"Don't You Let Nobody Turn You Around"- The 1920s Gospel Song That Became The 1960s Civil Rights Song "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn You 'Round"

Docjive, Oct 29, 2010

In the early 1980s after a thirty-year hiatus, the Fairfield Four with a powerhouse line-up once again began performing. This period clip features the legendary Rev. Sam McCrary leading his classic "Don't You Let Nobody Turn You 'Round." The original release was on the Bullet label circa 1947/48. B.B. King called McCrary a primary vocal influence. The Fairfield Four left to right: Willie "Preacher" Richardson, Rev. McCrary, Wilson "Lit" Waters, James S. Hill, and Isaac Freeman.

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Edited by Azizi Powell
This pancocojams post showcases four YouTube examples of the Gospel song "Don't Let Nobody Turn You Around". The earliest recording of that Gospel song is the Dixie Jubilee Quartet of New York 1924.

This post also presents information about the Gospel song "Don't Let Nobody Turn Your Around" and lists some other 1960s African American civil rights songs that have their roots in African American Gospel songs.

One video example of the civil rights song "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn You 'Round" is also included in this pancocojams post. 

The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and thanks to the publishers of these videos on YouTube. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/06/aint-gonna-let-nobody-turn-me-round.html for the closely related 2012 pancocojams post "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Round (Lyrics & Videos)"

Also, click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/01/some-similarities-and-differences.html for the 2026 pancocojams post "Some Similarities And Differences Between The 1960s Civil Rights Song "We Shall Not Be Moved" And The 2020s Affirmation & Rallying Cry "We Will Not Be Silenced". The reasons that are listed in that post for why protestors sang "We Shall Not Be Moved" and the reasons why protestors now chant "We Will Not Be Silenced" also closely fit the reasons why protestors sang "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round" and other civil rights protest songs.

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SHOWCASE VIDEO #2 - DONT LET NOBODY TURN YOU AROUND, ALBERTINA WALKER

ADRIAN WILLIAMS, Jan 17, 2009
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SHOWCASE VIDEO #3- The Pilgrim Jubilees - Don't Let Nobody Turn You Around

malacomg, Jan 12, 2011

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SHOWCASE VIDEO #4- Don't Let Nobody Turn You 'Round

Reverend Robert Wilkins - Topic, Jun 12, 2024

Provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises

Don't Let Nobody Turn You 'Round · Reverend Robert Wilkins · Not Documented

Worried Blues

℗ 2017 Fat Possum Records

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THE HISTORY OF THE GOSPEL SONG "DON'T YOU LET NOBODY TURN YOU AROUND"
From AI Overview (results of my February 1, 2026 Google search query "When was the Gospel song "Don't You Let Nobody Turn You Round" first recorded?"

"The gospel song "Don't Let Nobody Turn You 'Round" was first recorded by the Dixie Jubilee Quartet of New York in 1924. It is a traditional song with roots in the 19th century, later famously covered by Blind Willie McTell in 1935 and in a popular version by the Fairfield Four in 1947.

Earliest Recording: 1924 by the Dixie Jubilee Quartet.

Other Early Versions: Recorded by bluesman Blind Willie McTell in April 1935.

Other Mentions: Bozie Sturdivant (1941) and Sister Rosetta Tharpe (1946-7) also recorded early versions.

Another song with a similar title, "I Ain't Gonna Let Ol' Satan Turn Me Round," was recorded by Jimmie Davis in 1936." -snip-
The civil rights song "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Round" differs from the above mentioned Gospel songs in its title, tempo, and some of its lyrics. Here's one YouTube video of that civil rights song that includes film clips of the 1960s civil rights protest marches:
"Can't Turn Me 'Round" Performed by The Roots (Civil Rights Song) 

djlightbolt, Oct 1, 2010

From "Soundtrk 4 a Revolution"
-snip- "1960s civil rights songs" were also referred to as "freedom songs" and "protest songs".

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ARTICLE EXCERPT- Songs of King's era: 'Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Round'
From https://www.psu.edu/news/faculty-and-staff/story/songs-kings-era-aint-gonna-let-nobody-turn-me-round, by Anthony Leach, Penn State University, January 18, 2010

"Martin Luther King Jr. will be remembered across America this month as many celebrate the national holiday honoring his work as civil rights activist, preacher and Nobel laureate. This black Baptist preacher fused the fervor, energy and intensity from the black church experience along with nonviolent protest philosophy to create a human rights movement that has forever changed American culture and society.

The songs of protest sung during that era -- before leaving a church gathering for a sit-in, protest march or other nonviolent civil rights event -- were based on songs performed by choirs and congregations in black churches. In all cases, the melodies remained the same, but the lyrics could be changed to reflect the intent or purpose of the participants.

Some of these songs were:

"Ain’t Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Round"

"I/We Shall Not Be Moved"

"Glory, Glory Hallelujah!"
 
"The Storm is Passing Over"

"This Little Light of Mine"

[...]

The familiar lyrics and melodies, combined with prayer and affirming words of encouragement, provided comfort to people who knew that they were risking their lives and/or time in jail for participating in acts of civil disobedience. There was strength in numbers, but at the core of their activism was also a faith that enabled them to walk, sit, march and rush forward toward freedom.

[...]

The music of the civil rights era from the 1950s and '60s is rich in the message of encouragement and empowerment for singers and listeners to not be afraid while confronting obstacles, whether physical or psychological.

[...]

Leach is the 2009-10 Penn State laureate and an associate professor of music and music education, in Penn State's College of Arts and Architecture"
-snip-
The underlined song titles in this article used to be hyperlinks to partial recordings of those songs. Those links are no longer active.

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Some Similarities And Differences Between The 1960s Civil Rights Song "We Shall Not Be Moved" And The 2020s Affirmation & Rallying Cry "We Will Not Be Silenced"

Boston University, 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.

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Edited by Azizi Powell

Latest revision- February 1, 2026 

This pancocojams post presents my opinion about some of the similarities and differences between the 1960s civil rights song and the 2020s affirmation* and rallying chant "We will not be silenced".

* "affirmation" ="positive assertion" 

Information about and examples of this civil rights song and this affirmation/rallying chant are presented in this post.

The content of this post is presented for historical and socio-cultural purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to all those who are featured in these videos and thanks to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/01/singing-resistance-adapted-versions-of.html for the related pancocojams post "Singing Resistance" - Adapted Versions Of "We Shall Not Be Moved", "I Won't Be Silent" And Some Other Songs Included In Anti-Ice Protests (2025, 2026).

Also, click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2026/02/dont-you-let-nobody-turn-you-around.html for the closely related pancocojams post "Don't You Let Nobody Turn You Around"- The 1920s Gospel Song That Became The 1960s Civil Rights Song "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn You 'Round".

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SHOWCASE VIDEO SHORT - WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED 

@newsonkfdm, February 5, 2025

Protesters at the Pennsylvania Capitol chant "We will not be silenced"

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SOME SIMILARITIES AND DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE 1960s CIVIL RIGHTS SONG "WE SHALL NOT BE MOVED" AND THE 2020S AFFIRMATION/ RALLYING CHANT "WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED" 

SIMILARITIES
The 1960s civil rights song and the 2020s affirmation/rallying chant express the determination and conviction of people not to be deterred from their goal.

**
The AI Overview #1 that is given in this post about the meaning of the "We will not be silenced" chant also exactly fits the reasons why the civil rights song "We Shall Not Be Moved" was sung during demonstrations, rallies, and marches in the 1960s.

**
The civil rights song "We Shall Not Be Moved" and the affirmation/rally chant "We will not be silenced" both appear to have been or are now vocalized in unison, instead of in a call and response pattern.

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DIFFERENCES
Singing protest songs occurred much more often in 1960s protests than it does in 2020s protests.

The civil rights song "We Shall Not Be Moved" and most of the other civil rights songs were adapted from African American Gospel songs.

The words "We will not be silenced" are found in several Gospel songs (such as Phil Thompson's 1987 song "My Worship"). However, that affirmation/rallying cry isn't attributed to one particular song.

**
The civil rights song "We Shall Not Be Moved" is a song that has both standard and improvised lyrics. 

"We Will Not Be Silenced" isn't a song. It's an affirmation/rallying cry that has a few fixed words.

**
Most of the 1960s civil rights protestors were African American. ("Negro" was the racial referent that was used in the early 1960s for that population. However, that referent has since been replaced by "African American" and a few other referents.) 

Based on YouTube videos, it appears that White people are the overwhelming majority of the people who are participating in the 2020s United States protest marches and rallies, such as the 2025-2026 No Kings rallies and anti-ICE rallies. 

**
The civil rights song "We Shall Not Be Moved" was mostly sung by protestors during "demonstrations" (when protestors "picketed" at a location), or during marches (when demonstrations moved in mass from one location to another agreed upon location) or during rallies (protest events with speakers and usually musical performers). During rallies it may have been common for the musical performers and the "audience" of protestors to sway to the rhythm of the civil rights songs and sing along to those songs while (individually) clapping their hands.

The affirmation/rallying chant "We will not be silenced" appears to be chanted by 2020s protestors over and over again in unison during protest rallies and marches with no accompanying clapping or other body movement except walking.

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TWO AI OVERVIEW WRITE-UPS  ABOUT THE CHANT "WE WILL NOT BE SILENCED"
[Both of these AI Overview are the result of my January 31, 2026 Google search queries about the meanings of the chant "We will not be silenced".] 

AL Overview #1
"We will not be silenced" is a powerful, defiant rallying cry used in protests, marches, and rallies to declare that a group will continue to speak out, resist oppression, and fight for their rights, despite threats, intimidation, or attempts by authorities to suppress their voices. It signals a refusal to be marginalized, ignored, or forced into compliance.

Here is a breakdown of what this slogan means in the context of protests:

Defiance Against Suppression: It is a direct response to attempts by governments, institutions, or opponents to limit freedom of speech, assembly, or dissent.

Solidarity and Unity: It binds protesters together, signifying a shared, collective resistance to injustice.

Assertion of Rights: The phrase is frequently used to assert First Amendment rights (in the U.S.) to show that fear of retaliation or arrests will not stop people from demonstrating.

Visibility for the Marginalized: It is used by activists and marginalized communities (such as LGBTQ+ groups, immigrants, or union workers) to declare that they will not be rendered invisible.

Commitment to Action: It means that the protesters will not go back to "business as usual" and will continue to challenge authority until changes are made.

Contextual Examples:

Anti-war/Social Justice: The phrase has historical roots in the 1960s anti-war movement and continues to be used by various social justice movements to fight systemic inequality.

Civil Disobedience: It is often used when protesters are actively risking arrest or economic retaliation, such as in immigration rallies or anti-detention protests.

Authoritarianism/Oppression: It serves as a declaration of hope and resistance against what demonstrators see as authoritarian actions, fear tactics, or the "criminalization" of protests.

The phrase is essentially an declaration of, "You cannot stop us from fighting for what is right". 

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AI Overview #2 
"We will not be silenced" is a prominent chant and slogan used globally in protests, particularly in 2025, to defy intimidation, resist censorship, and oppose policies related to labor, civil rights, and political movements. It is frequently employed in rallies against authoritarianism, in support of Palestine, and in labor actions, often coupled with phrases like "We will not be intimidated" or "Hands off".

Key contexts for the chant include:

Political Protests (2025): Used during nationwide "No Kings" protests against perceived executive overreach and at "Hands Off" rallies, such as in Boston and Washington, D.C., where labor leaders (e.g., AFGE President Everett Kelley) and activists used it to protest against government actions and in defense of democracy.

Social & Human Rights Issues: Employed by groups protesting racism, misogyny, and, as in 2020, to support activists facing charges, such as during the "Free Tianna Arata" protests.

Pro-Palestine Demonstrations: Used in rallies, where it signifies a refusal to be silenced on issues regarding the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, often highlighting a desire to end what protesters consider "inhumane practices".

Meaning: The phrase serves as a declaration of continued resistance, freedom of speech, and a commitment to vocal dissent despite attempts to suppress, intimidate, or ignore the protesters' demands.

It is frequently shouted as a rallying cry to encourage participation and assert that the protesters will not "bow down". "
-snip-
This AI Overview write-up is the result of my January 31, 2026 question about the use of this chant. "We will not be silenced" is also given as "I will not be silent" and "I will not be silenced".

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Visitor comments are welcome.

Seven Religious Versions & One Civil Rights Version Of "Sit At The Welcome Table" (YouTube videos or sound files)

Birmingham Jubilee Singers, Sep 29, 2014 Provided to YouTube by The Orchard Enterprises

I'm Going to Sit At The Welcome Table · Birmingham Jubilee Singers Biddleville Quintette Vol. 2 (1926-1929)

**** Edited by Azizi Powell

This post is Part II of a two part pancocojams series on the early African American Gospel* song "Sit At The Welcome Table".

This post showcases seven religious versions and one Civil Rights version of African Americans singing "Sit At The Welcome Table".

Some of these religious versions of that song have other titles than "Sit At The Welcome Table" but include those words as a verse in those songs.

This post also includes a YouTube sound file of a Civil Rights version of "Sit At The Welcome Table". 

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/11/sit-at-welcome-table-information.html of this pancocojams series. This post consist of selected comments about the origin and meaning of "Sit At The Welcome Table" from several discussion threads on the online Mudcat folk music forum.

The content of this post is presented for historical, religious, socio-cultural, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the unknown composers of "Sit At The Welcome Table" and the earlier African American Spirituals that inspired the composition of the "Sit At The Welcome Table" verses and songs. Thanks also to all those whose renditions of "Sit At The Welcome Table" is showcased in this post and thanks to the publishers of these videos and sound files on YouTube..
-snip-
*I prefer to categorize "Sit At The Welcome Table" as an early Gospel song. However, I have no problem with other people categorizing it as a Spiritual.  Part of the confusion in determining if "Sit At The Welcome Table" is an African American Spiritual or is an early African American Gospel song is that the line "I'm gonna sit at the welcome table" appears to have been sung as part of some Spirituals. However, renditions of this song that focus on sitting at the Welcome Table" may not have been documented until the early 20th century.

The song "Sit At The Welcome Table" has many similar characteristics as African American Spirituals. For instance, Spirituals were composed in the 19th century and have no known composers. In contrast, most African American Gospel songs have known composers. However, it doesn't appear that "Sit At The Welcome Table" has a known composer.   Also, ass is the case with African American Spirituals and with most African American Gospel songs, there are no fixed lyrics for renditions of "Sit At The Welcome Table".

Some adaptations of "Sit At The Welcome Table" were also composed and sung as Civil Rights songs in the 1960s. Those adaptations usually included a verse about "sit ins" at Woolworth lunch counters where African Americans at that time were routinely refused service.  The protest strategies was that African Americans (usually students at universities in the South) would sit at the counter therefore taking a seat that couldn't then be occupied by a White person. Those sit in demonstrators were usually arrested for these actions. 

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SELECTED YOUTUBE VIDEOS AND SOUND FILES OF "SIT AT THE WELCOME TABLE"
With the exception of Showcase Example #1, these examples are given in chronological order based on their publishing date with the oldest dates given first.

Some of these songs have other titles than "Sit At The Welcome Table" instead "sit at the welcome table" is one of the verses of those songs.


YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #1
This example is given at the top of this post.

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YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #2 - Kenique - Sit at the Welcome Table

D3ALUH Jul 21, 2009
-snip-
Here's a comment from that video's discussion thread:
1.@louisestaats234, 2020
"LOVE the concept of the song leader moving around, interacting with God's people."
-snip-
While a group of singers sung this song in the front of the church sanctuary, the song leader went down the center aisle of the sanctuary and encouraged congregants seated in specific rows of the church to sing along. The people in those rows stood up when it was their turn to sing into the mic and/or sing along with the song leader. 

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YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #3 - FEAST ON MILK AND HONEY

CHARLES MAGBY, May 19, 2010

ADULT PRAISE TEAM LEADING WORSHIP SERVICE
-snip-
A commenter in this video's discussion thread wrote that the actual name of this song is "Somewhere Around The Throne."
-snip-
I think that the choir is singing "Oh how beautiful it would be" in the beginning of the lines for this song.

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YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #4 -Macedonia M.B.Church Choir Feat: Sister Carolyn Huntley "Somewhere Around God's Throne"

deaconreeves, Feb 14, 2012

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YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #5 - Welcome Table -by the Wings Over Jordan Choir 

Gail Vaughn, Jan 2, 2014

"I'm going down to the river of Jordan .... going to sit at the welcome table.... going to feast on milk and honey...   some of these days"

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YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #6- I'm Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table (Civil Rights version)
 

Hollis Watkins - Topic, May 19, 2015

Provided to YouTube by Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

I'm Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table · Hollis Watkins

Sing For Freedom: The Story of the Civil Rights Movement Through Its Songs

℗ 1990 Smithsonian Folkways Recordings

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YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #7 - The Bingham Sisters, "I'm Going to Sit at the Welcome Table"

mtsuhistory, Feb 21, 2016

The Bingham Sisters since "I'm Going to Sit at the Welcome Table" at the Black History Month Celebration at Stones River National Battlefield: "Hallowed Grounds: Site of African American Memory." Co-sponsored by African American Heritage Society of Rutherford County, 13th US Colored Troops Re-enactors, Friends of Stones River National Battlefield, and MTSU History
-snip-
This rendition begins with the verse "I'm gonna down to the river of Jordan".

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YOUTUBE EXAMPLE #8 - R.E.I.G.N. - Sit At The Welcome Table One Of These Days (Quartet)

ryannrjohnson, Oct 4, 2022  #301Church

R.E.I.G.N. Singing at #301Church Wilson Memorial 69th Church Anniversary Banquet 

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This concludes Part II of this two part pancocojams series.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome. 

"Sit At The Welcome Table" (information, comments, and lyrics of this African American Spiritual or early Gospel, & Civil Rights Song)

Edited by Azizi Powell

This post is Part I of a two part pancocojams series on the early African American Gospel* song "Sit At The Welcome Table".

This post consist of selected comments about the origin and meaning of "Sit At The Welcome Table" from several discussion threads on the online Mudcat folk music forum.

Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2025/11/religious-or-civil-rights-versions-of.html of this pancocojams series. That post showcases a few YouTube sound files and videos of African American singing "Sit At The Welcome Table" and a few other Gospel songs such as "I'm Goin' Down To The River Of Jordan" and "Somewhere Around God's Throne". Renditions of those songs often include a "sit at the welcome table" verse. That post also includes a YouTube sound file of a Civil Rights version of "Sit At The Welcome Table". 

The content of this post is presented for historical, socio-cultural, and religious purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the unknown composers of "Sit At The Welcome Table" and the earlier African American Spirituals that inspired the composition of the "Sit At The Welcome Table" verses and songs. Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post.
-snip-
*I prefer to categorize "Sit At The Welcome Table" as an early Gospel song. However, I have no problem with other people categorizing it as a Spiritual.  Part of the confusion in determining if "Sit At The Welcome Table" is an African American Spiritual or is an early African American Gospel song is that the line "I'm gonna sit at the welcome table" appears to have been sung as part of some Spirituals. However, renditions of this song that focus on sitting at the Welcome Table" may not have been documented until the early 20th century.

The song "Sit At The Welcome Table" has many similar characteristics as African American Spirituals. For instance, Spirituals were composed in the 19th century and have no known composers. In contrast, most African American Gospel songs have known composers. However, it doesn't appear that "Sit At The Welcome Table" has a known composer.   Also, ass is the case with African American Spirituals and with most African American Gospel songs, there are no fixed lyrics for renditions of "Sit At The Welcome Table".

Some adaptations of "Sit At The Welcome Table" were also composed and sung as Civil Rights songs in the 1960s. Those adaptations usually included a verse about "sit ins" at Woolworth lunch counters where African Americans at that time were routinely refused service.  The protest strategies was that African Americans (usually students at universities in the South) would sit at the counter therefore taking a seat that couldn't then be occupied by a White person. Those sit in demonstrators were usually arrested for these actions. 

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SELECTED COMMENTS FROM SEVERAL MUDCAT FORUM DISCUSSION THREADS ON THE SONG "SIT AT THE WELCOME TABLE"
This post presents selected comments from a Mudcat folk music discussion thread about the song “Sit At The Welcome Table”. These comments are a compilation of several Mudcat discussion threads on that subject -Notice the discussion name that is given in the  subject title for each comment. However, these comments were presented in chronological order in that Mudcat discussion thread and they are presented in chronological order in this pancocojams post. 

I assigned numbers to these comments for referencing purposes only. These numbers don't necessarily correspond with where those comments are given in that Mudcat discussion thread. 

Full disclosure- I wrote a few of those comments.

These  Mudcat comments are given "as is", including spelling errors and dialectic words.

Readers should be aware that the in the 21st century the use of so-called "Negro dialect" is widely considered to be offensive. 

https://mudcat.org/thread.cfm?threadid=93754

1. Subject: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: CET
Date: 11 Aug 06 - 10:00 PM

"I have just learned a gospel song collected in Nova Scotia by Helen Creighton, called "The Welcome Table". The first verse is:

I'm going to climb up Jacob's ladder,
I'm going to climb up Jacob's ladder one of these days
Alleluja
I'm going to climb up Jacob's ladder,
I'm going to climb up Jacob's ladder one of these days.

The first line changes in each verse, e.g. "I'm going to climb up higher and higher", "I'm going to sit at the welcome table", etc.

It was collected in a school for black children (possibly orphanage - it's five to ten on Friday night and I'm too lazy to look it up). It definitely has a southern gospel ring to it. Does anybody know other versions of this song? Did it originate in the U.S?"

**
2. Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 11 Aug 06 - 11:24 PM

"Widespread and much-collected. Sung by both Blacks and Whites (the Carter Family and others). Also known as "Down to the River of Jordan (Jerdan)." The verse order changes, and several other verses in some versions. It is identified in its versions by the line "Some of these days" or "One of these days."

In the Cleveland Index of Spirituals, it is catalogued under the name "Some of These Days," which is the title in Grissom, "Negro Sings a New Heaven," and "Some o' Dese Days," Johnson, "Green Pastures Spirituals." Also known as "I'm Goin' Down to de Ribber ob Jerden," in Ballanta-Taylor, "Saint Helena Island Spirituals."

Down to the River of Jordan

As sung by Ollie Gilbert, Arkansas, The Max Hunter Folk Collection, the welcome table appears in the 4th verse:

1. I'm a goin' down the river of Jordan
O yes, I'm goin' down to the river of Jordan
Some of these days, hallaluia
I'm goin' down to the river of Jordan (2x)
Some of these days.

2. I'm a gonna set down by my Jesus
O yes, I'm goin' down to the river of Jordan
Some of these days, hallaluia
I'm a gonna set down by my Jesus (2x)
Some of these days.

3. I'm a gonna sing in the Heavenly choir
O yes, I'm a gonna sing in the Heavenly choir
Some of these days, hallaluia
I'm a gonna sing, the Heavenly choir (2x)
Some of these days.

4. I'm a gonna eat at the welcome table
O yes, I'm gonna eat at the welcome table
Some of these days, hallaluia
I'm gonna eat at the welcome table (2x)
Some of these days."...

**
3.  Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: Azizi
Date: 12 Aug 06 - 08:14 AM

 "I found this article after googling the term 'welcome table':

"... The Welcome Table, honored in the Jewish tradition by the Seder table at which one seat is left empty for Elijah, or for the stranger. Modeled in the Christian tradition by Jesus' radical table fellowship with sinners and prostitutes. Sung of in the African American tradition as the future reign of justice and freedom."

Welcome Table Theology A Sermon by the Reverend Phyllis L. Hubbell; The First Unitarian Church of Baltimore' Founders' Day, February 8, 2004

[...]

For what its worth, although I vaguely remember the line "I'm gonna sit at the welcome table" being sung as part of some spiritual or another, I never known there to be an actual "welcome table" at any African American church that I have attended.

However, there is an 'altar table" which sits down below pulpit where the minister[s] sit [in many Black Baptist churches, the choir sits directly behind the minister]. One welcoming tradition that I remember occuring in my childhppd and which still occurs during the formal church service at my Black Baptist church are "Welcoming visitors". This occurs before the minister preaches [also known as the minister 'giving the sermon'] is that visitors are asked to stand and state their name and where they are from. The Church Clerk [or another designated church officer or member then formally welcomes those persons to the church.

Another church welcoming tradition is "extending the right hand of fellowship". This tradition occurs after the sermon but before the church service officially ends. When the minister says 'Let us extend the right hand of fellowship", for a brief time, the congregation-including the choir-stand and greet those who had been sitted near them [in their row, and in the next row in front of and behind them]. People warmly greet each other with a handshake, a hug, and brief words. Some people go across the aisle to do extend the right hand of fellowship, but in my experience, during this time most people only greet those formathis is usually limited to greeting those persons who are standing near you. Thanks to google, I found out that there's a biblical origin for this tradition:

"After his [Paul's] meeting with the highly esteemed leaders of the Christian community on Jerusalem in which he set before them the Gospel he preached among the Gentiles, he stated that these leaders "gave me and Barnabas the right hand of fellowship when they recognized the grace given to me" (cf. Galatians 2:1-10).http://spiritualoasis.wordpress.com/2006/06/28/the-right-hand-of-fellowship/

In churhes I have attended, after the church service ends, the church sometimes serves 'dinner' or 'repast' {a repast is usually less food than that served at the 'dinner'}. There's a head table reserved for the minister & his wife and his invited guests. But the 'head table' is entirely different from the 'welcome table' mentioned in spirituals. Maybe the 'altar table' is closer to the traditional meaning of the 'welcome table'.

Finally, when singing the line "sit at the welcome table", I think it's important to remember the context under which enslaved African Americans composed the songs which included these lines. Food was scarce, and African Americans were definitely not welcomed in many settings. The line 'sit at the welcome table' "flips the script"

{to use a hip-hop term]. In the imagery of African Americans who created the spirituals, in heaven, all folks would be welcomed, and all folks would have lots of food to eat. In my opinion, the belief that in heaven people who were hungry would have more than enough food to eat is an important element of that "future reign of justice and freedom" {as quoted in the excerpt presented above"}."

**
4. Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: Azizi
Date: 12 Aug 06 - 08:50 AM

"I found this line "Gwine to sit down at the welcome table, gwine to feast off milk and honey" in this article: "Negro Folk Expression: Spirituals, Seculars, Ballads and Work Songs" by by Sterling Brown."

**
5. Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: dick greenhaus
Date: 12 Aug 06 - 09:40 AM

"Was very popular as "I'm Gonna Walk the Streets of Glory" in the early 50s. SUng by the Almanacs."

**
6. Subject: Lyr. Add: SOME O' THESE DAYS
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 12 Aug 06 - 12:48 PM

"SOME O' THESE DAYS (spiritual)

I'm gonna tell God how you treat me, (2x)
Some o' these days. Hallelujah!
I'm gonna tell God how you treat me, (2x)
Some o' these days.

I'm gonna cross thuh river of Jurdun, (2x)
Some o' these days. Hallelujah!
I'm gonna cross thuh river of Jurdun, (2x)
Some o' these days.

I'm gonna drink uv thuh healin' waters (2x)
Some o' these days. Hallelujah!
I'm gonna drink uv the healin' waters, (2x)
Some o' these days.

I'm gonna drink and nevuh get thirsty, (2x)
Some o' these days. Hallelujah!
I'm gonna drink and nevuh get thirsty, (2x)
Some o' these days.

I'm gonna eat off thuh welcome table, (2x)
Some o' these days. Hallelujah!
I'm gonna eat off thuh welcome table, (2x)
Some o' these days.

I'm gonna walk an' talk wid Jesus, (2x)
Some o' these days. Hallelujah!
I'm gonna walk an' talk wid Jesus (2x)
Some o' these days.

I'm gonna ride in thuh charet wid Jesus, (2x)

etc.

I'm gonna shout an' not be weary, (2x)

etc.

You're gonna wish that you'd-a been ready, (2x)

etc.

God's gonna set yo' sins befo' you (2x)

etc.

God's gonna bring this world to judgment (2x)

etc.

With music, pp. 20-21, Grissom, Mary Allen, 1930, "The Negro Sings a New Heaven," Univ. North Carolina Press (Dover reprint, 1969).

This version gives a good idea of the many verses that may be sung with this spiritual.

Dick Greenhaus adds another (The first line of a verse ofen used as the title)."

**
7. Subject: ADD Version: I'm Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table
From: Azizi
Date: 12 Aug 06 - 01:12 PM

"Here's a version of I'm Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table" which was written as a Civil Rights song:

I'm Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table

I'm gonna sit at the welcome table,
I'm gonna sit at the welcome table one of these days,
Hallelujah!
I'm gonna sit at the welcome table,
I'm gonna sit at the welcome table one of these days.

I'm gonna walk the streets of glory,
I'm gonna walk the streets of glory one of these days,
Hallelujah!
I'm gonna walk the streets of glory,
I'm gonna walk the streets of glory one of these days.

I'm gonna get my civil rights,
I'm gonna get my civil rights one of these days,
Hallelujah!
I'm gonna get my civil rights,
I'm gonna get my civil rights one of these days.

I'm gonna sit at the Woolworth counter,
I'm gonna sit at the Woolworth counter one of these days,
Hallelujah!
I'm gonna sit at the Woolworth counter,
I'm gonna sit at the Woolworth counter one of these days.

McComb, Mississippi, Freedom School Play

This song was part of a play written by the students of the McComb, Mississippi, Freedom School in 1964."

**
8 .Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: Azizi
Date: 13 Aug 06 - 09:36 AM

"Here's song notes for "Welcome Table" from this website: A Companion to the Old Town School of Folk Music Songbook

 "Welcome Table" is an African-American spiritual with pre-Civil War roots. A spiritual is characteristically repetitive to be easily learned by a group or singers. The lyrics to "I'm Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table" speak of a better day when the singer will be able to "walk the streets of glory" and be "welcomed" to the dinner table of just souls.

During the Civil Rights demonstrations of the 1960s, many of the older spirituals were revived. Their repetitive structure again served impromptu groups of marchers and singers well. And the subject matter of "I'm On My Way," "Study War No More" and "Welcome Table" spoke directly to the worldly concerns of the freedom marchers.

Recordings on file by: Brownie McGhee, Various artists"
-snip-
Pancocojams Editor's Note: November 2, 2025. This website is still active. Here's its link: https://www.oldtownschool.org/resourcecenter/songnotes/. The songs are given in alphabetical order. .

**
9.  Subject: Lyr. Add:The Welcome Table ( spiritual)
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 26 Feb 10 - 02:49 PM

THE WELCOME TABLE

Spiritual, Carolina Low Country

1

I'm gwine tuh set at duh welcome table,
I'm gwine tuh set at duh welcome table,
Some o' dese days, Hallelujah,
I'm gwine tuh set at duh welcome table,
Gwine tuh set at duh welcome table
Some o' dese days.

2

I'm gwine tuh drink ob duh healin' waters,
I'm gwine tuh drink ob duh healin' waters
Some o' dese days, Hallelujah,
I'm gwine tuh drink ob duh healin' waters,
Gwine tuh drink ob duh healin' waters
Some o' dese days.

3

I'm gwine tuh drink en nebbuh git tu'sty,(1)
I'm gwine tuh drink en nebbuh git tu'sty
Some o' dese days, hallelujah,
I'm gwine tuh drink en nebbuh git tu'sty
Gwine tuh drink en nebbuh git tu'sty
Some o' dese days.

4

I'm gwine tuh eat en nebbuh git hongry,

etc.

5

I'm gwine tuh seddown(2) 'side my Jedus,

etc.

6

I'm gwine tuh ride een duh glycerin' cha'ayut(3)

7

I'm gwine tuh see all duh 'Postles,

etc.

8

I'm gwine tuh see my dear gran'mudduh,

etc.

9

I'm gwine tuh set een duh elbow chair,

etc.

10

I'm gwine tuh rock from side tuh side,

etc.

11

I'm gwine tuh res' from all muh labuh,

etc.

12

I'm gwine tuh rally wid duh Ainjul Gabrull,'etc.

 

Rendered in the gullah of the Carolina Low Country.

(1)nebbuh git tu'sty- never get thirsty; (2)seddown- sit down; (3)glycerin cha'ayut- glistening chariot.

 

With musical score, pp. 298-299, 1931, Augustine T. Smythe et al.,The Carolina Low Country, spirituals coll. by K. C. Hutson et al. Society for the Preservation of Spirituals.

The Macmillan Company.

**
10. Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: GUEST,Lasse
Date: 10 Aug 11 - 02:46 PM

"African-American traditions in song, sermon, tale, and dance, 1600s-1920 by Eileen Southern,Josephine Wright lists that "I'm gonna sit at the welcome table" was is found on page 37 in Theodore F. Seward's Jubilee Songs: complete as sung by the Jubilee Singers, from 1872.

That seems to indicare that the song indeed was preformed by the Jubilee Singers.

Does anyone have the lyrics that are listed in Seward's book?"

**
11. Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 05 Dec 11 - 03:47 PM

"Contrary to a post above by Guest Lasse, the spirituals published by Seward did not include "I'm Going to Sit at the Welcome Table.

Fairly early the verse appeared in several spirituals mostly as a floater, but was not a song in itself in the 19th c. literature."

**
12.  Subject: RE: Origins: Gospel song 'The Welcome Table'
From: Azizi
Date: 11 Jun 12 - 08:31 AM

"Request for information from an archivist for the PBS historical documentary series History Detectives.

[I received this request via email to my website Cocojams.com.]

"We are currently working on an investigation involving what we believe to be the signage that hung above the doors of the Liberty St. Woolworth lunch counter in WInston-Salem North Carolina. Winston-Salem became the first NC city to desegregate its lunch counters (May, 1960).

Your website provides some great information about Civil Rights and Freedom Songs, and I am particularly interested in obtaining a recorded version of the song, "I'm Gonna Sit at the Welcome Table," featuring the Woolworth-specific lyrics ("I'm Gonna Sit at the Woolworth Counter"). If you have an idea as to the source for a recorded version, I would be most grateful to know (as the song would work great for our piece)"...
-snip-
If you have any information on this request, please post it here or directly contact ashley.levine at liontv dot us.

Thanks!

Azizi Powell"
-snip-
Pancocojams Editor's Note November 1, 2025-The words "your website" in that query that was directed to me referred to my multi-page website cocojams.com that was active from January 2001 to November 2014 when I voluntarily de-activated it. One of the pages was "Civil Rights and Freedom Songs". 

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This concludes Part I of this two part pancocojams series.

Thanks for visiting pancocojams.

Visitor comments are welcome.

How The African American Spiritual Or Early Gospel Song "Keep Your Hands On The Plow" ("Hold On") Became The 1960s Civil Rights Song "Hold On" (also known as "Keep Your Eyes On The Prize")

Mahalia Jackson - Keep Your Hand on the Plow

BrendudeUploaded on Jan 6, 2010

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This post pancocojams post provides videos of and information about the Spiritual* "Hold On" which was  adapted,  retitled, and sung during the American civil rights movement of the 1960s with the names "Hold On" and "Keep Your Eyes On The Prize"..

The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to everyone in the past who stood up for freedom & justice and thanks to everyone now who are standing up for freedom and justice for all.

Thanks to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the publishers of these sound files on YouTube.
-snip-
*The song "Keep Your Hand On The Plow" may be more correctly categorized as an early African American Gospel song instead of an African American Spiritual. That is because the first documentation of this song is 1917 and the general rule is that African American religious compositions from 1900 on are Gospels and not Spirituals. 

**
Most of the content of this 2025 post is reprinted from my 2014 post "https://civilrightssongs.blogspot.com/2014/11/hold-on-keep-your-eyes-on-prize-civil.html"

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NFORMATION ABOUT THE CIVIL RIGHTS SONG "KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE PRIZE"
The African American civil rights song "Hold On" is an adaptation of the African American Spiritual "Keep Your Hand On The Plow", also known as "Hold On". Instead of  the Civil Rights song's lyrics "Keep your eye on the prize", the Spiritual's lyrics are "Keep your hand on the plow". 

The wordss "Keep your hand on the plow" and "keep your eye on the prize" both mean to remain steadfast in your determination. The words of that Spiritual referred to those who were determined to live a Christian life. When almost the same words were sung in the civil rights protest movement, they referred to being resolved to continue to be involved in protest marches and other forms of civil (societal) protests in spite of the possibility or the probability of very serious consequences.

****
Here are some comments about the Spiritual "Keep your eyes on the prize" and its adaptation as a Civil Rights song from this online Mudcat folk music discussion thread: http://www.mudcat.org/thread.cfm?ThreadID=4136 

Numbers are added for referencing purposes only.

1.  Lyr Add: KEEP YOUR EYES ON THE PRIZE
From: RickyC
Date: 24 Feb 98 - 06:17 PM

..."The song is in the book. The title is "Keep your Eyes on the Prize.” It is from and old religious song that used the words "keep your hand on the plow" and was rewritten by Alice Wine who was one of the first graduates of the voter education schools on Johns Island, South Carolina. These are the words: Paul and Silas, bound in jail, had no money for to go their bail, Keep your eyes on the prize, hold on, hold on. Chorus: Hold on, Hold on, Keep your eyes on the prize, Hold on. Hold on. Paul and Silas begin to shout, The jail door opened and they walked on out. Keep your eyes on the prize, hold on, hold on. Freedom's name is mighty sweet, Soon one day we're gonna meet. Got my hand on the Gospel plow, I wouldn't take nothing for my journey now. The only chain that a man can stand, Is that chain of hand in hand. The only thing we did wrong, Stayed in the wilderness a day too long. But the one thing we did right, Was the day we started to fight. We're gonna board that big Greyhound, Carryin’ love from town to town. We're gonna ride for civil rights, We’re gonna ride both black and white. We've met jail and violence too, But God's love has seen us through. Haven't been to heaven but I've been told, Streets up there are paved with gold. Song copyright 1965, 1965, by Alice Wine Source: Sing For Freedom: The Story of the Civil Rights Movement through its songs, Edited and compiled by Guy and Candie Carawan, 1963 (as "We Shall Overcome"). combined with "Freedom Is a Constant Struggle" (1968) and republished by Sing Out! with the new title.

**
2.RE: eyes on the prize lyrics?
From: Joe Offer
Date: 22 Feb 99 - 01:05 AM

..."Smithsonian Folkways has a companion CD to the songbook KickyC quoted from, Sing For Freedom: The Story Of The Civil Rights Movement Through Its Songs, and it's available from Amazon click for a sample) and the usual suppliers. The CD has recordings of "Eyes on the Prize" and also the original form of the song, "Keep Your Hand on the Plow." This is what the songbook says about the song:

This is a song that has been through every chapter of the civil rights movement. The words "keep your eyes on the prize" (replacing the more common "keep your hand on the plow") came from Alice Wine, one of the first proud products of voter education schools - on Johns Island, South Carolina in 1956.

The song had meaning for the sit-in students who were the first to be 'bound in jail' for long periods of time. It went with the Freedom Riders to Jackson and into Parchman, and on to Albany and all of the many other areas of struggle.

The original song is also known as "Hold On." Here's a quote about that song from a book called Ev'ry time I Feel the Spirit, by Gwendolyn Sims Warren:

Struggling with the tribulations and hardships of slave existence, believers needed the encouragement of others not to give up but to hold on. As a later gospel song says, "Hold to God's unchanging hand" - trust in His deliverance, keep pressing on. this exhortation is based on Luke 9:62, which says, "anyone who puts a hand to the plow and then looks back is not fit for the Kingdom of God." Aother scripture, 1 Corinthians 9:10, says that those who plow should do so in hope.

"Hold On" imaginatively uses its imagery to hearten, exhort, and teach the message of the scriptures...The song's chorus talks to the whole slave community, from brothers and mothers to deacons and preachers. All must watch their step and hold on to the great gospel plow. The plow and track are interesting images because they related not only to the scriptural passages at the heart of "Hold On," but also to ordinary, everyday activities.

St. Paul talks about working toward a prize in Philippians 3:14 and 1 Corinthians 9:24, so the substitution of "prize" for "plow" seems to fit into the scriptural imagery of the song. The verses are flexible, many the same as those found in many other spirituals, plugged in wherever they fit.
It sure is a beautiful song, isn't it?"

****
3. Lyr Add: KEEP YO' HAND ON THE GOSPEL PLOW
From: masato sakurai
Date: 14 Apr 02 

"Newman I. White recorded "Keep yo' hand on the gospel plow" in his American Negro Folk-Songs ((1928; reprint ed., [1964?], p. 115; no title is given; text only). It was "reported from Durham, N.C., 1925, MS. of N.I. White. From Creedmore, N.C., as sung by Ed Lloyd, who says there are several stanzas."

Keep yo' hand on the gospel plow,
Wouldn't take nothin' for my journey now, Holy Ghost.

Chorus
Keep yo' hand on the gospel plow,
Hold on, hold on,
Keep yo' hand on the gospel plow,
Hold on.

Didn't come here for to stay always,
Just come here to fill my place.

I got a mother in the promised land,
Never shall rest till I shake her hand.

Earlier, Cecil J. Sharp recorded a version, which was "sung by girls at Oneida School, Ky., Aug. 18, 1917." (English Folk Songs from the Southern Appalachians, 1932, vol. 2, p. 292; with music). Notes (by Karpeles?) say "This ... is a 'Holiness' hymn. It is evidently influenced by negro spiritulas." (p. 412)

HOLD ON

1. Some of these days about four o'clock,
This old world's going to reel and rock.
Keep your hand, keep your hand to the plough, hold on,
Hold on, hold on,
Keep your hand to the plough, hold on.

2. Some of these days, but I don't know when,
This old world's going to end.

3. Go away, satan, let me be,
You fooled my brother, but you can't fool me.

4. Satan wears a sinful shoe,
If you don't mind he'll slip it on you.

5. Some of these mornings at the rising sun,
O God's going to stop your lying tongue.

6. Hain't been to heaven, but I've been told
That the streets are pearl and the gates are gold.

7. When I get to heaven I'm going to sit down,
Wear a white robe and a starry crown.

8. I'm going to heaven and I hain't a-going to stop,
There hain't going to be no stumbling-block.

This song has been recorded by the Pilgrim Tavelers, Clara Ward Singers, Pete Seeger, Golden Gate Quartet, Mahalia Jackson, Sounds of Blackness. The title "Hold On" seems to be more common; another title is "The Gospel Plow" (by the Nashville Bluegrass Band).

~Masato"
-snip-
The referent "Negro" spelled with a lower case "n" is considered to offensive. Furthermore, Negro has been a socially unacceptable and outdated referent for Black Americans (African Americans) since the 1960s.

****
SHOWCASE VIDEO #2- Keep Your Eyes On The Prize

Songs for R.E.A.L Justice, Jan 13, 2015

Lyrics: Paul and Silas bound in jail Got no money for to go to their bail Keep your eyes on the prize Hold on, hold on (Refrain) Hold on, hold on! Keep you eyes on the prize, Hold on, hold on The only thing that we did right, Was the day we started to fight Keep your eyes on the prize Hold on, hold on (Refrain) The only thing that we did wrong Was stay in the wilderness too long Keep your eyes on the prize Hold on, hold on (Refrain)

-snip-

As is the case with all African American originated civil rights songs, the words to the song "Keep Your Eyes On The Prize" aren't fixed.

Thanks to Mama Kemba for sending in the third verse to this song to my cocojams.com website on February 26, 2008. That website is no longer active. 

Thanks, also, to bill allen for sending a message on 4/24/2009 to that website which noted that "Keep Your Eye On The Prize" is an urban version of the rural (farm or plantation) song "Hold On".

bill allen also included these verses in his message:]to the 2014 post about this song on Civil Rights blog: https://civilrightssongs.blogspot.com/2014/11/hold-on-keep-your-eyes-on-prize-civil.html
 
1. When you plow, don't lose your track, Can't plow straight and keep a-lookin' back.
Keep your hand on that plow, hold on (Keep your eyes on the prize, hold on.)

2. Wanna getta heav'n?, I'll tell you how, Keep your hand right on that plow. (Keep your eyes...)

3. When I thought I was lost, Dungeon shook and the chains fell off. (Keep your eyes...)

4. Got my hands on the gospel plow, Wouldn't take nothin' for my journey now. (Keep your eyes...)

5. The only chain we can stand, Is the chain of hand in hand (Keep your eyes...)

****
LYRICS #2 - HOLD ON [Civil Rights version]
(no composers identified)

Paul and Silas bound in jail
with no money to forgo their bail
Keep your eye on the prize
and hold on, hold on

Chorus:
Hold on
Hold on
Keep your eye on the prize
And hold on, hold on.

If religion was a thing that money could buy

The rich would live and the poor would die
Keep your eye on the prize
And hold on, hold on.

Chorus

One and one that makes two
Tell you what I'm-ma gonna do
Keep my eye on the prize
And hold on, hold on.

Chorus

Know the one thing we did wrong
Stayed in the wilderness far too long
Know the first thing we did right
Was the day we started to fight
Keep your eye on the prize hold on, hold on

****
A COMMENT FROM THE CIVIL RIGHTS BLOG'S POST ON THE  SONG "HOLD ON"
Unknown (Mama Edie )August 6, 2016,  https://civilrightssongs.blogspot.com/2014/11/hold-on-keep-your-eyes-on-prize-civil.html

"Thank you for your work in bringing forth this information over the years. Thanks also to Momma Kemba, from my home in Chicago, and to Bill Allen for their contributions as well. Doing final preparations for songs and chants that I'll be helping to lead today for the Dr. King Memorial commemorative march that we'll be doing shortly in Marquette Park, where Dr. King was struck with a rock, saying that Chicago had been his most hostile experience at that point, moreso than anything he had experienced in the south. That march in 1966 had special meaning for me as, at the age of 14, I was in it. Yesterday others who also had marched that day with Dr. King were invited to participate in the memorial ceremony unveiling the monument that now stands in Marquette Park, beautifully structured of stone and rock, a notable connection to the incident where Dr. King was struck. Today we prepare for the commemorative march, kicking off at 9am. A shorter distance this time around, and hopefully, with less hostility. In fact, many in the community of Marquette Park spearheaded these events, inspired by Brother Rami Nashashibi of IMAN (Inner-City Muslim Action Nertwork), blending Muslims, Jews, Protestants, Catholics, and people from across many cultures and nationalities. It was a wonderful sight to behold that, with blessings, will continue to manifest out into the world where we continue to encounter injustices on a daily basis. But we know that we must keep hope alive and "Keep Our Eyes on the Prize." We'll be in Philly in November of 2016 as the Nat'l Assoc of Black Storytellers. Hope to see you there. Peace and blessings. Mama Edie, Nat'l Memb Chair, Nat'l Assoc of Black Storytellers, Inc."

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Visitor comments are welcome.

YouTube Videos "Don't You Let Nobody Turn You Around" (Spiritual) And "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round" (Civil Rights Song) With Information of The United States Civil Rights Movement (late 1950s & 1960s)

Peninsula Girls Chorus,  Jun 4, 2017

Performed by Peninsula Girls Chorus, Repertoire, Concerta & Ensemble Choirs.

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Edited by Azizi Powell

This pancocojams post showcase a YouTube video of a choral group from the United States singing the African American Spiritual "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me Around".

This post presents information and lyrics for that Spiritual and also showcases a YouTube video of The Freedom Singers performing the Civil Rights song "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round" in 2010 at the White House when Barak Obama was President of the United States. The group known here as "the Freedom Singers" were mostly made up of the members of Sweet Honey In The Rock.

In addition, this post presents some information about the United States Civil Rights Movement in the United States in the late 1950s and the 1960s.

The content of this post is presented for historical, cultural, and aesthetic purposes.

All copyrights remain with their owners.

Thanks to the unknown composer/s of the Spiritual "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round" as well as the unknown composer/s who were the first to compose the Civil Rights version of this song. Thanks to The Peninsula Girls Chorus, Repertoire, Concerta & Ensemble Choirs and thanks to The Freedom Singers for their renditions of these songs.  

Thanks also to all those who are quoted in this post and thanks to the producer and publisher of this YouTube video.
-snip-
Click https://civilrightssongs.blogspot.com/2014/11/aint-gonna-let-nobody-turn-me-around.html for a 2014 post on my Civil Rights blog. That post showcases additional Civil Rights versions of "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round".

Also, click http://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2012/06/aint-gonna-let-nobody-turn-me-round.html for two videos of Gospel versions of "Don't Let Nobody Turn You Round" - one by The Fairfield Four from the 1980s and one sung by Albertina Walker. The Fairfield Four first recorded this song in 1947. I'm not sure about the recording date for that Albertina Walker video. But I think it was in the early 2000s.

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LYRICS - "AIN'T GONNA LET NOBODY TURN ME AROUND (SPIRITUAL)

Traditional (African American) Spiritual

CHO:
Don't you let nobody turn you aroun',
Turn you aroun', turn you aroun',
Don't you let nobody turn you aroun',
Keep the straight an' the narrow way.

VERSES:
I was at the river of Jordan,
Baptism was begun,
b John baptized the multitude,
But he sprinkled nary a one.
The baptis' they go by water,
The methodes' go by lan',
But when they get to heaven
They'll shake each other's han'.

You may be a good baptis'
An' a good methodes' as well,
But if you ain't the pure in heart
Yo' soul is boun' for hell.

Source: American Negro Songs, edited by John W. Work, Dover Publications.
-snip-
* I follow what I think is the general rule that any song that was composed after the end of the 19th century isn't a Spiritual even if its structure is the same as or similar to the structure of Spirituals. Instead of categorizing them as Spirituals, those post 19th century Black American religious songs are considered to be "early Gospel" songs".

Most Gospel songs, including early Gospel songs, usually have a known composer/s. I've not found any information about the composer/s of "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn You Round". However, whether "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round" is a Spiritual or an early Gospel song doesn't change the fact that most versions of it are probably in the public domain

Like other civil rights songs, the words to "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me "Round" aren't fixed. However, that civil rights song was sung in unison which means that those singing it knew in advance which verses were to be sung, and in which order the verses were sung. In contrast, the earliest renditions of the Gospel song probably were sung using a call & response pattern.

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INFORMATION ABOUT THE UNITED STATES CIVIL RIGHTS MOVEMENT
From https://www.loc.gov/classroom-materials/united-states-history-primary-source-timeline/post-war-united-states-1945-1968/civil-rights-movement/

Presentation - U.S. History Primary Source Timeline

"The Civil Rights Movement

In the middle of the 20th century, a nationwide movement for equal rights for African Americans and for an end to racial segregation and exclusion arose across the United States. This movement took many forms, and its participants used a wide range of means to make their demands felt, including sit-ins, boycotts, protest marches, freedom rides, and lobbying government officials for legislative action. They faced opposition on many fronts and fell victim to bombings and beatings, arrest and assassination. By the end of the 1960s, the civil rights movement had brought about dramatic changes in the law and in public practice, and had secured legal protection of rights and freedoms for African Americans that would shape American life for decades to come.

A few key moments include:

Brown v. Board of Education The National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) Legal Defense and Educational Fund, led by Thurgood Marshall, spent decades fighting against racial segregation in education. This long campaign culminated when the U.S. Supreme Court heard Brown v. Board of Education, which gathered together five separate cases related to school segregation with Marshall leading the arguments before the Court. On May 17, 1954, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled unanimously that “separate educational facilities are inherently unequal,” legally ending racial segregation in public schools and overruling the “separate but equal” principle set forth in Plessy v. Ferguson in 1889.

Rosa Parks arrested On December 1, 1955, civil rights activist Rosa Parks was arrested when she refused to surrender her seat on a Montgomery, Alabama, bus to a white passenger. The arrest led to the Montgomery Bus Boycott, a pivotal event in the U.S. Civil Rights Movement, and was a defining moment in Parks' long career as an activist. The Montgomery Bus Boycott also saw the rise to prominence of a young Montgomery minister, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

Little Rock school integration crisis After the Brown v. Board, Supreme Court decision, state and local officials in a number of states resisted school integration. In September of 1957, nine African American students attempted to attend Central High School in Little Rock, Arkansas. The governor ordered the state’s National Guard to surround the high school, and the Black students were harassed and kept from entering the building. President Dwight Eisenhower nationalized the Arkansas National Guard and sent U.S. troops to protect the students and enforce the desegregation order of the federal courts.

Birmingham campaign In the spring of 1963, the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., launched a large-scale campaign of sit-ins and marches in Birmingham, Alabama, to protest the city’s brutal segregation policies. Many of the protestors and leaders were jailed, and while behind bars, Dr. King wrote a long public letter that explained his philosophy of non-violent protest. This document, which became known as “The Letter from Birmingham Jail,” went on to be widely republished and regarded as a classic defense of the principles of civil disobedience.

The March on Washington On August 28, 1963, hundreds of thousands of people arrived in Washington, D.C., for the largest non-violent civil rights demonstration that the nation had ever seen: The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. The march was organized in a few months, coordinated by veteran strategist Bayard Rustin, and was meant to demonstrate an urgent need for substantive change. The demands in the event program began with “Comprehensive and effective civil rights legislation from the present Congress” and included the end of discrimination in education, housing, employment, and more. Leaders and organizers met with members of Congress and with President John F. Kennedy, while the march ended at the Lincoln Memorial with music and speeches, including Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.

The Selma civil rights marches On March 7, 1965, a civil rights march in Selma, Alabama, led by 25-year-old activist leader John Lewis, was attacked by state troopers and sheriff’s deputies as the marchers attempted to cross the city’s Edmund Pettus Bridge. Coverage of the marchers being beaten, tear-gassed, and trampled by police horses prompted outrage across the nation, and activists, religious leaders, and everyday citizens flooded into Selma to lend their support. On March 9, a second group of marchers, led by Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., approached the bridge, prayed there, and returned to church. On March 21, thousands of marchers crossed the bridge, this time protected by federalized National Guard troops, and headed to Montgomery.

The Civil Rights Act of 1964 and Voting Rights Act of 1965 The two most significant pieces of civil rights legislation since Reconstruction were passed within two years of each other. Between the two, these Acts outlawed discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin. They banned discrimination in public accommodations, public education, and employment, and prohibited race-based restrictions on voting. Such sweeping legislation had been a longtime goal of the civil rights movement, and it brought many of the laws and practices of the Jim Crow Era to an end."...

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THE SOURCE OF THE CIVIL RIGHTS SONG "AIN'T GONNA LET NOBODY TURN ME 'ROUND"
The African American civil rights song "Ain't Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round" is based on an African American Spiritual or early Gospel song* entitled "Don't Let Nobody Turn Me Round". A version of that song was included in the 1940 book Negro Folk Songs (proofs from American Negro Songs and Spirituals) edited by John W. Work.
-snip-
from AI Overview [retrieved October 23, 2025]
"The term "Negro" was dropped as a referent for African Americans largely during the 1960s with the rise of the Black Power movement, though its use declined more gradually. The term was officially removed from the U.S. Census Bureau's surveys in 2013 after being deemed outdated and potentially offensive, a decision influenced by civil rights groups."...

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infomisa, Sep 16, 2012

February 09, 2010 | 3:26

The Freedom Singers perform "(Ain't Gonna let Nobody) Turn me Around" at the White House Celebration of Music from the Civil Rights Movement.

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LYRICS: AIN'T GONNA LET NOBODY TURN ME 'ROUND (a Civil Rights version) 

(unknown composer)

Aint gonna let nobody
Turn me 'round
Turn me 'round
Aint gonna let nobody
Turn me round
I'm gonna keep on walkin'
Keep on talkin
Marchin into freedom land

[Follow the above pattern for other verses such as:
Aint gonna let (add the name a prominent segregationist or a racist public figure).

Aint gonna let no jailhouse

Aint gonna let no policeman
-snip-
*Notice that the end of the first line allows for improvisation.

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