Lyr Add: What Harm Has Jesus Done You

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: What Harm Has Jesus Done You
From: Art Thieme
Date: 09 Feb 09 - 09:43 PM

I used to sing this song every once in a while. It fascinated me. And it had a good tune. I think I found it on a Folkways LP a long while ago. Possibly sung by Jimmy Strothers.------I removed the Jews from it---and sang "people." Sometimes I did it in tandem with "Bitter Withy"

Art

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: What Harm Has Jesus Done You
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 09 Feb 09 - 08:06 PM

I should have noted that the song in "Maritime Folk Songs" has both musical score and chords.

The subject of this song, the crucifixion, is the same as that in the Negro spiritual, "Crucifixion," whose refrain contains the line "an' he never said a mumbelin' word," but the verses are quite different and there seems to be no relationship between them.

-Crucifixion, in Johnson and Johnson, 1925-1926 and reprints, "The Books of American Negro Spirituals," I, pp. 174-176.
-Crucifixion (He Never Said a Mumbelin' Word), in W. A. Fisher, "Seventy Negro Spirituals," 1926, pp. 1-3.
-Look-a-how they done muh Lawd, in Ballanta-(Taylor), N. G. J., 1924(1925), "Saint Helena Island Spirituals," No. 69.
-and others.

(Wesley, in one of his hymns, "Behold the Saviour...," wrote "See how He groans...")

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: What Harm Has Jesus Done You
From: wysiwyg
Date: 09 Feb 09 - 01:32 PM

He never said a mumbalin word, too, you know.

George, where can I hear the tune of this one?

~S~

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: What Harm Has Jesus Done You
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 09 Feb 09 - 01:31 PM

The first verse in Helen Creighton, "Maritime Folk Songs," differs slightly from the lyrics above.

1
The Jews they took poor Jesus
And they nailed him to the tree,
They hewed him out a heavy cross
To carry up Calvary,
Oh, to carry up Calvary,
To carry up Calvary,
They hewed him out a heavy cross
To carry up Calvary.

Sung by Mr. Chas. Owens and family, Bridgetown, June, 1953.
P. 174, Helen Creighton and Kenneth Peacock, 1961, Ryerson Press (reprint, "Canada's Atlantic Folklore and Folklife Series No. 5, 1979, Breakwater Press).

Subject: Lyr Add: What Harm Has Jesus Done You - Spiritual
From:
Date: 30 Sep 02 - 11:13 PM

What Harm Has Jesus Done You Collected from Charles Owen, in 1954 and 1956, by Dr. Helen Creighton     Chorus Tell me what harm has Jesus done you. What harm has Jesus done you. What harm has Jesus done you. Sinners all hate him so.   Well, you know they took poor Jesus And they nailed him to a tree They hewed him out a heavy cross To carry up Calvary To carry up Calvary, To carry up Calvary They hewed him out a heavy cross To carry up Calvary.   Well, they gave him a cup of vinegar, And they gave him a cup of gall, He drank it from the rim to the bottom of the cup And he never spoke a murmuring word, He never spoke a murmuring word, He never spoke a murmuring word Well, he drank from the rim to the bottom of the cup And he never spoke a murmuring word.   Now you see Brother Gabriel in the morning, Stretching forth his mighty line With the sheep on the right and the goats on the left They never run together no more, They never run together no more, They never run together no more With the sheep on the right and the goats on the left They never run together no more.