517. Some of These Days

517
Some of These Days

A Negro spiritual. See J. W. Work's A)iicricaii Negro Songs
166, White's ANFS 120-1 and 89; a form of it is reported from
the singing- of South Carolina Negroes (JAFL xliv 424) ; a song
similar in content but not the same is known in Kentucky (BKH
208). Cf. Sixty-Tzi'o Southland Spirituals (Winona Lake, Ind.,
1946), No. 48. Our two texts differ not a little but arc certainly
forms of one song.

A

'Some of These Days.' Collected by Julian P. Boyd of Alliance, Pam-
lico county, in 1927 from Jeannette Tingle, one of his pupils there.

1 I'm a-gonna walk on de streets of glory,
I'm a-gonna walk on de streets of glory,
Hallelujah, I'm a-gonna walk on de streets of glory,

I'm a-gonna walk on de streets of glory, some of these
days!

2 I'm a-gonna see my a-sainted mother,
I'm a-gonna see my a-sainted mother,
Hallelujah, I'm a-gonna see my a-sainted mother,

I'm a-gonna see my a-sainted mother, some of these days!

3 I'm a-gonna sing and shout for glory,
I'm a-gonna sing and shout for glory.
Hallelujah, I'm a-gonna sing and shout for glory,

I'm a-gonna sing and shout for glory, some of these days !

 

R K I. 1 C 1 <) r S S O N G s 575

4 I'm ;i-!L;i>nua .sec in_\- l)k'ss(.'(l S;i\itii",
I'm a-gi»nna sec my blessed Savior.
I'm a-ij:()nna see my blessed Savior, (hallelujah)
I'm a-i^onna see my blessed Savior, some of these days!

B
"Some uf These Days.' Tliis text also comes b-oin Mr. IJoyd at .\lli-
ance, with tlie music, "done by one of my seniors." ICach stanza con-
sists of a line three times repeated and the refrain line. Only the first
is so printed here.

1 I'm soing to cross the river Jordan,
I'm i^oing' to cross the river Jordan.
I'm going- to cross the river Jordan,
Some of these days, some of these days!

2 I'm going to see my blessed Jesus

3 I'm going to shake his kjvely hand

4 I'm going to see my dear ole mudder

5 I'm goin" to tell her how I suffered

6 I'm goin' to try on my golden slippers

7 I'm goin' to shout the houses over

8 Oh. I'll .shout and never get tired
---------------------

S17

Some of these Days

 

'Some of these Days.' Sung by Miss Jeanette Tingle, Alliance, Pamlico coun-
ty, in 1927. Dr. Brown notes: "With music done by one of my seniors." The
MS score does not, however, supply the missing words in the last line, but is
a typical example of the changes which take place when someone, in this
case a student, tries to please his contemporaries or a supposedly "learned
audience." The scale is a pure Mode III with the modernizing alterations
which one could expect in the circumstances. A particularly strong point,
relevant here, is the well known Al Jolson ending. For other texts cf. NWS
139 and NASb 16.

F-462

 


I'm go - ing to cross the riv - er Jor dan,

 

I'm go - ing to — cross the riv - er Jor - dan, (go - ing to

 

cross riv - er Jor - dan, I'm go - ing to cross the riv - er

Jor dan, some of these days!

For melodic relationship cf. ***FSoA 172 and 179 (compare first eight
measures with our first four) ; SCS 22, No. 10 (4th stanza has same text).
**NSNH 20; ANS 166.


Scale: Mode III, plagal. Tonal Center: g. Structure: abak (2,2,2,2) =
aai (4,4).