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Dig My Grave/Dig My Grave Long An' Narrow/Go Dig My Grave
Traditional Spiritual;
ARTIST: from Unidentified men from Andros Island; Collected Lomax 1935
YOUTUBE: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X9HMn_cCbKA&feature=related
"This song is a traditional tune. Lead by Jennifer Armstrong and followed by Daisy Nell and the Sweet Chariot Ensemble. It started as a fun sing along party on Doug's porch and then became the closure of Sweet Chariot that year."
SHEET MUSIC: http://books.google.com/books?id=itls7rxZAwgC&pg=PA104&lpg=PA87&dq=Baptizing+hymn+freely+go
+marching+along&ie=ISO-8859-1&output=html
CATEGORY: Traditional and Public Domain Gospel;
DATE: early 1900s;
RECORDING INFO: Dig My Grave Long and Narrow
Rt - Go Dig My Grave
Atlanta Boy Choir. Over Jordan
Lloyd, A. L. & Isabel Arete de Ramon y Rivera (eds.) / Folk Songs of the, Oak, Sof (1966), # 80
Group of Andros Island Men. Lomax, John A. & Alan Lomax / Our Singing Country, MacMillan, Sof (2000/1941), p 90 [1935]
Jean Redpath & Lisa Newstadt with the Angel Band Anywhere Is Home.
Hickerson, Joe. "Water Over Stone" Folk-Legacy recordings
Robin Hall and Jimmy McGregor recorded it with the Galliards on "A Rovin'" (Decca ACL 1100 [1962])
BALLAD INDEX: Go And Dig My Grave
DESCRIPTION: "Go and dig my grave both long and narrow, Make my coffin neat and strong... Two, two to my head, two, two to my feet, Two to carry me, Lord,when I die." "My soul's gonna shine lie a star... I'm bound for heaven when I die."
AUTHOR: unknown
EARLIEST DATE: 1935 (recording, men from Andros Island)
KEYWORDS: religious nonballad
FOUND IN: Bahamas
REFERENCES (2 citations):
Silber-FSWB, p. 350, "Dig My Grave" (1 text)
DT, GO&DIG
Roud #15633
RECORDINGS:
Unidentified men from Andros Island, "Dig My Grave" (AAFS 502 B1, 1935; on LomaxCD1822-2)
David Pryor, Henry Lundy et al, "Dig My Grave" (AFS, 1935; on LC05)
Pete Seeger, "Dig My Grave" (on PeteSeeger04)
CROSS-REFERENCES:
cf. "The Little Beggar Boy" (floating verses)
OTHER NAMES: "Dig My Grave Long And Narrow" "Dig My Grave"
RELATED TO: "Dig My Grave Long An' Narrow" 1895 version (see below)
SOURCES: Bahama Songs and Stories: Volume 3 by Charles Lincoln Edwards 1895;
NOTES: "Dig My Grave (Long And Narrow)" is a traditional spiritual. This version, aslo fro mthe Bahamas is from Unidentified men from Andros Island, "Dig My Grave" collected by Lomax in 1935 and published in Our Singing Country. Lomax says:
"Dig My Grave," thus improvised by a group of men from Andros Island, is, we feel, one of the finest of Negro spirituals.
Ther version (see version 1), which I've also included here, is from Bahama Songs and Stories: Volume 3 By Charles Lincoln Edwards. These songs were brought to the Bahamas by African-Americans and are quite old.
The Atlanta Boy Choir did a version on their Over Jordan CD. Lyrics are below. Listen ton Sweet Chariot Ensemble (link above on youtube) for a version of this song.
Dig My Grave Long An' Narrow- Charles Lincoln Edwards 1895
Dig my grave long an' narrow,
Make my coffin long and strong.
Bright angels to my feet,
Bright angels to my head,
Bright angels to carry me when I die.
CHORUS: Oh I mi little soul goin' shine, shine,
Oh I mi little soul goin' shine like a stahr,
Oh I mi little soul goin' shine like a stahr, good Lawd,
I 'm bound to 'evin at *rest.
*last- makes more sense see version below.
DIG MY GRAVE- Lomax 1935
Go and dig my grave both long and narrow
Make my coffin neat and strong.
Go and dig my grave both long and narrow
Make my coffin neat and strong.
Two, two, to my head, (Two two my Lord)
Two, two, to my feet, But now two, two,
To carry me Lord, when I die.
Two, two, to my head, (Two two my Lord)
Two, two, to my feet, But now two, two,
To carry me Lord, when I die.
Now my soul's go'n' ta shine like a star (Lord oh well my)
My soul's go'n' ta shine like a star
My soul's go'n' ta shine like a star
Lord, I'm bound to heaven when I die.
My little soul's gonna shine like a star
My little soul's gonna shine like a star
My little soul's gonna shine like a star
Lord, I'm bound to heaven when I die.
GO AND DIG MY GRAVE- Bok, Muir, and Trickett 1983
Go and dig my grave, both long and narrow;
Make my coffin neat and strong,
Go and dig my grave, both long and narrow;
Make my coffin neat and strong,
Two to my head, Two to my feet
Two to carry me, Lord, when I die
Two to my head, two to my feet
Two to carry me, lord, when I die
My soul's gonna shine like a star,
My soul's gonna shine like a star,
My soul's gonna shine like a star, like a star
My soul's gonna shine like a star,
Lord, I'm bound for heaven when I die.
My soul's gonna shine like a star,
Gonna twinkle and twinkle like a little star,
My soul's gonna shine like a star,
Lord I'm bound for heaven when I die.
(repeat from beginning)
Dig My Grave- Weavers
Go and dig my grave, both long and narrow;
Make my coffin neat and strong,
Dig my grave, both long and narrow;
Make my coffin neat and strong.
Two (two) to my head, Two (two) to my feet
Two (two) to carry me, Lord, when I die.
Two (two) to my head, Two (two) to my feet
Two (two) to carry me, Lord, when I die.
Now, my soul's going to shine like a star,
My soul's going to shine like a star (like a star).
Soul's going to shine like a star, Lord
I'm bound to heaven when I die.
My soul's going to shine like a star,
My soul's going to shine like a star (like a star).
Soul's going to shine like a star, Lord
I'm bound to heaven when I die.
Dig my grave, both long and narrow;
Make my coffin neat and strong,
Dig my grave, both long and narrow;
Make my coffin neat and strong.
Two (two) to my head, Two (two) to my feet
Two (two) to carry me, Lord, when I die.
Two (two) to my head, Two (two) to my feet
Two (two) to carry me, Lord, when I die.
Now, my soul's going to shine like a star,
And twinke like a twinklin' little star.
My soul's going to shine like a star, Lord
I'm bound to heaven when I die.
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