"Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" | First Ever Recording (1909) + Powerful Pictures of Slavery/Segregation скачать в хорошем качестве

"Swing Low, Sweet Chariot" | First Ever Recording (1909) + Powerful Pictures of Slavery/Segregation

“Swing Low, Sweet Chariot” is a popular African American spiritual song. The original creator of the song is unknown. Wallis Willis (known as “Uncle Wallace”), a freedman living in Indian territory in today's Oklahoma, is widely considered the creator of the song. According to sources at the Library of Congress, he used to sing it to the boys in a local Native American school, where he was hired. Impressed by the song, the headmaster wrote it down and shared it. The lyrics refer to the story of Prophet Elijah being taken to heaven by a chariot. It has also been linked symbolically with the “Underground Railroad” movement that helped Black slaves escape slavery in the south to live better lives in northern US states. The recording presented here was performed in December 1909 for Victor Studios by the Fisk University Jubilee Quartet. It is the first known recording of this song. Performers: John Wesley Work II (1st tenor), James Andrew Myers (2nd tenor), Alfred Garfield King (1st bass), and Noah Ryder (2nd bass). During the era of this song's recording, Fisk University was considered the “music conservatory” for aspiring black artists.