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Folk-Songs of America: The Robert Winslow Gordon Collection, 1922-1932
Band B1
Darien, Georgia, the childhood home of
Mrs. Gordon, was Gordon's "field station" for over two years,
1926-28. Located on the coast of Georgia, this town was ideally situated
for the study of Afro-American folksong. The Carolina and Georgia sea coast
blacks spoke a dialect (Gullah) thought to represent the earliest mixing
of English with African languages. Gordon hoped to find folksong evidence
of similar mixture. This led him to spirituals, of which he collected a
substantial number. "Deep Down In My Heart" was performed by
one of his best Darien informants, W. M. (Billy) Givens. Gordon later recorded
a variant of this song from the white singer Betty Bush Winger (Record
8A), who is discussed below.
DEEP DOWN IN MY HEART [MP3
file]
Gordon cyl. A279, Item GA69
W. M. (Billy) Givens
Darien, Georgia
March 19, 1926
Lord, you know I love everybody,
Deep down in my heart.
Lord, you know I love everybody,
Deep down in my heart.
Lord, you know I love everybody,
Deep down in my heart.
Amen, Amen, Amen.
Lord, you know I love my preacher, etc.
Lord, you know I love my deacon, etc.
Lord, you know I love my brother, etc.
Lord, you know I love my Savior, etc.
Lord, you know I love everybody, etc.
Spoken:
W. M. Givens, Darien [?], Georgia, March the nineteenth, Nineteen twenty-six.
In his article on "Negro Spirituals
from Georgia," Gordon describes the context in which these songs were
performed. He urges the reader to "Go, on a Tuesday evening, to the
smallest wooden church in a country district, and slip quietly into the
last of the rough-hewn wooden benches" (p. 20). He describes the preparations
of the sexton, the gathering of the congregation and the preacher's first
hymn, lined out "just as he heard the white preacher do it seventy
years ago … It is not a spiritual, but an old hymn of the camp-meeting
type." A deacon is called upon for the first or "mourner's" prayer,
and Gordon describes the congregations response, which leads up to the
first spiritual:
The older women are swaying back and forth, and one of them is tapping
nervously with her foot. When finally in the course of his prayer he mentions
something that calls to mind the words of an old spiritual, this same woman
who is tapping begins, probably quite unconsciously, to croon it almost
under her breath. The spark catches, others near her join in, and the crooning
becomes an audible under-tone -- "Jesus, Jesus, is my ond-ly friend,
Jesus, Jesus, is my ond-ly friend, Jesus, Jesus is my ond-ly friend; King
Jesus is my ond-ly friend." Louder and louder it grows as more and
more join in till it seems actually to compete with the prayer. The deacon
pauses a second, ceases abruptly his chanting, and drops into prose for
a concluding line or so. And as he ceases the spiritual bursts forth free
of all restraint: (here Gordon gives two stanzas of "Jesus is My Only
Friend," p. 21).
Bessie Shaw and her husband Henry were the persons in the service Gordon
described, and it was Bessie Shaw whose singing he transcribed in his article.
Gordon's comment at the end of this recording indicates his awareness of
the way in which the song was performed in context at church meeting. As
mentioned in the note to "Brother Jonah," Henry Shaw was an important
informant not only for Gordon but also for Lydia Parrish. As in Asheville,
the outside collector relied upon local contacts, in this case the Shaws,
for guidance and collectanea. Gordon recorded two other performances of
this song (A308, GA97; A408, GA178) and an additional manuscript text (GA388)
-- all from Georgia, and Ballanta- (Taylor) also published a version from
St. Helena Island (pp. 6-7).
JESUS IS MY ONLY FRIEND [MP3
file]
Gordon cyl. A341, Item GA120
Bessie Shaw
Oakhill, Georgia
April 10, 1926
*Oh go back doctor you done come too late,
Go back doctor you done come too late,
Go back doctor you done come too late,
Lord, Jesus is my only friend.
*If you ain't got Jesus you ain't got no friend,
Ain't got Jesus, you ain't got no friend,
Ain't got Jesus you ain't got no friend,
Lord, Jesus is my only friend.
*Conscience, conscience, conscience [?] taught me to pray,
Conscience, conscience, conscience taught me to pray,
Conscience, conscience, conscience taught me to pray,
Lord, Jesus is my only friend.
*If you ain't got Jesus, you ain't got no friend,
Ain't got Jesus, you ain't got no friend,
Ain't got Jesus, you ain't got no friend,
Lord, Jesus is my only friend.
*When friends and relations turn their backs on you,
Friends and relations turn their backs on you,
When friends and relations turn their backs on you,
Lord, Jesus is my only friend.
*Lord, when my wrong becomes a public hall,
When my wrong becomes a public hall,
When my wrong becomes a public hall,
Lord, Jesus is my only friend.
When my face becomes a looking glass,
Lord, when my face becomes a looking glass,
When my face becomes a looking glass,
Lord, Jesus is my only friend.
Spoken by Bessie Shaw:
Sung by Bessie Shaw, Oakhill, Georgia, April the tenth, Nineteen twenty-six.
Spoken by R. W. Gordon:
The last verse should also appear in this song as the first verse.
*Not reproduced on this LP due to the poor audio quality on this portion
of the original recording.
Although the story of the prodigal son has been
the subject of a number of songs, this one is apparently known only in
the Georgia coast region. Gordon collected another version of it from Henry
Shaw (A328, GA113).
GLORY TO GOD, MY SON'S COME HOME [MP3
file]
Gordon cyl. A401, Item GA171
J. D. Purdy
Place not given -- near Darien
Date not given -- ca. 1926
The young prodigal son
Boy said to his father one day,
"Hey father, give me the portion for me."
Father begin to divide,
Oh Mother she did cry,
Cryin', "Glory to God, my son come home."
Chorus:
Oh, glory to God, my son come home, done come home,
Oh, glory to God, my son come home, come home,
Well he done come home from sinnin' and crying,
He done come home from feedin' the swine,
Crying glory to God, my son come home.
A young prodigal son
Way off in the distant land,
As long as he had money
He had plenty of friends,
But as soon as his money was gone,
I declare he had no home,
Crying "Glory to God, my son come home."
Oh, glory to God, my son come home, done come home,
Oh, glory to God, my son come home, come home,
Well he done come home from sinnin' and crying,
He done come home from feedin' the swine,
Crying glory to God, my son come home.
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