Boston University Published on Nov 5, 2015
The Freedom Singers perform "We Shall Not Be Moved" at the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom in Washington D.C. on August 28, 1963.
-snip-
The March On Washington For Jobs And Freedom was where Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his "I have a dream" speech.
****
Edited by Azizi Powell
Latest revision - January 31, 2026
This pancocojams post showcases a video of the 1963 Freedom Singers performing the civil rights song "We Shall Not Be Moved".
This post also includes lyrics to renditions of "We Shall Not Be Moved" and the Gospel history of this civil rights song.
The content of this post is presented for cultural, socio-cultural, inspirational, and political purposes.
All copyrights remain with their owners.
Thanks to all those who participate peacefully for freedom and justice in the United States and throughout the world.
-snip-
Click http://civilrightssongs.blogspot.com/2015/02/we-shall-not-be-moved-lyrics-videos-and.html to visit my civil rights song blog for a post about the song "I Shall Not Be Moved". That post includes a different lyric version of that song than those featured here. In addition, that post includes additional YouTube videos of the civil rights song "We Shall Not Be Moved".
-snip-
Click https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Freedom_Singers for information about The Freedom Singers.
****
INFORMATION ABOUT THE CIVIL RIGHTS SONG "WE SHALL NOT BE MOVED"
I wrote these comments in the 2013 pancocojams post "Mississippi John Hurt - "I Shall Not Be Moved" (with lyrics)" http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2013/06/mississippi-john-hurt-i-shall-not-be.html
"I Shall Not Be Moved" is a late 19th century or early 20th century African American Gospel song. This song and other African American early Gospel songs & Spirituals have a words that can easily be exchanged which facilitate their use for multiple situations. These types of compositions are known as "zipper songs". Because of that characteristic, the title of the religious song "I Shall Not Be Moved" was changed to "We Shall Not Be Moved" and different adaptations of this song were sung at pro-union rallies and at civil rights rallies & marches.
Similarly, the religious song "I'll Overcome" was retitled "We Shall Overcome" and versions of that song were sung at union rallies & at civil rights marches & rallies. The tunes for those religious song were retained. But often the tempo of the religious song became faster for its secular adaptations.
Click https://austinbhebe.wordpress.com/2012/10/10/i-shall-not-i-shall-not-be-moved/ for more comments about the song "I Shall Not Be Moved". My only disagreement with the editor of that blog is that he or she describes "I Shall Not Be Moved" as an American folk song. That said, technically all African American Spirituals and early Gospel songs which have no known composers can be considered American folk songs.".
****
LYRICS FOR THE CHORUS OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS SONG "WE SHALL NOT BE MOVED"
We shall not
We shall not be moved
We shall not
We shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's planted by the water
We shall not be-
We shall not be moved
****
ADDITIONAL SHOWCASE VIDEOS
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 -Mary Mary "We Shall Not Be Moved" from The Soundtrack For A Revolution
Similarly, the religious song "I'll Overcome" was retitled "We Shall Overcome" and versions of that song were sung at union rallies & at civil rights marches & rallies. The tunes for those religious song were retained. But often the tempo of the religious song became faster for its secular adaptations.
Click https://austinbhebe.wordpress.com/2012/10/10/i-shall-not-i-shall-not-be-moved/ for more comments about the song "I Shall Not Be Moved". My only disagreement with the editor of that blog is that he or she describes "I Shall Not Be Moved" as an American folk song. That said, technically all African American Spirituals and early Gospel songs which have no known composers can be considered American folk songs.".
****
LYRICS FOR THE CHORUS OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS SONG "WE SHALL NOT BE MOVED"
We shall not
We shall not be moved
We shall not
We shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's planted by the water
We shall not be-
We shall not be moved
****
ADDITIONAL SHOWCASE VIDEOS
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 -Mary Mary "We Shall Not Be Moved" from The Soundtrack For A Revolution
vicariousmusic, Feb 13, 2012
On February 14th, the soundtrack to the film Soundtrack For
a Revolution will be released. It features contemporary artists singing
traditional Civil Rights-era freedom songs.
****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #3-We Shall Not Be Moved
World House Choir, Jan 3, 2021
INFORMATION ABOUT AND LYRICS FOR THE CIVIL RIGHTS SONG "WE SHALL NOT BE MOVED"
From video#1 in this post [my transcription without embellishments]
The Freedom Singers perform "We Shall Not Be Moved" at the March on Washington
-snip-
Basic Lyrics (without lyrical embellishments)
We shall not
We shall not be moved
We shall not
We shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's planted by the water
We shall not be-
We shall not be moved
We’re on our way to victory
and we shall not be moved
We’re on our way to victory
and we shall not be moved
just like a tree that’s planted by the water
We shall not be-
We shall not be moved
Segregation is our enemy
and It must be removed
Segregation is our enemy
and it must be removed
Just like a foe that’s vanquished by the army
It must be re__
It must be removed.
We shall not
We shall not be moved
We shall not
We shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's planted by the water
We shall not be-
We shall not be moved
****
From http://www.pbs.org/wgbh/americanexperience/features/general-article/soundtrack-lyrics/#moved
"General Article: Lyrics of the Freedom Songs: Soundtrack for a Revolution
"Soundtrack for a Revolution" is a window into the musical and lyrical soul of civil rights movement, as well as the men and women that used song to give them the strength and solidarity to stand up for justice in the face of staunch, often violent injustice and bigotry. These songs and chants of freedom, sung by protestors, activists, and civil rights leaders during the 1950s and 1960s, have now been taken up anew in "Soundtrack" by such contemporary performers as Joss Stone, John Legend, Anthony Hamilton, Wyclef Jean, The Roots, Richie Havens, and others.
We Shall Not Be Moved
Performed by Lynda Lowery
We shall not
We shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's planted by the waters
We shall not be moved
Wallace is our enemy
He must be removed
Wallace is our enemy
He must be removed
*****
Performed by Mary Mary
We shall not
We shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's planted by the waters
We shall not be moved
On our way to victory
We shall not be moved
We're on our way to victory
We shall not be moved
Just like a tree that's planted by the waters
We shall not be moved
[first lines for additional verses]
-I'm not going to move y'all
-I want my freedom
-And I'm gonna get my freedom
-We're on our way to victory
-I believe we're gonna set it free
-Yes, I believe we're gonna get there
-We're gonna get there
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
No comments:
Post a Comment