As I was growing up, one of the absolutely great forms of music was the so-called “Negro spiritual.” In recent years the word “Negro” has become a word that polite people refer to only infrequently. The “Negro” word has evolved into “colored,” “people of color,” “African-American” and other euphemisms. Nonetheless the music that was produced many years ago and was heard in Negro spirituals was among the absolute finest that I have ever heard and I treasure them to this day.
My wife Judy and I are always enthusiastic about choir music. We listen to Welsh choirs, Russian choirs, Swedish choirs, and the choirs associated with some universities here such as Morgan State in Baltimore. We find them very rewarding.
The music that was encompassed by the Negro spirituals, which are now just called “spirituals,” grew out of poverty and slavery. Those songs grew out of people who had no hope in life except for an eventual reward somewhere in a place called heaven. The lives of the musicians who wrote these songs were so bleak that it was possible only to look forward to death and to a welcome into heaven. While I do not share the theological views of those who believe in eternal happiness in a place called heaven, I believe that the spirituals represent one of the most significant American contributions to the world of music.
There are five spirituals that come to mind which I would like to mention. The lyrics typically are very short and are repeated quite a few times. There is no convoluted thought at all. The idea of the spiritual is to state a point and to repeat it quite often. Here for example are the lyrics of “Swing Low, Sweet Chariot.” They go:

“Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
A band of angels coming after me,
Coming for to carry me home.
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
A band of angels coming after me,
Coming for to carry me home.”

I assume that “coming for to carry me home” refers to heaven as the place where the singer hopes to go.
Another spiritual that has stayed with me for many years is “Were you there when they crucified my Lord?” When sung by a choir such as the Morgan choir from Baltimore, this is very moving music. The lyrics go this way:

“Were you there when they crucified my Lord,
Were you there when they crucified my Lord,
Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree?
Oh, oh, oh sometimes it causes me to tremble – tremble –
tremble.
Were you there when they crucified my Lord?”

This is moving music, particularly when sung by a choir like that of Morgan State University.
A third song greatly appreciated by my mother was “Look down, look down that lonesome road.” The lyrics again are simple and forthright.
They go like this:

“Look down, look down that lonesome road before you carry on
Look down, look down that lonesome road before you carry on
Weary grows this heavy load trudging down that lonesome road.
Look up, look up to see your maker before you carry on.

The word “trudging” is usually pronounced as “tredging.” I believe you get the message. It is a matter of the slaves carrying a heavy load until they are taken away to heaven. My mother thought this was a beautiful song, and so do I.
A fourth spiritual is one of my favorites. It is called “Better Get a Home inna That Rock.” The advice here comes from on high and it says that you better get a home in that rock as opposed to in some sort of shifting sand which will improve your chances of gaining a place in heaven. The words go something like this:

“Better get a home inna that rock,
Don’t you see? (basses repeat), “Don’t you see?”
Better get a home inna that rock,
Don’t you see? (basses repeat), “Don’t you see?”
Oh between earth and sky
I thought I heard my savior cry,
You better get a home inna that rock,
Don’t you see? (basses repeat), “Don’t you see?”

Finally, here is a rousing spiritual called “Swing Down Chariot and let me ride.” The lyrics are these:

Swing down chariot Lord and let me ride
Swing down chariot Lord and let me ride
Swing down chariot Lord and let me ride
For I’ve got a home on the other side.

Whether you believe in the Christian ethic or not, spirituals of this sort are absolutely moving music. They come from the heart and they come from poverty and slavery. Sometimes there is a hopelessness to them about the current conditions but they all express some hope of a better tomorrow after they depart this earth. I don’t share their views about eternal bliss in some heaven, but if that gives the lyricists and the singers hope, I am all for it.
I hope you have been uplifted by the lyrics to these five spirituals. I found myself almost singing as I tried to dictate them. They are good music and they are moving music. It is mighty hard to beat that combination. So if you wish to call them spirituals or Negro spirituals or African-American spirituals or whatever, listen to that music. It is great stuff.
E. E. CARR
April 4, 2006
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Most of the “Home inna That Rock” versions I found were all about someone who had already found such a home — “I’ve got a home in that rock” instead of “better get a home in that rock.” Huh. And for Sing Down Chariot, the best I could do was an Elvis version, which probably wasn’t what Pop was going for.
Overall, to me it’s a little too grim and religious for my tastes. I’m glad he was able to look past that and find something he enjoyed, though!