Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses

Subject: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: wilco
Date: 30 Sep 02 - 10:24 AM

On a mountain top so high, you could hear ol' Moses cry,
"God, did you mean to leave your children here?"
Well, Moses have no fear, cause that fire is burning near,
and, you're walking on holy ground with the Lord.

Take them shoes off Moses!
CHORUS:
Cause, you're walking on holy ground with the Lord.
Yeah, you're a'walking on holy ground with the Lord.
Take them shoes off and walk with care,
cause that fire's a'burning near,
and you're walking on holy ground with the Lord.

Take them shoes off Moses!!! What's wrong with you!!

Well, Hebrew Children had no fear,
in that furnace fire burned near.
God did you mean to leave those children there?
Take them shoes off and walk with care,
cause that fire's a'burning here,
and you're walkin on hol ground to the Lord.

Take them shoes off Moses!!! What you thinkin??

Chorus.....

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: wilco
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 10:11 AM

I've found several songs with the refrain "Take your shoes off Moses."
But, these aren't the version above. Any leads.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST,Richie
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 12:40 PM

Wilco48-

Sounds like an African-American version. Where did you get it?

I've got the lyrics to a version by the Stanley Brothers. If you want me to post it I will later.

-Richie

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: wilco
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 05:25 PM

    Thnaks. I don't remember where I first heard it. I just liked it, and I am probably wrong about the lyrics. The version that I heard was sung by a white female singer, with, as I recall, a pentecostal raucous piano style. I want to get up and dance everytime I think of it!!!!
If you post the Stanley Brothers' version, I would appreciate it.

Wilco

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 06:25 PM

Moses

Not attributed but may be by Stanley??

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 06:41 PM

Listen to Stanley Bros. and Scaggs: gospel

Click on CD symbol. (http://www.lightnen.com/bluegrassgospel/)

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST,Richie
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 09:40 PM

Take Your Shoes Off, Moses
(Stanley Brothers)


(G) God spoke to Moses at the burning bush,

(C) burning bush, Lord, the burning (G) bush,

(G) God spoke to Moses at the burning bush,

(G) sayin' "I am the (D) Lord thy (G) God".


chorus:

(G) Take your shoes off Moses you're on holy ground,

(G) holy ground, holy (G) ground,

(G) Take your shoes off Moses you're on holy ground,

(G) for I am the (D) Lord thy (G) God.


(G) Go yonder Moses, smite that rock,

(C) smite that rock, smite that (G) rock,

(G) Go yonder Moses, smite that rock,

(G) for I am the (D) Lord thy (G) God.


(chorus)


(G) Stand still Moses, see salvation work,

(C) salvation work, see salvation (G) work,

(G) Stand still Moses, see salvation work,

(G) for I am the (D) Lord thy (G) God.


(chorus)


I'd like to find out more about the origin of this gospel tune,

Richie

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 10:52 PM

There is a spiritual called "Moses Smote the Water," in "St. Helena Island Spirituals, by Ballanta-Taylor. Another is called "Rock Mount Sinai," in Mellows, by Kennedy. I haven't seen these books.

Also in Vance Randolph, vol. 2, # 290, the following which may be a burlesque of the above spirituals. It is written in old-time spiritual form, much like Stanley's version. Another text is in Brown, Folklore of North Carolina:

OLD MOSES SMOTE THE WATERS

Old Moses smote de waters, hallelujer !
Old Moses smote de waters, unh!
Old Moses smote de waters, brethern,
Old Moses smote de waters, hallelujer!

De children passed over, hallelujer! etc.
Old Pharoah's host got drownded, hallelujer! etc.
I see dat ship a-comin', hallelujer! etc.
She runs as steady as a die-er, hallelujer! etc.
She'll take us home to glory, hallelujer! etc.
Dar'll be shoutin' with the angels, hallelujer! etc.

The singer thought it was a negro-minstrel burlesque of a Negro spiritual (learned at Fayetteville, Arkansas, "about 1895").

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 11:10 PM

"Moses Smote the Water" has been recorded by the Golden Gate Quartet, Lonnie Donnigan and many other groups. One of these may have been the source of Stanley's version.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST,Richie
Date: 01 Oct 02 - 11:41 PM

This seems like it could be related to "Wade in the Water". What do you think?

Richie

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: wilco
Date: 02 Oct 02 - 10:10 AM

So far, it doesn't seem related to anything I've found. Thanks for posting the lyrics to the Stanley Brothers' version.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 02 Oct 02 - 01:19 PM

"Wade in the Water" has a simple spiritual form. It was made famous by the singing of Roland Hayes. Here is his version, from William A. Fisher, Seventy Negro Spirituals, Oliver Ditson Co., 1926, sheet music (bound), p. 184-187. This is the only version listed in the Cleveland Index, but there are several versions recorded by various singers.

WADE IN THE WATER

Wade in de water, wade in the water, go down,
Wade in de water, wade in the water, and be baptized.

I would not be a sinner,
I tell you the reason why,
'Cause if my Lord should-a call on me
I wouldn't be ready to die.

Wade in de water, wade in de water, go down,
Wade in de water, wade in de water, and be baptized.
Wade in de water, wade in de water, go down,
Wade in de water, wade in de water, and be baptized.

I would not be a back-slider,
I tell you the reason why,
'Cause if my Lord should-a call on me,
I wouldn't be ready to die.

Chorus

Don't see a relationship here.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST,Richie
Date: 02 Oct 02 - 10:38 PM

From the Folk Song Index:

Take Your Shoes Off - Wood, L./Brown, J.
Related Tune - Wade in the Water
1.Serendipity Singers. Take Your Shoes Off with the Serendipity Singers, Philips PHS 600-151, LP (197?), cut#A.06

Does this info help?

-Richie

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 12:51 AM

The Traditional ballad Index has Wade in the Water as a "religious freedom non-ballad" and cites Lomax FSNA (as well as the DT).
From Lomax: (with a slow rock, guitar 7a, 7B; banjo 5, chords given on sheet music)

WADE IN THE WATER

Chorus:
Wade in the water,
Wade in the water, children,
Wade in the water,
God's gonna trouble the water.

'Member one thing an' it's certainly sho',
Wade in the water,
Judgement's comin' an' I don' know,
Wade in the water.

Up on the mountain, Jehovah, he spoke,
Out of his mouth came fire and smoke.

I heard a rumblin' up in the sky,
Must a-been Jesus passin' by.

Down in the valley, down on my knees,
Askin' my Lawd to save me, please.

You can hinder me here, you can hinder me there,
But the Lawd in Heaven will hear my prayer.

The enemy's great, but my Captain's strong,
I'm marching to the City and the road ain't long.

I tell you once and I tell you twice,
My soul's been anchored in Jesus christ.

You mau baptize Peter and baptize Paul,
But the Lord God-er-mighty gonna baptize um all.

Matthew, Mark, Luke and John,
Tell me where my Saviour gone?

My Lord spoke in a 'sponstrous voice,
Shook the world to its very jois'.

Rung through Heaven and down in Hell,
My dungeon shook and my chains, they fell.

"Collected and arranged by Alan Lomax. See: Sears. A slave song, still fairly common in rural Negro churches during the 30s, it has been recorded by Negro quartets." Alan Lomax, Folk Songs of North America, 1960, # 242, pp. 470-471.
Joe Offer put this in the Forum, (didn't see it until after I put this in) but the version in the DT is short and from another source. The Ballad Index notes floating lyrics; "Bear the News, Mary," "Walk in Jerusalem Just Like John," Hand Me Down My Walking Cane," Heaven and Hell."
Haven't seen "Take Your Shoes Off."

See thread 6108, Carter Family lyrics, "God's Gonna Trouble the Waters," posted by Dicho. Ashton version also there. Trouble the Waters

So many floating verses in "Wade in the Water" and allies that the chorus is the main thing holding the lyrics together. Are the tunes similar??

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 01:08 AM

If you read the posts in thread 6108 (clickie above), you will see that quite a bit of digging found no 19th century records of "Wade in the Water." It may be a 20th century song-spiritual-gospel, cobbled from many others.

This doesn't help much with tracing the tunes, however, which could be much older than the sets of words.
The more swinging song posted by Wilco48 which started this thread off must be 20th century gospel. I wish we could identify the singer or a version on record. Perhaps Stewie might track it down.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: wilco
Date: 03 Oct 02 - 10:04 AM

I've looked everywhere for this song. I think that the version I heard was 20th century southern gospel.

Subject: RE: Lyr/Chords Req: Take Your Shoes off Moses
From: GUEST
Date: 13 Jun 17 - 12:56 PM

Maybe what you are looking for is sung by Courtney Patton.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iFe8k5ZrAFs&ab_channel=ModernTrade

Originally written by J. D. Jarvis (1967), "Take Your Shoes Off Moses" was made popular by the Stanley Brothers and Ricky Skaggs, but it was the version of Ralph Stanley & The Clinch Mountain Boys with Keith Whitley singing lead, that first caught Courtney's attention. Her arrangement pays tribute to the song's bluegrass roots, the sound of which saw a resurgence during the 1960's.