It has been recorded many times by many artists including: The Soul Stirrers with Sam Cooke, Jimmy Witherspoon, Burl Ives, Mississippi John Hurt, Bobby Darin, Aretha Franklin, Eartha Kitt, Taj Mahal, Aaron Neville, Roger McGuinn, and Bruce Springsteen. The first known recording of the song was in 1915 by the Fisk Jubilee Singers.
Oh Mary Don't You Weep
Nat King Cole Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Stand on the rock where Moses stood
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army get drownded
Well Mary wore 3 links of chain
On every link was a Jesus' name
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army get drownded
Oh, Mary, don't you weep
Well one of these nights bout 12 o'clock
This old world is gonna rock
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
Well Moses stood on the Red Sea shore
And smote the water with a two by four
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
O Mary, don't you weep, don't you mourn
O Mary, don't you weep, don't you mourn
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary, don't you weep
Well, old Mr. Satan he got mad
Missed that soul that he thought he had
Pharaoh's army get drownded
O Mary, don't you weep
Brothers and sisters don't you cry
They'll be good times by and by
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army get drownded
O Mary, don't you weep
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army get drownded
O Mary, don't you weep
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army get drownded
O Mary, don't you weep
God gave Noah the rainbow sign
Said, "No more water, but fire next time"
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
O Mary don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary don't weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't weep
O Mary don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary don't weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't weep
O Mary don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary don't weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't weep
The lyrics to Nat King Cole's song "Oh Mary Don't You Weep," are a reference to the story of Moses leading the Israelites out of Egypt and parting the Red Sea for them to escape Pharaoh's army, which ultimately drowned. The song is a spiritual that originates from the African American tradition of slave songs, and was later popularized in the gospel music era of the 1950s.
The first stanza mentions the rock where Moses stood, referring to the Mountains of Sinai where God gave Moses the Ten Commandments. The second stanza mentions Mary wearing three links of a chain, with every link bearing the name of Jesus, symbolizing her faith in God. The third stanza alludes to the end of the world, where the world will rock and Pharaoh's army, symbolic of evil, will be destroyed. The fourth stanza references Moses parting the Red Sea with a two by four, another reference to the Israelites' escape from Egypt.
The lyrics encourage Mary, and by extension the listener, to have faith in God and not mourn or weep, as there will be good times to come. The song's message is one of hope and faith in the face of adversity, as seen through the lens of African American experiences of oppression and struggle.
Line by Line Meaning
Well if I could I surely would
Stand on the rock where Moses stood
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
If I could, I would stand on the same rock as Moses and witness the drowning of Pharaoh's army. O Mary, don't cry.
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
O Mary, don't you weep, don't mourn
Pharaoh's army get drownded
O Mary, don't you weep
Mary, don't cry, because Pharaoh's army drowned in the water. Don't weep.
Well Mary wore 3 links of chain
On every link was a Jesus' name
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
Mary had three chains around her neck, each with Jesus' name on it. Pharaoh's army drowned in the water. Don't cry, Mary.
Well one of these nights bout 12 o'clock
This old world is gonna rock
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
One of these nights, at around midnight, the world is going to shake. Pharaoh's army drowned in the water. Don't cry, Mary.
Well Moses stood on the Red Sea shore
And smote the water with a two by four
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
Moses stood on the shore of the Red Sea and struck the water with a two by four. Pharaoh's army drowned in the water. Don't cry, Mary.
Well, old Mr. Satan he got mad
Missed that soul that he thought he had
Pharaoh's army get drownded
O Mary, don't you weep
Satan got angry because he didn't get the soul he wanted. Pharaoh's army drowned in the water. Don't cry, Mary.
Brothers and sisters don't you cry
They'll be good times by and by
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
Brothers and sisters, don't cry, because good times will come later. Pharaoh's army drowned in the water. Don't cry, Mary.
God gave Noah the rainbow sign
Said, "No more water, but fire next time"
Pharaoh's army got drownded
O Mary don't you weep
God showed Noah the rainbow as a sign that there would be no more floods, but next time there would be fire. Pharaoh's army drowned in the water. Don't cry, Mary.
Lyrics © Peermusic Publishing
Written by: GORDON JENKINS, NAT KING COLE
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@n40tom
Nelson, thank you so much for posting this. I seen a lot of Nat King Cole as I'm in my seventies he was always a great singer in my opinion but I never seen this video of what you just posted. Thank you I enjoyed that
@thepostnihilist
And he said unto them, He that hath ears to hear, let him hear. - Mark 4:9
@dianag.7696
Amazing!!!