Lyr Add: Yonder Come Day (spiritual)

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Yonder Come Day (spiritual)
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 23 Dec 13 - 03:31 PM

The Lompoc Unified School District site calls the song a Georgia Sea Islands Spiritual.

Yonder come day, day is a-breakin'
Yonder come day, oh my soul
Yonder come day, day is a-breakin'
Sun is a-risin' in my soul.

Sun rise, oh yonder sun rise
Sun is a-risin' in my soul

Yonder, yonder, yonder, yonder
Yonder, yonder
Sun is a'risin' in my soul.
-------------

Trees are green and the air is sweet
The good earth is singin' underneath my feet
I'll point my feet down that freedom line
Walkin' that road, I'm feelin' fine. Yeah!

Walk that road (4x)

The part below the dashed line probably added by a teacher.
http://www.lusd.org/Page/140

The site contains a link to the Georgia Sea Island Singers singing the song (youtube).

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Yonder Come Day (spiritual)
From: GUEST,guest
Date: 30 Jan 10 - 01:30 PM

chorus:
yonder come day
day is a breakin
yonder come day
oh my soul
yonder come day
day is a breakin
sun is a risin' in my soul

soprano,alto 1 and alto 2 in the same time:

soprano:

sunrise,sunrise oh yonder
sunrise,sun is a rising in my soul


alto1&alto2

yonder come day
day is a breakin
yonder come day
oh my soul
yonder come day
day is a breakin
sun is a risin' in my soul

and again soprano,alto1 and alto 2:

soprano:

sunrise,sunrise oh yonder
sunrise,sun is a rising in my soul

alto1:

yonder come day
day is a breakin
yonder come day
oh my soul
yonder come day
day is a breakin
sun is a risin' in my soul

alto2:

yonder,yonder,
yonder,yonder,
yonder,yonder,
sun is a risin' in my soul...oh ela

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Yonder Come Day (spiritual)
From: Azizi
Date: 01 Oct 08 - 10:04 PM

Here's a link to the version of this song that GUEST
Date: 09 Jun 08 - 11:06 AM provides in her {or his} post:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mJU4ayBCjCs&feature=related

Fairfield County Children's Choir, Chorus & Chorale, ...May 10, 2008, ... Bridgeport, CT...

-snip-

Fwiw, there are several more YouTube videos of this song. All of them are the "yonder come day/day's a breakin" song, and not the one that I learned as a child in New Jersey in the 1950s.

The words and tune of those songs performed on the YouTube videos differ from the song that I know. In addition, the tempo of that song as sung by choirs in those YouTube videos is faster than the one that I know.

That said, I like this version of that song {if it is indeed a different version and not a completely different song}. But I like the one I grew up singing even more.

Not that this is a contest or anything.

:o)

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Yonder Come Day (spiritual)
From: GUEST,noonavut
Date: 01 Oct 08 - 07:27 PM

how are you doing today frute

Subject: RE: Lyr Add: Yonder Come Day (spiritual)
From: GUEST
Date: 09 Jun 08 - 11:06 AM

Yonder Come Day,
Day is A Break'n.
Younder Come Day,
Oh My Soul,
Yonder Come Day,
Day is A Breakn,
Sun is A risin' in my Soul.

Yonder, Yonder,
Yonder,
Yonder.

Repeat Song Again.

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: wysiwyg
Date: 22 Apr 05 - 08:13 AM

All of the above titles have been entered for indexing in the AFRICAN-AMERICAN SPIRITUALS PERMATHREAD.

If songs with new TITLES are added to this thread, please take a moment to post that title and this thread's ID number (or full URL) in the AFRICAN-AMERICAN SPIRITUALS PERMATHREAD, so it can be included next time the index is updated.

Thanks!

~S~

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: Azizi
Date: 08 Jan 05 - 12:25 AM

"The Pocket Bible Dictionary": Philip Schaff; Jubilee Publishers edition, p. 125-126 reminds us that "Jordan" means "the Descender" and that 'the Jordan river, the principal river of Palestine, has four sources, which are situated among the mountains.."
--

Would being situated in the mountains account for the Jordan River's waters being "chilly and cold?"
--

"The Pocket Bible Dictionary" also has the following passage:
"The Jordan is first mentioned in Genesis 13:10; it was crossed by Jacob, Gen.32:29 and passed over by the Isrealites when entering the Promised Land., Josh 3:14, Ps.114:3. It is mentioned many times in the Old Testement, and wonderful miracles are connected with it, among which is the curing of Naaman 2 Kings 5:14. The principal events associated with it in the New Testament are the baptism of the multitudes by John the Baptist, Matt. 3:6 and [the baptism]of Jesus Mark 1:9.
---


The idea of "cross roads" is an extremely important African concept. The River Jordan was THE symbol for enslaved Africans of the dividing line between life & death; earth & heaven.

I believe that rivers and the Jordan River might have also been used as a symbol for the other important division in enslaved African Americans'lives: slavery and freedom.

Although not directly related to the song 'Yonder Come Day', if rivers are used in religious and secular African American slave songs to denote the means by which people could achieve freedom from slavery, we may need to re-think all the possible meanings of the widely used floating verse "I went to the river, but I couldn't get across..."

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: Azizi
Date: 07 Jan 05 - 11:58 PM

O,
a passage in Sterling Stuckey's book "Slave Cultures":
New York, Oxford University Press, 1987, p.34 suggest that a common practice was for baptism to occur early in the morning.

The River Jordan of course is represented by any body of water, and presumbably early in the morning it would be chilly.

Stuckey makes the case that there is a strong connection between water immersion and African religious practices.

"As a rule, the 'converts was made to ready to be baptize' the next-comin' Firs'Sunday, soon in de mornin' down by the Mill Pond.' The new converts and friends as well as members of their families would make a pilgrimage, Simon Brown tells us, down by the Mill Pond. Herskovits writes, "in ceremony after ceremony witnessed among the Yoruba, the Ashanti, and in Dahomey, one invariable element was a visit to the river or some other body of 'living' water... for the purpose of obtaining the liquid indispensable for the rites.' Thus, Yorubas, Ashantis, and Dahomeans would easily have identified with the pilgrimage to the Mill Pond for a ceremony that was heavily influenced by Bakongo religious ritual".

end of quote.

In addition to this practical explanation, it's also possible that the imagery of "chilly waters" could be used along with references to the "cold" hard hearted world to contrast with the warthm and caring of God's love.

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 07 Jan 05 - 08:57 PM

Reference to 'chilly waters' appears in a number of spirituals. "Chilly Water" first appeared in the 1892 printng of "Jubilee Songs."
To keep titles straight, I will put it in a new thread.

Why were the waters deemed to be chilly? Does this come from the Bible?

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 07 Jan 05 - 12:25 AM

"Come Walk in the Light of Day" is a Mennonite hymn. One Mennonite site quotes a portion of "Yonder Comes Day" in an announcement of their service in Advent.
Could not find the lyrics to the Mennonite song.

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 06 Jan 05 - 12:58 PM

The complete track listings for the 135 songs on "Goodbye, Babylon," may be found at Amazon.com. Elder Effie Hall and Congregation sing "O Day" on disc 2 track 27; Bessie Jones and "O Day" on track 27 of disc 1.

Subject: Lyr Add: O DAY
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 05 Jan 05 - 04:40 PM

Gee! What did I do?? The link is to the site with the clapping game. It didn't close off. I hope someone can correct it.


Lyr. Add: O Day

Yonder come day, I heard him say
Yonder come day, It's a dying day
Yonder come day, It's a burying day
Yonder come day, I was on my knees
Yonder come day, When I heard him say
Yonder come day, That's a New Year's day
Day done broke into my soul
Yonder come day, well, come on, child,
Yonder come day, Jordan roll.

These seem to be the words of Bessie Jones and Sea Island Singers, "O Day," 1960, Alan Lomax coll. "Christmas or New Year's shout after all night service."    The Old Time Religion

From 6-cd collection, boxed set, "Goodbye Babylon," collected by Lance Ledbetter. Haven't looked up cost and availability. 135 songs, 25 sermons.

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: wysiwyg
Date: 05 Jan 05 - 04:06 PM

Good work, Azizi!

~S~

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: Q (Frank Staplin)
Date: 05 Jan 05 - 04:02 PM

"Yonder Come day" is used as a teaching exercise in some schools. It is used as a clapping game, with the chorus "Yonder Come Day, O My Soul," but secular words to the verses, an example here with music and directions (from UK but others from USA); scroll down below Patterns and "Standing in the Need of Prayer," to song:
click   

In the spiritual original, as in many of these songs, similar verses are found. New ways of incorporating them are thought of, or they are brought in spontaneously as the song develops.
The very old verse: 'Went to the Mountain
Didn't go to stay
Soul got happy
And I stayed all day':
appears in many. A few of them-
In the DT, "Mary Don't You Weep"
In the Forum, "It's Cool Down Here at the River Jordan," "You Must Come in at the Door," "Rock-a My Soul," and others. "I Went Down to the Valley to Pray" is perhaps the best known of these songs.

Also used in the "Upstart Crows":
Went to the river
Didn't go to stay
But I got drunk
And I stayed all day.

I went to the ribber but I didn't go to stay,
But I got so drunk I couldn't get away
My marster axed me whar I'd been,
And the way he hit me was a sin.

N. I. White, "American Negro Folk Songs," Upstart Crows 1B, reported from Alabama, 1915-1916.

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: GUEST,KathWestra, cookieless at work
Date: 05 Jan 05 - 11:06 AM

It's also the title song on Rock Creek's newly-re-released-as-a-CD recording. See Wally Macnow's (Dreaded Thumbpick) thread on how to get one. It's a terrific recording! Kathy

Subject: RE: Spiritual-Yonder Come Day
From: masato sakurai
Date: 05 Jan 05 - 12:24 AM

"Yonder Come Day" is on Bessie Jones: Put Your Hand On Your Hip, and Let Your Backbone Slip: Songs and Games from the Georgia Sea Islands (Rounder), and Toshi Reagon: Justice (Rounder).

Subject: Lyr Add: YONDER COME DAY
From: Azizi
Date: 04 Jan 05 - 11:50 PM

This is a re-posting from a comment that I mistakenly put in the African Amerian Permathread. I'm still a newbie here and wasn't aware that its best to make new threads for spirituals that aren't in that Permathread.

Thank you, Q for alerting me to that fact!

This re-posting is a CORRECTED version. The version that I wrote in the Permathread is not correct-meaning I incorrectly remembered it and incorrectly typed it. I'm sorry about that. I was coming to make the changes when I read Q's post suggesting that I start a thread for this song. This gives me the opportunity to make the corrections. Hopefully, the post in the Permathread can be deleted to lessen any possible confusion re the words I am posting.   

There is another current thread in which a CD is being sold called "Yonder Come Day". One of the songs on that CD is also called "Yonder Come Day". I remember singing a spiritual with that name and wondered if this was the same song. Some people may also use "Oh-o Day" as the name for this spiritual.

"Yonder Come Day" probably was traditionally an open ended spiritual. But in my home church, Union Baptist Temple in Atlantic City, New Jersey {1950s-1960s) the verses were relatively fixed. We sung this spiritual in an uptempo manner with feelng but, given the nature of my church, with a minimum amount of handclapping.

YONDER COME DAY

Oh-oh day-a.
Yonder come day.
Oh-o day-a.
Yonder come day.

[chorus]:
Oh-o-oh day.
Yonder come day.
Day done broke in my soul.
Yonder come day.
Yonder come day. {optional}

[repeat entire 1st verse with chorus]

Went to the mountain.
Yonder come day.
Didn't go to stay-a.
Yonder come day.
{My} Soul got happy
Yonder come day.
{and} I stayed all day-a.
Yonder come day.

[chorus]

If you don't believe
Yonder come day.
I been redeemed
Yonder come day.
just follow me down-ahn,
Yonder come day.
to Jordan stream.
Yonder come day.

[chorus]

River of Jordan
Yonder come day.
is chilly and co-old.
Yonder come day
Chills my body,
Yonder come day.
But not my so-ul.
Yonder come day.

[chorus]

[return to first verse]

[chorus]:
Oh-o-oh day.
Yonder come day.
Day done broke in my soul.
Yonder come day.
Yonder come day.
Yonder come day {extend last "day"}