I thought this melody sounded familiar. I wish I had a sound clip to play for you-- I suspect that Tindley's inspiration for the tune must have been a negro spiritual that preceded it, called "I'm A-Going To Do All I Can."

This would be a call-response form, and done with floating verses.

~Susan

---

I'M A-GOING TO DO ALL I CAN

Traditional Spiritual

LEADER: I'm a-going to do all I can for my Lord,
PEOPLE: For my Lord.
LEADER: I'm a-going to do all I can for my Lord,
PEOPLE: For my Lord.
LEADER: I'm a-going to do all I can
'Til I can't do no more,
I'm a-going to do all I can for my Lord,
PEOPLE: For my Lord.

Other verses:
I'm a-going to pray all I can for my Lord…
I'm a-going to bear all I can for my Lord…
I'm a-going to sing all I can for my Lord…

SOURCE:
American Negro Songs, 230 Folk Songs and Spirituals, Religious and Secular. John W. Work, Dover Publications, Mineola, NY 1998. Orig. pub. Crown Publishers, NY, 1940. ISBN 0-486-40271-1.

SH

E-mailing tune to Joe Offer for inclusion in Mudcat MIDI pages (see QUICKLINKS).