VA - Voices Of The Civil Rights Movement (Black American Freedom Songs 1960-1966) (1997)

The civil rights movement used freedom songs to spread their message, adapting folk and pop tunes with contemporary topical lyrics, or writing new songs addressing social injustice in general, and injustice for African-Americans in particular. This is a two-CD, 43-song compilation of such songs, recorded live in mass meetings in churches between 1960 and 1966. The SNCC Freedom Singers, including in their ranks future Sweet Honey in the Rock mainstay Bernice Johnson Reagon (who wrote the liner notes), contribute quite a few tracks, but the majority are by less professional soloists and choirs. Historically speaking, this is a valuable document of a movement whose importance cannot be underestimated; if nothing else, it's interesting to see how folk and pop songs (including such unlikely candidates as Ray Charles' "Hit the Road Jack") were changed to reflect struggle for equality. Musically speaking, it's not that captivating; the fidelity is sometimes rough, and the performances interesting purely from an archival standpoint. This isn't meant to diminish in any way the significance of these songs, just to say that they were effective mostly as organizing tools, not as pure musical statements. Listeners will need to have a strong interest in the historical context of these recordings to justify their purchase, because as music it can make for a dry experience. Some of the SNCC performances, however, do stand up on their own as fine folk/gospel, especially "In the Mississippi River," "Governor Wallace," and "Oginga Odinga," imaginative compositions that are movingly sung.

Tracks:

CD1
01. Various - Freedom Medley: Freedom Chant; Oh Freedom: This Little Light of Mine (1:58)
02. Various - This Little Light of Mine (4:18)
03. Various - If You Miss Me from the Back of the Bus (3:04)
04. Various - Lord, Hold My Hand While I Run This Race (2:50)
05. Various - Get On Board, Children (2:10)
06. Various - Calypso Freedom (6:30)
07. Various - Freedom Now Chant (0:25)
08. Various - Oh Freedom (3:08)
09. Various - Ain' Scared of Nobody (1:50)
10. Various - Leaning on the Everlasting Arms (1:14)
11. Various - Sermon (6:36)
12. Various - We Are Soldiers in the Army (3:25)
13. Various - Go Tell It on the Mountain (3:04)
14. Various - Wade in the Water (2:33)
15. Various - Come Bah Yah (5:26)
16. Various - Walk with Me, Lord (1:38)
17. Various - Jesus on the Mainline, Tell Him What You Want (3:33)
18. Various - Freedom Train (4:36)
19. Various - Don't You Think It's About Time That We All Be Free (3:30)
20. Various - We're Marching On to Freedom Land (2:32)
21. Various - We Shall Overcome (3:03)

CD2
01. SNCC Freedom Singers - We'll Never Turn Back (3:31)
02. SNCC Freedom Singers - We Shall Not Be Moved (2:12)
03. CORE Freedom Singeres - Certainly, Lord (2:06)
04. CORE Freedom Singers - Get Your Rights, Jack (3:50)
05. SNCC Freedom Singers - Which Side Are You On? (1:57)
06. SNCC Freedom Singers - Woke Up This Morning with My Mind on Freedom (2:32)
07. Bernice Johnson - Been in the Storm So Long (3:55)
08. SNCC Freedom Singers - Dog, Dog (2:34)
09. Integration Grooves - The A & P Song (2:28)
10. SNCC Freedom Singers - Oh Pritchett, Oh Kelly (2:16)
11. Bertha Gober - I Told Jesus (3:21)
12. Alabama Christian Movement Choir - 99 1/2 Won't Do (2:29)
13. Alabama Christian Movement Choir - I'm On My Way (3:39)
14. Cleo Kennedy - City Called Heaven (9:15)
15. SNCC Freedom Singers - In the MIssissippi River (3:39)
16. SNCC Freedom Singers - Ain' Gonna Let Nobody Turn Me 'Round (2:15)
17. Jimmy Collier and the Movement Singers - Will the Circle Be Unbroken (3:08)
18. SNCC Freedom Singers - Governor Wallace (2:36)
19. SNCC Freedom Singers - Ballad of Medgar Evers (4:33)
20. Cordell Reagon - Uncle Tom's Prayer (1:09)
21. SNCC Freedom Singers - Oginga Odinga (2:50)
22. SNCC Freedom Singers - We Shall Overcome (3:21)