Working and Singing
Dr. Hunter in the The death of the Negro, tells of Willie Dixon accounts of the slave working and singing the blues. If they(slaves) got paid a week’s pay it was fifty cents and a dollar on Saturdays. The songs were religious in nature and called slave spirituals that touched all, even the oppressors or slave masters were often moved to tears. More importantly, this was not a new custom for the slave habitually sang while doing their work in Africa. They sang of a luckier and happier time. The Jubilees were happy songs that lifted their spirits. These Jubilee songs quickly became the call to freedom songs.
They sang about their mother praying in the wilderness and getting ready to go home. In all honesty, many
Dr. Hunter in the The death of the Negro, tells of Willie Dixon accounts of the slave working and singing the blues. If they(slaves) got paid a week’s pay it was fifty cents and a dollar on Saturdays. The songs were religious in nature and called slave spirituals that touched all, even the oppressors or slave masters were often moved to tears. More importantly, this was not a new custom for the slave habitually sang while doing their work in Africa. They sang of a luckier and happier time. The Jubilees were happy songs that lifted their spirits. These Jubilee songs quickly became the call to freedom songs.
They sang about their mother praying in the wilderness and getting ready to go home. In all honesty, many