 and the composer’s name, John P. Rees. But beside the title we read: “As sung by Judge Falkerner of Ala.” We may therefore conclude that Rees recorded on that date this older tune from the singing of the Alabama magistrate. Melodic similarities are seen in ‘Trooper and the Maid’, Sharp, i., 305. A recent negro version from Beaufort, S. C., is inThe Carolina Low-Country, p. 250.
Hexatonic, mode 2 b (I — 3 IV V 6 7)
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I know that my Redeemer lives, Glory hallelujah.What comfort this sweet sentence gives, Glory hallelujah,Shout on, pray on, we’re gaining ground, Glory hallelujah,The dead’s alive and the lost is found, Glory hallelujah.
I know that my Redeemer lives, Glory hallelujah.
What comfort this sweet sentence gives, Glory hallelujah,
Shout on, pray on, we’re gaining ground, Glory hallelujah,
The dead’s alive and the lost is found, Glory hallelujah.
There are three more stanzas of this hymn, the core of which is attributed to Daniel Medley “about 1784.” The tune first appeared in theSocial Harp, 1855, where it is attributed to F. C. Wood, a Georgian. A tune and text variant is ‘We’ll Go On’, REV 252. A negro version of this spiritual may be seen in Dett, 195. See alsoWhite Spirituals, 259. ‘Antioch’ looks like a make-over from ‘Columbus’ in this collection. The tune is cleverly fitted also to a worldly ballad ‘Edward’, found in eastern Tennessee; see Sharp, i., 47. It is found also fitted to the worldly ballad ‘Cruel Mother’ in North Carolina; see Sharp, i., 58. ‘Little Musgrave and Lady Barnard’, Sharp, i., 162, shows definite influence of ‘Antioch’. See also for melodic similarities ‘Trooper and the Maid’, Sharp, i., 305; and ‘Bridle and Saddle’, Sharp, i., 305; and ‘Bridle and Saddle’, Sharp, ii., 329.
Hexatonic, mode 3 A (I II III — V VI VII)
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Oh, how I love my Savior!Oh, how I love my Savior!Oh, how I love my Savior,because he first lov’d me.ChorusWe’ll shout and give him glory,We’ll shout and give him glory,We’ll shout and give him glory,For glory is his own.
Oh, how I love my Savior!
Oh, how I love my Savior!
Oh, how I love my Savior,
because he first lov’d me.
Chorus
We’ll shout and give him glory,
We’ll shout and give him glory,
We’ll shout and give him glory,
For glory is his own.
I feel the work reviving,etc.Reviving in my soul.Chorus
I feel the work reviving,etc.
Reviving in my soul.
Chorus
I’m on my way to Zion,etc.The New Jerusalem.Chorus
I’m on my way to Zion,etc.
The New Jerusalem.
Chorus
O Christians, will you meet me?etc.On Canaan’s happy shore?Chorus
O Christians, will you meet me?etc.
On Canaan’s happy shore?
Chorus
By the grace of God, I’ll meet you,etc.On Canaan’s happy shore.Chorus
By the grace of God, I’ll meet you,etc.
On Canaan’s happy shore.
Chorus
O brothers, will you meet me?etc.
O brothers, will you meet me?etc.
O sisters, will you meet me?etc.
O sisters, will you meet me?etc.
O mourners, will you meet me?etc.
O mourners, will you meet me?etc.
O sinners, will you meet me?etc.
O sinners, will you meet me?etc.
TheOlive Leafeditor calls it a “refrain song.”
Hexatonic, mode 2 A (I II 3 IV V — 7)
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The happy day will soon appear,And we’ll all shout together in that morning;When Gabriel’s trumpet you shall hear,And we’ll all shout together in that morning.Sweet morning, sweet morning,And we’ll all shout together in that morning.
The happy day will soon appear,
And we’ll all shout together in that morning;
When Gabriel’s trumpet you shall hear,
And we’ll all shout together in that morning.
Sweet morning, sweet morning,
And we’ll all shout together in that morning.
Behold the righteous marching home,And we’ll alletc.And all the angels bid them come,And we’ll alletc.
Behold the righteous marching home,
And we’ll alletc.
And all the angels bid them come,
And we’ll alletc.
Found also in GOS 254. How the post-Civil War negroes sang this song to pieces and then patched it together with fragments of ‘Exhilaration’, another song in this collection, is made clear by reference toSlave Songs, p. 74, No. 97. The tune of ‘Trooper and the Maid’, Sharp, i., 305, is the same as that of ‘Sweet Morning’.
Pentatonic, mode 3 (I II III — V VI —)
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Lift up your heads, Immanuel’s friends,O halle, hallelujah;And taste the pleasure Jesus sends,O halle, hallelujah.
Lift up your heads, Immanuel’s friends,
O halle, hallelujah;
And taste the pleasure Jesus sends,
O halle, hallelujah.
Let nothing cause you to delay,O halle, hallelujah;But hasten on the good old way,O halle, hallelujah.
Let nothing cause you to delay,
O halle, hallelujah;
But hasten on the good old way,
O halle, hallelujah.
The words of the above song appeared in theDover Selectionin the early years of the nineteenth century and in theZion Songster, a spiritual-song collection which appeared in 1832. The first appearance of the tune seems to have been in theSouthern Harmonyof 1835. A related tune in this collection is ‘All the Way ’Long’. Further stanzas of the text are given under ‘Good Old Way (B)’.
Hexatonic, mode 3 A (I II III — V VI VII)
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