De Wind Blow Ober Mah Shoulder

There may be some good copies of this arrangement "out there". Maybe they will now turn up, but some friends have asked to see what I'm dealing with. A picture is worth a thousand words, so check out a copy just below. You'll see why I passed over this manuscript in 1971, and why I waited almost 5 years before trying to figure it out. Luckily, it's a simple song and I have sung dozens of Bartholomew arrangements of sea chanties and spirituals.

As you can see, this is one of those manuscripts that looked a lot like spots on a Jersey cow. Oftentimes, I can find coherent lyrics published in other sources, but not so here. With some squinting, I was able to decipher the lyrics:

A dark cloud a-risin';

Poor sinner begin to tremble.

Massa Jesus come from Galilee,

De wind blow ober mah shoulder.

Oh come mah lovin' brother/sister,

An' let's go down to Jordan.

Take up your cross an' 'ny yo'-self,

An' join de band ob de Angels.

In case you're wondering, that's "... your cross and deny yourself". If anyone knows this song or has other copies of it, please let me know. I think it's probably quite old.

Coded Messages in Spirituals?

There is some scholarship saying spirituals carry a coded message underneath the outward religious message. The message details the path of escape to the North, here coded as the River Jordan. Slaves could safely sing these songs publicly, broadcasting the message and the roadmap among the community. The band of Angels might be the folks helping escapees make the journey. If this song carries such a message, the ominous dark clouds, the Massa Jesus and the wind coming over the shoulder might represent the danger behind as one takes flight, adding quite an unexpected dimension. If you have any thoughts on that, please share them.