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Better Day A Coming/There's A Better Day A Coming/I Don’t Feel No Ways Tired
Traditional Spiritual- Gospel;
ARTIST: Michel LaRue in his "American Negro Songs from Slavery Times" 1960.
CATEGORY: Traditional and Public Domain Gospel;
DATE: probably 1700s; 1847 Narrative of William W. Brown
RECORDING INFO: Better Day A Coming
Michel LaRueby. "American Negro Songs from Slavery Times" 1960
RELATED TO: "In That Great Gettin' Up Mornin' " lyrics
In That Great Gettin' Up Mornin'- Harry Belafonte
There's a better day a coming,
fare thee well, fare thee well.
Yes there's a better day a coming,
fare thee well, fare thee well.
OTHER NAMES: "There's A Better Day A Coming"
SOURCES: Edward A. Pollard's book entitled "Black Diamond" published in 1859.
NOTES: "Better Day A Coming" is an old coffle song possibly dating back to the 1700s which was collected by William W. Brown and published his 1847 book "Narrative of William W. Brown, A Fugitive Slave." The song under the title, "Better Day A Coming" is sung by Michel LaRue in his "American Negro Songs from Slavery Times" 1960. William W. Brown, who was half African-American surely could not have envisioned that the current President of the United Sates, Barrack Obama, would be African-American also. We are all God's children.
[excerpt] Narrative of William W. Brown, A Fugitive Slave. Boston 1847:
There's a better day a coming,
Will you go along with me?
There 's a better day a coming,
Go sound the jubilee!
This essential excerpt has become the foundation for the current "Better Day A Coming" and "I Don’t Feel No Ways Tired" songs. Harry Thacker Burleigh (1866-1949) arranged "I Don’t Feel No-Ways Tired" and it was copyrighted in 1917 by G. Ricordi & Company. Burleigh's arrangement is essentially sung by Michel LaRueby. Rev. James Cleveland and others have arranged updated versions of "I Don’t Feel No-Ways Tired."
William Wells Brown Biography
William Wells Brown was born near Lexington, Kentucky, in 1814. His father was George Higgins, a white plantation owner, but his mother was a black slave.
Brown's mother had seven children, all with different fathers. William served several slave-masters before escaping in 1834. He adopted the name of his friend, Wells Brown, a Quaker who had helped him obtain his freedom.
Brown became a conductor on the Underground Railroad and worked on a Lake Erie steamer ferrying slaves to freedom in Canada.
In 1843 Brown became a lecturing agent for the New York Anti-Slavery Society. After obtaining a reputation as one of the movement's best orators, Brown was employed by the American Anti-Slavery Society where he worked closely with William Lloyd Garrison and Wendell Phillips.
Brown, who settled in Boston, published his autobiography, Narrative of William W. Brown, a Fugitive Slave, in 1847. He obtained a living lecturing on slavery and temperance reform in America and Europe. This inspired his book, Three Years in Europe (1852).
In 1853 Brown published Clotel, a story about Thomas Jefferson's relationship with a slave mistress Sally Hemings. The book is believed to be the first novel to be published by an African-American. Brown also wrote a play, The Escape (1958) and several historical works including The Black Man (1963), The Negro in the American Revolution (1867), The Rising Son (1873) and another volume of autobiography, My Southern Home (1880).
William Wells Brown died on the 6th November, 1884, in Chelsea, Massachusetts.
Narrative of William W. Brown, A Fugitive Slave. Boston 1847: The following song I have often heard the slaves sing, when about to be carried to the far south. It is said to have been composed by a slave.
"See these poor souls from Africa
Transported to America;
We are stolen, and sold to Georgia,
Will you go along with me?
We are stolen, and sold to Georgia,
Come sound the jubilee!
See wives and husbands sold apart,
Their children's screams will break my heart;--
There 's a better day a coming,
Will you go along with me?
There 's a better day a coming,
Go sound the jubilee!
O, gracious Lord! when shall it be,
That we poor souls shall all be free;
Lord, break them slavery powers--
Will you go along with me?
Lord break them slavery powers,
Go sound the jubilee!
Dear Lord, dear Lord, when slavery 'll cease,
Then we poor souls will have our peace;--
There 's a better day a coming,
Will you go along with me?
There 's a better day a coming,
Go sound the jubilee!"
I Don’t Feel No-Ways Tired- Traditional spiritual, arranged by Harry Thacker Burleigh (1866-1949) ©1917 G. Ricordi & Co.
I am seekin’ for a city,
Hallelujah,
I am seekin’ for a city!
Hallelu.
For a city into de Hebben,
Hallelujah,
For a city into de Hebben,
Hallelu.
Lord I don’t feel no-ways tired childaren!
Oh, glory Hallelujah!
For I hope to shout glory when dis worl’ is on fire chillen,
Oh, glory Hallelujah!
Dere’s a better day a-comin’,
Hallelujah,
Dere’s a better day a-comin’,
Hallelu.
When I leave dis worl’ ob sorrow,
Hallelujah,
For to jine de holy number,
Hallelu.
Lord I don’t feel no-ways tired childaren!
Oh, glory Hallelujah!
For I hope to shout glory when dis worl’ is on fire chillen,
Oh, glory Hallelujah!
Better Day A Coming- Michel LaRue 1960 (vocal with hand claps)
CHORUS: There's a better day coming
Hallelujah
A better day coming
Hallelu
CHORUS:
Oh we don't feel no ways tired
Oh, children Hallelujah!
Oh we'll all shout glory when this world's on fire
Oh, glory Hallelujah!
Oh we don't feel no ways tired
Oh, glory Hallelujah!
We will all shout freedom when this world's on fire
[Hums melody]
CHORUS: There's a better day coming
Hallelujah.
There's a better day coming
Hallelu
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