1) A Danish r… Read Full Bio ↴There are at least two artists with the name Ladysmith
1) A Danish rock band (active from 2009 to present).
2) A male choral group from South Africa know as "Ladysmith Black Mambazo" (active from the early 1950s to present).
1) In 2008, Anders Cederblad and Nikolaj Dalsgård started sowing the seeds for what was to become Ladysmith. In a small one-bedroom apartment in Copenhagen, the first sketches began seeing the light of day, and the wish steadily increased to put together a committed band. After a lengthy search, this was finally achieved in early 2009. Their first demo, “Where Should We Go?” was recorded at Vibe Factory with Jacob Winther in the late summer of that year. In the following year, equipped with sparse equipment and a healthy dose of patience, the band recorded their first self-produced demo “Golden Waste” in their own recording studio (The Foxhole) in the Nørrebro neighbourhood of Copenhagen. In December 2010 Ladysmith released their first EP "New Year Same War".
The sextet performs melodic alternative rock, containing strong and meaningful lyrics, with particular focus paid to the melody. The lyrics contain poetic and abstract imagery, and are a mix of seriousness and profound dreamlike melancholy. The acoustic image is characterized by simple, emotional, pensive passages, as well as enticing and imposing rock structures, where the compositions make their way from darkness to light.
In March 2010 the band won a first place in the music competition Playmakers, where about 40 bands from the Copenhagen underground participated.
2) Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a male choral group from South Africa that sings in the vocal style of isicathamiya and mbube. They rose to worldwide prominence as a result of singing with Paul Simon on his album, Graceland and have won multiple awards, including three Grammy Awards. They were formed by Joseph Shabalala in 1960 and became one of South Africa's most prolific recording artists, with their releases receiving gold and platinum disc honors. The group has now become a mobile academy, teaching people about South Africa and its culture.
Swing Low Sweet Chariot
Ladysmith Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Coming for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
I looked over Jordan, and what did I see?
Coming for to carry me home,
A band of angels coming after me,
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
If you get there before I do,
Coming for to carry me home,
Tell all my friends I'm coming, too.
Coming for to carry me home.
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
I'm sometimes up and sometimes down,
Coming for to carry me home,
But still my soul feels heavenly bound,
Coming for to carry me home.
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
The brightest day that I can say,
Coming for to carry me home,
When Jesus washed my sins away,
Coming for to carry me home.
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home,
Swing low, sweet chariot,
Coming for to carry me home.
The song "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" by Ladysmith Black Mambazo is a traditional African American spiritual that speaks to the hope for salvation and freedom. The lyrics convey the idea of a person longing to be carried home on a chariot, which is believed to be a reference to the chariot in the Bible that took the prophet Elijah to heaven. The metaphor of the chariot represents the idea of freedom and escaping from the challenges of life on earth. The repetition of the chorus "Swing low, sweet chariot, Coming for to carry me home" throughout the song emphasizes this yearning for salvation and freedom.
The line "I looked over Jordan, and what did I see?" is a reference to the Jordan River, which is mentioned in the Bible as a place of spiritual significance. The "band of angels" mentioned in the next line represents the idea of divine intervention and protection, further highlighting the theme of hope for salvation. The verses that follow speak to the uncertainty and struggles of life, but the promise of salvation that the chariot represents provides comfort and strength. The song ends with the idea that the brightest day is when Jesus washes away our sins, indicating that ultimate salvation comes through faith in him.
Line by Line Meaning
Swing low, sweet chariot,
The singer is asking for a sweet chariot to come and carry him home.
Coming for to carry me home,
The chariot is coming to take the singer home.
I looked over Jordan, and what did I see?
The singer is looking over the river Jordan and sees something.
A band of angels coming after me,
The singer sees a group of angels coming to take him to heaven.
If you get there before I do,
The singer is asking someone to tell his friends he's coming.
Tell all my friends I'm coming, too.
The singer wants his friends to know that he's also coming to heaven.
I'm sometimes up and sometimes down,
The singer has good and bad days.
But still my soul feels heavenly bound,
The singer feels that his soul is destined for heaven.
The brightest day that I can say,
The singer remembers the happiest day of his life.
When Jesus washed my sins away,
The singer believes that Jesus forgave his sins.
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Universal Music Publishing Group, Warner/Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: TRADITIONAL, FRANCESCO MOCCHI
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Dave Mons
I am going to have this at my funeral. I may be Irish, but my heart is reggae, soul, funk, calypso, and African music. I'll have to get a proper score for this from somewhere.
Iain Hamilton
I'm a Scottish rugby fan but this makes the hairs on the back of the neck stand up. Best version of this song there is!
Nancy Jemutai
Your comment made the hair on the back of my neck stand up. Thank you for your acknowledgement.
CR D
As it is THE English rugby song I am not surprised! :-)
Iain Hamilton
I would love to see these guys pull off a "Flower of Scotland" that would be quite interesting to hear. But until that ever happens this version aces it for me.
Paul Coleman
Absolutely
Lee Phillips
Regardless of who performed the best version, I think it's important to remember that this is actually a slave song asking God to take them from there torturous existence on earth and deliver them to heaven. I'm not a christian, but understanding the meaning behind the song makes the lyrics so much more powerful.
GrumpyTinashe
True that
Sibusiso Ndlovu
Tjoe! Heavey and touching narrative or ...tion
jon
Very true.and in the end it was the British crusade against slavery that ended the slave trade and cost the British government many millions