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Listening Room
There are about 5,000 known spirituals (which are distinguished from gospel songs in part because their authors are unknown). Those songs, Carter says, played a large part in shaping American music of all genres in the 20th century.
Following are some of Carter's comments on the songs discussed in this week's show, his performances of them, and performances by various artists. Carter recorded his versions in Studio M at Minnesota Public Radio.
Photos: Judy Stone Nunneley
"Sometimes I Feel Like a Motherless Child"
The pain of slavery was just one example of the universal pain of people undergoing hardship or oppression.
LISTEN to Carter's rendition (2:26)
"I can sing Motherless Child in Siberia — they know what it means. They've been through hell. I can go to Scotland and Ireland and Wales and they understand the sentiments."
LISTEN to Sweet Honey in the Rock (5:49)
The a capella group brings a stylized arrangement to Motherless Child in the 1998 album ...Twenty-Five.
"Wade in the Water"
The story of the Pool of Bethesda inspired many slaves. A lame man who had been trying for years to get healed in the pool complained to Christ about his frustration. "Do you want to be healed?" Christ asks him. "Then take up your bed and walk." Beyond its baptismal aspects, this song served as a practical reminder to slaves seeking freedom: wade in the water to wash off your scent, lest the bloodhounds track you down.
LISTEN to Carter's rendition (1:52)
Many slaves loved this story "because this was about self-sufficiency: we are not victims, we are powerful individuals, and we're people of faith."
LISTEN to Fisk Jubilee Singers (2:23)
This group performs the song on the 1994 album Wade in the Water, Vol. 1: African American Gospel - The Concert Tradition.
 "Didn't My Lord Deliver Daniel"
Read a sermon based on spirituals and how they relate to the Bible — including the story of Daniel — by the Rev. Tim Ahrens of The First Congregational Church, United Church of Christ in Columbus, Ohio.
LISTEN to Carter's rendition (1:05)
The slaves "were in the lion's den, and that lion was roaring around them every day. But somehow hope came from this story. The angels locked the lion's jaws. They loved that story."
LISTEN to the Moses Hogan Chorale (2:40)
A rendition from the group's 1996 album Negro Spirituals.
"Let My People Go"
LISTEN to Carter's rendition (2:26)
" The master loves our singing. But he doesn't listen to the words we say. He doesn't have a clue. We can say anything we want. So let's give the master a good old song!"
LISTEN to the Golden Gate Quartet (3:05)
"Steal Away to Jesus"
Listen to Carter's rendition (2:19)
"This one's full of coded language. When someone says I ain't got long to stay here, everybody knows (what the slaves were saying was) Hey I'm going to be escaping tonight and I want you to be supporting me."
Listen to Chanticleer (5:10)
From the 1994 album Where the Sun Will Never Go Down.
"Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Seen"
The authors of most spirituals are unknown. Various tales, often apocryphal, account for the origins of many songs. One legend has it that upon emancipation, newly freed slaves gathered on a South Carolina island were awaiting promised land grants from the government. "It was a great, wonderful day," says Carter. But when a government agent informed the crowd that no grants were forthcoming, one woman spontaneously began singing this song, making it up as she went.
LISTEN to Carter's rendition (3:22)
LISTEN to Mahalia Jackson (3:47)
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