"I sing God's music because it makes me feel free," Jackson once said about her choice of gospel, adding, "It gives me hope. With the blues, when you finish, you still have the blues."
Jackson grew up in the "Black Pearl" section of the Carrollton neighbourhood of uptown New Orleans, Louisiana, and began singing in a Baptist church. In 1927 she moved to Chicago, Illinois, where she sang with The Johnson Brothers, one of the earliest professional gospel groups.
The Johnson Brothers broke up in the mid-1930s, and Jackson began her solo career, recording for Decca in 1937. The result, "God's Gonna Separate the Wheat from the Tares", was only a moderate success, but Jackson became a popular concert draw. She didn't record again untill 1946, when she signed with Apollo Records, releasing several singles that are now highly regarded, though sales were sluggish at the time. "Move On up a Little Higher" (1948) became a huge success, however, and stores could not stock enough of it to meet demand. Jackson rocketed to fame in the U.S. and soon afterwards in Europe. "I Can Put My Trust in Jesus" won a prize from the French Academy, and "Silent Night" was one of the best-selling singles in the history of Norway. She began a radio series on CBS and signed to Columbia Records in 1954. With her mainstream success came an inevitable backlash from gospel purists who felt she had watered down her sound for popular accessibility.
Jackson's career in the late 1950s and early 1960s continued to rise when she recorded with Percy Faith, and performed at the 1958 Newport Jazz Festival and the inauguration of John F. Kennedy. She also sang at the funeral of her friend Martin Luther King, Jr. The late 1960s saw a downturn in her popular success. She ended her career with a concert in Germany in 1971; when she returned, she made one of her final television appearances on The Flip Wilson Show.
Jackson died in Chicago on 27th January 1972 of heart failure and diabetes at the age of sixty. She was buried in Providence Memorial Park in Metairie, Louisiana. She was posthumously inducted into the Gospel Music Association's Gospel Music Hall of Fame in 1978.
Down By The Riverside
Mahalia Jackson Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside
I'm gonna study, study, war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
I'm gonna lay down my heavy load
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
I'm gonna lay down my heavy load
Down by the riverside
Gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
I ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
Ain't gonna study war no more
Yes, laid down ?
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
I'm gonna lay down my heavy load
Down by the riverside
God is tiding on no more
No more
Mahalia Jackson's song "Down By the Riverside" is a gospel hymn that speaks of surrender to a higher power and a call for peace. The opening line, "I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield," is a reference to a Biblical passage in which the prophet Isaiah speaks of the end of war and the transformation of weapons of destruction into instruments of creation. The use of repetition in the song reinforces the notion of surrender and letting go, as the singer repeats the phrase "Down by the riverside" in each verse.
The song speaks of the desire to cease studying war and instead focus on the study of peace. This message was particularly relevant when the song was written in the 19th century, as it was a time of great upheaval and conflict in the United States. At that time, there were ongoing battles in the West, as well as the Civil War raging in the East.
In "Down by the Riverside," the act of laying down one's heavy load and sword and shield is seen as a way to embrace peace and let go of the burdens of war. The refrain "Ain't gonna study war no more" is a plea for a more peaceful world and a call for people to turn their attention away from conflict and towards compassion and understanding.
Line by Line Meaning
I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield
I will surrender my weapons and defenses
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
I'm gonna lay down my sword and shield
I will surrender my weapons and defenses
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
I'm gonna study, study, war no more
I will no longer engage in war and will instead devote myself to learning
I ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
Ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
I ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
I'm gonna lay down my heavy load
I will release the burden of my troubles
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
I'm gonna lay down my heavy load
I will release the burden of my troubles
Down by the riverside
I will go to a peaceful location near a river
Gonna study war no more
I will focus on peaceful learning instead of war
I ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
Ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
I ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
Ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
Ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
Ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
Ain't gonna study war no more
I will not learn about war anymore
Yes, laid down ?
Yes, I have surrendered my weapons and defenses
Down by the riverside
I am still in a peaceful location near a river
Down by the riverside
I am still in a peaceful location near a river
Down by the riverside
I am still in a peaceful location near a river
I'm gonna lay down my heavy load
I will release the burden of my troubles
Down by the riverside
I am still in a peaceful location near a river
God is tiding on no more
God is announcing an end to conflict and war
Lyrics Β© BMG Rights Management, ACUM Ltd., Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: TRAD, Jason Yarde
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
MYNAMEIS BIGMAMA
Oh lay down my sou
Down by the riverside down by riverside
gonna lie down my soul sheet
Ain't gonna study no more
Im gonna put on my robe down by the riverside
Im gonna put on my white robe by the riverside
But I aint gonna study no more no more hallelujah
But I ain't gonna
Gonna meet my friends down by the riverside
study no more no more! Ain't gon study no more hallelujah
going to meet my
Down by the riverside
motownfan3
IT HAS BEEN 50 LONG YEARS (JAN/1972) SINCE THIS GREAT LADY WENT BACK TO GOD.
HER MUSIC STILL GIVES CONFORT TO THE WORLD !!!
Ralph Baier
She is a great restorer of faith. β€
Hector David Marin Rodas
I can't believe I hadn't listened to her before. I have tears streaming down my face at the sheer Glory of God that gave us a voice like hers. And how grateful to know that beyond her bodily departure, her music is still with us and can still bring the Spirit into any of us blessed to hear her songs.
MsMbpayne payne
I can feel the Holy Spirit in my soul watching her who is so full of the Holy Spirit.
Vitor Francisco
Mahalia's voice is amazing. Thanks!!!
athay14
The great Mahalia Jackson. I remember hearing her voice as a small child in the early 70s when my grandmother would listen to her before church. Wow. Brings back good memories.
Lisa Mccray
My mother like Mahalia Jackson trouble of the world
John Shouse
The Holy Spirit continues to move through Mahalia's voice, to move us.
SemlegesIgen
No need for autotune. She is truly amazing
Mark Conlan
My mom had the "Bless This House" album on which Mahalia recorded this song, and while my friends thought Frankie Avalon and Fabian were the hottest things in music, I was rockin; out to this and to other great Black singers like Dinah Washington. I love the way Mahalia dressed for appearances like this -- nothing fancy, just a simple dress any Black woman who could afford one would wear to a Sunday church service. And her voice is literally incomparable. This is the REAL rock 'n' roll -- not the music of the devil but the music of the Lord!