Lou Rawls and the Pilgrim Travelers for the album The Soul Stirring Gospel Sound of the Pilgrim Travelers (1962). Notable versions: Paul Robeson, originally recorded by EMI in the 1930s, on his album Songs of Free Men (1997) as well as on his album Paul Robeson: The Complete EMI Sessions 1928-1939 (2008) and on several previous LPs. Dimitri Tiomkin used the tune in a choral arrangement in the film Home of the Brave (1949) Pier Paolo Pasolini used it in the film The Gospel According to St. The “motherless child†could be a slave separated from and yearning for his African homeland, a slave suffering “a long ways from homeâ€â€”home being heaven—or most likely both.Ī widely acclaimed arrangement was written by Harry T. The repetitive singing of the word "sometimes" in the song's melody line suggests that at least "sometimes" I do not feel like a motherless child.Īlthough the plaintive words can be interpreted literally, they were much more likely metaphoric. A subtlety in the lyrics, however, offers a measure of hope. Superficially, the song is clearly an expression of pain and despair as it conveys the hopelessness of a child who has lost her mother. Like many traditional songs, it has many variations and has been recorded widely. An early performance of the song dates back to the 1870s by the Fisk Jubilee Singers. The song dates back to the era of slavery in the United States when it was common practice to sell children of slaves away from their parents. " Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child" (or simply " Motherless Child") is a traditional Negro spiritual. (I'm also citing the reference sources and will go back and cite the others already done.) This is what I have so far: I thought I'd go back to page one and research some of the suggestions.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |