Death's Gwine-ter Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me

Death's Gwine-ter Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me

Spiritual- Johnson & Johnson 1925

Death's Gwine-ter Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me/Death Come To My House He Didn't Stay Long

SEE: Cold Icy Hands http://bluegrassmessengers.com/cold-icy-hand--spiritual--1898.aspx

Traditional spiritual;

ARTIST:  Park New Choir; See also Johnson and Johnson, the Book of American Negro Spirituals, book 2, p. 93.

SHEET MUSIC: 

YOUTUBE:

CATEGORY: Traditional and Shape-Note Gospel;

DATE: 1800s; 1925 Johnson and Johnson "Book of American Negro Spirituals"

RECORDING INFO: Death's Gwine-ter Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me

Johnson & Johnson "The Second Book Of Negro Spirituals"

Work, John W. / American Negro Songs and Spirituals, Dover, Bk (1998/1940), p107 (Death's Going to Lay His Hands on Me)

OTHER NAMES: "Death's Gwine-ter Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me," "Cold Icy Hands"

RELATED TO: "Cold Icy Hands" "Oh Death"

SOURCES: "The Second Book Of Negro Spirituals" Johnson;
William E. Barton, "Old Plantation Hymns" (New England Magazine, December 1898, reprinted in Bernard Katz, The Social Implications of Early Negro Music in The United States, Arno/The New York Times, 1969, p. 81

NOTES: "Death Is Going To Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me" or originally titled "Death's Gwine-ter Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me" is an African-American spiritual first published in John Work's 1909 book, Folk songs of the American Negro. It appears in the collection by Johnson & Johnson "The Second Book Of Negro Spirituals" under the title "Death's Gwine-ter Lay His Cold Icy Hands On Me."

A similar version to Johnson & Johnson's with different lyrics for the verses is found in  "Death's Going to Lay His Hands on Me" collected by John W. Work in American Negro Songs and Spirituals, Dover, Bk (1998/1940), p107. This was based on John Work's 1909 version "Death's Going to Lay His Icy Hands on Me" from Folk songs of the American Negro.
 

Johnson & Johnson give a second version titled "Cold, Icy Hand"  http://bluegrassmessengers.com/cold-icy-hand--spiritual--1898.aspx
which was first published in 1898 by William E. Barton in "Old Plantation Hymns" (New England Magazine, December 1898, reprinted in Bernard Katz, The Social Implications of Early Negro Music in The United States, Arno/The New York Times, 1969, p. 81).
 
A similar version to Johnson & Johnson's with different lyrics for the verses is found in  "Death's Going to Lay His Hands on Me" collected by John W. Work in American Negro Songs and Spirituals, Dover, Bk (1998/1940), p107.

DEATH IS GOING TO LAY HIS COLD ICY HANDS ON ME- Park New Choir

Death is going to lay his cold icy hands on me
Lord! on me
Death is going to lay his cold icy hands on me

One morning I was walking along
I heard a voice and saw no man
Said go in peace and sin no more
Your sins forgiven and your soul set free
One of these mornings I won't be long
You'll look for me and I'll be gone
Yes one of these mornings about twelve o'clock
This old world is going to reel and rock

DEATH'S GWINE-TER LAY HIS COLD ICY HANDS ON ME- Johnson and Johnson 1925

O, sinner, sinner, you better pray,
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me,
Or yo' soul will get lost at de judgement day,
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me.

Some o' dese mornin's bright an' fair,
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me,
I'll take-a my wings an' cleve de air,
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me.

Cryin', O, lord! Cryin' O my Lord, Cryin' O, Lord!
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me.

Yes, I'm so glad I've been redeemed,
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me,
I'm ready fo' to cross ol' Jordan's stream,
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me.

Cryin', O, Lord! Cryin' O my Lord! Cryin' O Lord!
Death's gwine-ter lay his cold icy hands on me, on me.