Acknowledgments.

The Jamorama Piano series was created on behalf of Rock Star Recipes LTD.

Author & Music: Asheigh Southam.

Edit & Graphic Design: Unica Design LTD

Multimedia Content: Rock Star Recipes Studios

Publisher: Rock Star Recipes LTD

Copyright © 2005 Rock Star Recipes Ltd.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system, or
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Welcome to Jamorama Piano’s Introduction to Gospel,
Spirituals and Hymns!
A personal message from me
In this book you will learn what constitutes Gospel tunes, Spirituals and Hymns. You
will find out what each type of music contains and how they relate to each other. More
importantly you will be playing a whole lot of these tunes yourself.

This book follows on nicely from the first book in the Jamorama Piano series but is valuable
at any level. The information in the book is relevant to anyone interested in the Gospel,
Spirituals and Hymns. By the end of the book the tunes get more and more complicated
and thus more rewarding.
This book gives you a very straight forward introduction to Gospel songs, Spirituals and
Hymns. It introduces a couple of new scales, new key signatures, plus some new notes to
show you how most Gospel, Spirituals and Hymns are made up melodically, harmonically
and rhythmically. These three aspects also serve to link each style to one another.

This book will be perfect for those of you who want to play in church, sing along to your
own playing, or accompany someone else. This is also for anyone who just wants to learn
more songs.

49

Each type of music has very interchangable aspects and their styles sometimes blend.
Some songs that might be considered spiritual may also sometimes be considered or
played as gospel tunes, and the same goes with hymns.

This is partly because in the history of the respective styles the lines where one style ends
and the other begins are naturally quite blurry. More on that later.

For the purpose of this book some songs may be considered as either types of genre.

Page 
Table Of Contents
Welcome................................................................................ 3
A personal message from me................................................ 3
Table of Contents.................................................................. 4
Jamorama Piano Progress Tracker....................................... 5

Chapter one. A brief history of the Spirituals.................. 6

Chapter two. Spirituals, the three main types................. 7

‘Ballad’ type........................................................................... 7
Faster tempo syncopated tunes............................................ 8
Chapter three. Spiritual melody............................................ 9
Major pentatonic.................................................................... 9
Minor Pentatonic................................................................. 12
D minor pentatonic ............................................................. 14
‘Blues’ pentatonic................................................................ 16
‘Blues’ pentatonic tune........................................................ 18

Chapter four. Dotted 8th notes........................................ 20

Dotted 8th note tune............................................................ 22
Here are a few more Spirituals to look at and learn............ 23
More spirituals..................................................................... 24
01
Chapter five. I, IV, V in spirituals..................................... 26
Every time you see this
Chapter six. Gospel songs.............................................. 33 button, download and
A brief history....................................................................... 33 play the relevant video.
Gospel songs...................................................................... 34

Chapter seven. E major................................................. 36 01

I, IV, V progression in E major............................................. 37
Every time you see
Chapter eight. Hymns...................................................... 43 this button, listen to the
A brief history....................................................................... 43 relevant track.

Page 
Jamorama Piano Progress Tracker

This Progress Tracker has been specifically designed for you to keep a record of each
individual skill, concept and technique that you learn in the Jamorama Piano course. By
the end of this book you will be able to pin point exactly how far you’ve progressed in
becoming a skilled pianist and a knowledgeable musician.

Once you have mastered a lesson or skill tick it off on the Progress Tracker, and move on
to the next lesson! Commit yourself to ticking off the skills you learn as you go and see
your improvement instantly!

Lesson or Skill Page # Date Signature

Call and response ........... ........... . ...................

Ballad ........... ........... . ...................
Faster tempo syncopated tunes ........... ........... . ...................
Major pentatonic ........... ........... . ...................
Minor pentatonic ........... ........... . ...................
D minor pentatonic ........... ........... . ...................
Blues pentatonic (b5) ........... ........... . ...................
Dotted 8th notes ........... ........... . ...................
I IV V chord progression ........... ........... . ...................
E flat major scale ........... ........... . ...................
I IV V progression in E flat major ........... ........... . ...................

Page 
Chapter one. A brief history of the Spirituals

It’s hard to exactly pin-point the period in which the African American spirituals assumed
a particular type of character. This is partly because there were no attempts to acquire
any of the spirituals before 1840. It is thought that spirituals appeared as early as the
1600s.

These spirituals cannot be associated with any particular authors but are instead attributed
to the African American people and their musical abilities. The songs were learned and
handed down through oral tradition and preserved that way through the generations.

Music played an important role in African life and culture. When they were removed from
Africa and placed in a foreign land under the hostile conditions of enslavement, these
terrible circumstances inspired the spiritual songs. With the roots of African musical ideas
infused with this new culture and religion these new songs emerged.

The songs are called “Spirituals” because the authors of the songs used lyrics inspired by
biblical stories and ideals and they believed that the Spirit of God was the source. When
they felt moved and inspired by the Spirit of God that was when they sang, prayed and
conceived such songs.

They drew the content and lyrics from the Bible and applied their African style of singing.
They sung of their circumstances and experiences. They sung of their yearning for
freedom and justice. They also felt a great kinship with the similarly enslaved Hebrews of
ancient Egypt.

The African-American slaves also used the spirituals as codes to communicate and
express their hopes and desires for freedom. Also contained in the coded spirituals was
information on secret meetings and escape plans. So through the songs they resisted
and fought their enslavement. Such songs like “Swing low sweet chariot”, “Go down
Moses” and “Steal away” all had incrypted meanings about the underground movement
for slave abolitionism and the underground railroad network.

When the slave regime ended so too did the advancement of the spiritual folk song. By
this stage there were some 6000 known spiritual folk songs. The spirituals were now an
established musical style.

The spiritual songs have influenced a huge number of musicians and musical styles.
Their importance as a musical form cannot be undervalued or denied. Gospel music has
firm roots with the spiritual style of music, as do blues music, jazz, rock, soul and even
country. The spiritual styles scope in terms of importance and influence is visible right
across a vast range of musical styles and genres.

Page 
Chapter two. Spirituals, the three main types
‘Call and response’
There are three main types of spiritual song: The call and response, the ballad and the
faster swing spiritual.

There’s the ‘call and response chant’. This means the main melody is sung solo by a
leader, the ‘call’. Then the next phrase is sung by the chorus as a ‘response’. There are a
large amount of spirituals written in this format, especially the earlier ones. These songs
have a slightly ‘fiery’ aspect to them. They are generally a faster type of tune.

Some songs in this style:

• “Shout for joy”

• “Good morning everybody”
• “Swing low sweet chariot”

This type of song helped the slaves keep

rhythm while they worked. Rhythm was often
important in working together on specific tasks.
So the leader would sing the lead part and the
group of workers would ‘respond’ .

‘Ballad’ type
The next type of tune is the slower more sustained tune, the slower ‘ballad’ type of Spiritual.
This type of Spiritual has long phrases and more sustained notes. Also the lyrics have
longer sentences and the melody tends to be longer and more drawn out.

Some songs in this style:

• “Deep river”
• “Nobody knows the trouble I see”
• “Were you there”

Page 
Faster tempo syncopated tunes
The last type of spiritual song is the most popular type of Spiritual. It has a faster tempo and
has a ‘swing’ feel that is designed to simulate the sway of body movement while singing.
The melody is usually segmented or in rhythmically syncopated phrases. Syncopation is
a shift in the rhythmical placement or accent of notes or chords. The lyrics are in shorter
sentences in order to fit the syncopation. Because of this there is a lot of repetition in the
lyrics.

Some songs in this style:

• “Shout all over God’s heab’n”

• “Little David play on yo harp”
• “Ol’ ark’s a-moverin”

Page 
Chapter three. Spiritual melody
In these Spiritual songs there are a certain type of theoretical aspects that appear.

The first of these aspects is the scale that is used in the melody. In general the melody
of the song uses what we call the pentatonic scale.

There are several types of pentatonic scale: The major pentatonic, the minor pentatonic
and an altered version of the minor pentatonic called the blues pentatonic

These pentatonic scales feature in spiritual songs as well as gospel songs and hymns.

Major pentatonic
We’ll start with the major pentatonic.

The major pentatonic is the same as a normal major scale the only difference is the scale
doesn’t use the 4th and 7th notes in the scale.

The pentatonic scale is made from 5 notes. This term comes from the hebrew word for
five, ‘pente’. For example a pentagon is a shape made up of 5 sides.

Here is the normal C major scale.

50

            
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8

Now the major pentatonic scale omitting the 4th and 7th notes.
    
          
1 2 3 5 6 8
   
Play through the scale and notice when omitting the 4th and 7th notes from the scale  
it gives it a very pleasant major sound to it. Experiment with playing the notes in any
order and you’ll notice that you can create beautiful melodies quite easily when you limit
yourself to just the notes in the major pentatonic scale.

Page 
It is a good idea to learn the pentatonic scale in all of the keys we’ve looked at so far.

C major, G major, F major, D major

Here’s the G major pentatonic.

   
       
1 2 3 5 6 8
  
The melody of this spiritual only uses the notes from the G major pentatonic.
  
You shall reap 01

 1   .   .  5
        .
2

You shall reap jes what you sow you shall reap what you sow on the

 
       .        .
1

moun - tain in the val - ley you shall reap jes what you sow

As you can see only notes from the G major petatonic scale appear in this melody.

This is a common feature in the melodies of the Spiritual songs. The major pentatonic
also appears in Gospel tunes and Hymns.

Page 10
Here’s another Spiritual tune using only notes from the G major pentatonic scale.

Play through the tune yourself with just the right hand and have a listen to the track.

02

O lamb, beautiful lamb

     
           
  
O lamb beau - ti - ful Lamb I'm going to serve God till i die
 


3
   
         

O Lamb beau - ti - ful Lamb I'm going to serve God till I die
 

Page 11
Minor Pentatonic
The next scale we’re going to look at is the minor pentatonic.

This one is a little more tricky. Now we’re going to briefly re-cap how we get the minor
scale.

Remember that the major scale has the same key signature as it’s relative minor scale.
To find the relative minor go up a major sixth interval from the key note of the major scale
you began with.

These two scales are relative to each other because they share the same notes. Let’s
refresh your memory by looking again at C major.

           51  
1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
    
The scale played from the 6th note using the same notes is the relative natural minor  
scale. Here’s the A natural minor scale.

     
       

    
This applies to the pentatonic scales aswell. For example the C major pentaonic scale
 
has the same notes as the A minor pentatonic scale. They are relative.

When forming the minor pentatonic scale we use the notes from the relative major
pentatonic scale and start from the minor note.

When playing the A minor pentatonic you use only the notes from C major pentatonic and
start the scale from A.

Here’s C major pentatonic again:

         
1 2 3 5 6 8


Now the same scale except this time it starts on A.    

     
  

   
Page 12
Another way to think of it is that you are playing the natural minor scale without the 2nd
and 6th notes from the scale. This gives you the A minor pentatonic. By omitting these
notes from the A natural minor scale you are left with the same notes that appear in the
C major pentatonic. This is because the scales are relative. You are playing the notes of
the C major pentatonic except starting the scale from A, making it an A minor pentatonic.

A natural minor A minor pentatonic (omits the 2nd and 6th)

                 
    
2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1 1 3 4 5 7 8
          

I know this all seems very confusing!

But once you can get your head around

how the different scales work, pretty soon
you will be able to play them on demand
without even thinking about it!

Page 13
D minor pentatonic
This tune is a ‘call and response’ tune. It is also in the key of D minor pentatonic scale.
So that means it uses the notes from F major pentatonic because they are relative.

This tune is also designed to be sung by a leader and then a chorus.

Because it is designed to be sung, the chorus sings a melody thats in the same register
as the leader melody line. (If something is in the same register this means that the notes
are played in the same area of the piano or the same area on the music staff)

For the purpose of playing this tune on the piano the chorus line is an octave lower than
what it would normally be if it was sung.

Use the left hand for the chorus line (in the bass staff) and the right hand for the leader
line (in the treble staff).

Here’s the F major pentatonic.

b   

 b   

Now the D minor pentatonic, that uses the same notes from F major pentatonic.

 bb    
  

Page 14
 03

Sittin down beside O' the Lamb

1 5 5
  
 b  .      
.     

New Je - ru - sa - lem New Je - ru - sa - lem
 b           
5 1


sit - tin down be - side o' the Lamb
4 1 3 5

b            
 
Be - fore I'd lay in hell one day good Lord
 b 1      1   
  
7 sit - tin down be - side o' 1 the Lamb 5

b    
          
I'd sing an' pray my self a - way good Lord
b          
 
sit - tin down be - side o' the Lamb
10 5

   
b       .    

 b      3         
O mour - ner mourn a - long O
5

 
sit - tin down be - side o' the Lamb sit - tin down be - side o' the

  
13 5

b  

 
mour - ner mourn a - long
          
b  

Lamb sit - tin down be - side o' the Lamb

Page 15
‘Blues’ pentatonic
The last scale for us to look at is the blues pentatonic.

This scale is basically the minor pentatonic with one slight alteration. The blues scale
adds one extra chromatic note to a minor pentatonic scale.

So lets continue with the A minor pentatonic scale and alter it to get the A blues pentatonic
scale.

The note that gets added is a chromatic note between the 4th and 5th notes of the
scale.

So in the A minor pentatonic scale, this note goes between the D and E which are the 6th
and 7th notes in the scale. The note chromatically between the D and E is E b . This is
the ‘blue’ note.

     
Here’s the A minor pentatonic scale
  
1 3 4 5 7 8
 
Now here’s the blues pentatonic scale with the added chromatic note between the 4th  
and 5th notes.

The 5th note is flattened to Eb and then raised again to E natural.

So the added note in the scale is the Eb,. This b,

5 gives the scale its ‘blues’ feeling.

      
  


b 
52
1 3 4 5b 5

7 8


    
b
Added chromatic note, E

Page 16
Play through the scale and listen to the difference the extra added note makes. Can you
hear its ‘blues’ quality?

This scale is very common and like the other scales we’ve looked at so far, is used in all
kinds of music.

It is important to us now because it features throughout the Spiritual songs. It is also

thought that the origin of the blues scale actually came from the spiritual songs.

Like with the major pentatonic and minor pentatonic, play through this scale and try and
make up some of your own little melodies using the notes of the blue pentatonic scale.

When the blues pentatonic scale was

first used people hadn’t heard this
kind of sound before. The flat 5th note
became known as the ‘devils’ note
because it was new and strange.

Page 17
‘Blues’ pentatonic tune
Here are a few examples of some of the spirituals that use the ‘blues’ pentatonic scale in
the melody.

This tune is in the key of D minor pentatonic.

There is a chromatic alteration to the scale in this tune though. It uses the B natural in the
melody which usually doesn’t appear in the scale.

Even though this tune uses a couple of notes that aren’t in the minor pentatonic scale it
still uses the ‘blue’ note. You can also hear the effect that the blue note has on the feel
of the piece.

04

I know it was the blood

q = 110
   
 b    .   .   .   .   .  
 b   .  . . . .
I know it was the blood I know it was the blood I know it was the

.  .   . 
. .

b     .        

 b . . .
blood for me One day when I was lost Je - sus
 .   .  
. . .
12

 b   b  .   .      .

b    .
died up - on the cross I
 .
know it was the

blood for
  
me
.
   . .    .


Page 18
This tune is using the D minor blues pentatonic as well.

Play through the track slowly to start with.

You will hear the ‘blue’ notes in the tune.

05

Wish I's in heaven settin' down

  
 b     b        b   
 
b   
Wish I's in hea - ven set - tin down set - tin down wish I's in hea - ven set - tin

       
b   
4
   
b        

  
        

down set - tin down O Ma - ry O Mar - tha wishI's in hea - ven set - tin down

              
b         

Page 19
Chapter four. Dotted 8th notes
We will now have to look at a new note for playing some of the next tunes.

We already know about the dotted quarter note q.

These are used frequently in conjunction with 8th notes.
q. with e
When you hear the word ‘feel’ mentioned in relation to a song, it means the way the tune
has a certain style or sound to it. This generally refers to how the notes are played in
terms of the timing of the notes and their placement or dynamic range. When looking at
alot of these Gospel tunes they have a ‘swaying’ or ‘swing’ type of feel. To achieve this
type of feel we can use the dotted 8th note.

Dotted 8th notes make the music appear to ‘swing’. Immitating the swaying motion of a
lot of the Spiritual and Gospel singers.

This is like the other dotted notes we’ve looked at as its time value is now increased by
half its original value. So a dotted 8th note has the same time value as an 8th note tied
to a 16th note. Title
e. q = 96e_ x
COMPOS
So =

       53

Dotted 8th notes are usually seen connected with other    
16th notes so they are generally found in music written
together like this:

 .     
  .  .  . 
Piano

    Title    
This is another way of looking at the dotted 8th notes. This example uses ties which can
look rather complicated so the above method is preferred. CO
q = 96

         

06

Piano  .  .  .  .     

       
Page 20
Using dotted 8th notes in music is quite tricky to get the hang of. So take your time when
going over the songs that have dotted 8th notes in them. Listen carefully to the tracks to
hear what they should sound like played.

Clap out the beats while counting aloud the rhythm.

Listen carefully to the track and notice how the notes are played with the ‘swing’ feel.

1 a+a 2 a+a 3 a+a 4 a+a 1 + 2 + 3 + 4 + 1 2 3 4

  .  
  .  .  .  .  .     

Tapping the beat with your

foot can be a helpful way of
staying in time!

Page 21
Dotted 8th note tune
Take as long as you need to get this tune right in terms of its feel. Listen carefully to the
track and take a note where the tune uses dotted 8th notes.

This tune uses a version of the blues scale. It has the flat 7 note which is an alteration on
the standard blues pentatonic we’ve been looking at.

The blues pentatonic will appear throughout this book in several tunes so look out for it.

Roll, Jorden, roll 07

q = 80

     b   . 


Roll Jor - dan roll Roll Jor - dan roll I

     b   . 
 
5

 .  .  b          


want to go to hea - ven when I die to hear old Jor - dan roll O
.
   .  b    
 
    
   
9

  
   ..

bro - ther you ought to been there Yes my lord A

    .   .    . 
   . 
13

         

sit - ting - in - the - king - dom to hear old Jor - dan roll

  . .        
     

Page 22
Here are a few more Spirituals to look at and learn.
08

Go down Moses
q = 110

 1 5 2
         ..    
      
   
When Is - rael was in E - gypt's land let my peo - ple go Op pressed so hard they
      ..  
   

 
7 4
 . 
5 4
 .
1
     .
1

     

 .  . 
could not stand let my peo - ple go Go down Mo - ses way down in
      
  .
    
5

 
13
3 1
  
2
 .   .   
       
E - gypt's land tell old Pha - roah let my peo - ple go
    .
   .    
     

 
1

Page 23
More spirituals.
This next tune has a lot of jumping around in the left hand. Take it slowly and learn the left
hand first and then put it together with the right hand. It’s quite difficult to get this tune so
it’s okay if it takes you a while to learn. The fingering in this tune is also just a guide at this
stage. If you can find a more comfortable way to play the notes with your own fingering
then you should.
09
My Lord what a morning
q = 78
5 4 5
     
 b          
3 1 3
 
       
My Lord what a morn - ing my Lord what a morn - ing
           
b    1
1 1
5 5 5 5 4
 
5

 b  b    
  .    
2 1

 . .
.
my Lord what a morn - ing
    .
when the stars be - gin to

fall
..
    .   
b       
Fine

 .   .
9 1 4 3 1 4
    
b

 .    . 
you' ll hear the trum - pet sound to wake the na - tions un - der - ground
      
b
14 D.C al fine

b       .   .
.    . 
.
look - ing to my God's right hand
  .
when the stars be - gin to fall
b      .    ..


1
5

Page 24
Here are the rest of the verse lyrics to ‘My Lord what a morning’

2. You’ll hear the sinner mourn, 4. Done quit all my worl’ly ways
To wake the nations underground Jine dat hebbenly ban?
Looking to my God’s right hand Done quit all my worl’ly ways
When the stars begin to fall Jine dat hebbenly ban.

3. You’ll hear the Christian shout,

To wake the nations underground
Looking to my God’s right hand
When the stars begin to fall

Your doin’ GREAT. Keep

up the good work!

Page 25
Chapter five I, IV, V in spirituals

Another feature of the Spirituals, Gospels and the Hymns is that they often use the I, IV,
V progressions we’ve already been studying in book one.

Sometimes the tunes will change the order of the progression but generally you will find
that the tunes use these chords often.

This next tune uses the I, IV, V chords from C major.

Remember that the I, IV, V chords in C major are C major, F major and G major.

See if you can identify where these chords appear in this next tune

Here is a brief mention about the structure of this tune;

Look out for indicators describing the ‘intro’ ‘verse’ and ‘chorus’. These divide the tune
into different sections.

‘Intro’ stands for the introduction to the piece. This can last several bars but is usually
quite a short section.

‘Verse’ and ‘chorus’ go together and a verse will usually come before a chorus. The verse
will either tell a story or explain a sentiment. The chorus will give an overview, or express
the basic point or emotion of the song.

Many song structures are very similar. Verses, choruses, and bridges are used to create
a structure made up of different and interesting sections.

There will be more on structure later on in Gospel book 2.

Page 26
 10
In dat great gittin' up mornin'
Intro

 3   1.
               
 
   
I'm a goin' to tell you bout de com - in of the Sav - ior Fare you well fare you well
         
1
5

.. .   .  
5 Verses
2.
.   .   
3
       
Fare you well fare you well Dere's a bet - ter day a com - in
  
Fare you well
       ..     
  
1
5
 
10

      . .   .
       

fare you well O preach - er fol' yo' Bi - ble Fare you well fare you well
        
     
2
4
15 Chorus

       
   
     

            
In dat great git - tin up morn - in Fare you well fare you well

       
    
19

   

   
       
  
        
In dat great git - tin up morn - in Fare you well fare you well

           
  

Page 27
Here are the rest of the lyrics for the verses in ‘In dat great gittin’ up mornin’.

2. Dat de time shall be no longer, 7. Hell shall be uncapp’d an’ burnin’

For judgment day is comin’ Den de dragon shall be loosen’d
Den you hear de sinner sayin Where you runnin po’ sinner
Down I’m rollin down I’m Where you runnin po’ sinner..
rollin..
8. Den you’ll see po’ sinners risin
3. De Lord spoke to Gabriel Den you’ll see de worl’ on fiah
Go look behin de altar See de moon a bleedin
Take down de silvah trumpet See de stars a fallin..
Blow yo’ trumpet Gabriel..
9. See de elements a meltin
4. Lord how shall I blow it See de forked lightnin
Blow it right calm an’ easy Den you’ll cry out for cold water
Do not alarm my people While de Christians shout in glory..
Tell ‘em to come to judgment..
10. Sayin Amen to you damnation
5. Gabriel blow yo’ trumpet No mercy for po’ siner
Lord how shall I blow it Hear de rumblin of de thunder
Loud as seven peals of thunder Earth shall reel an totter..
Wake de livin nations..
11. Den you’ll see de Christian risin
6. Place one foot upon de dry lan’ Den you’ll see de righteous marchin
Place de other on de sea See dem marchin home to heab’n
Den you’ll see de coffins bustin’ Den you’ll see my Jesus comin..
See de dry bones come
a creepin.. 12. Wid all His holy angels
Take de righteous home to glory
Dere dey live wid God forever
On de right hand side of my Saviour..

Page 28
This next tune is one your surely familiar with.

This tune is in the call and response style but the tune has been played in many
different ways.

11
Swing low sweet chariot
q = 56
 
4 3 5

 b          
5 3
 .   . 
1 1

   
Swing low sweet char - i - ot com - ing for to car - ry me home
   
           
b     1
1
5 5

 
5

 b    .   .        .
   
swing low sweet char - i - ot com - ing for to car - ry me home
 
          ..
b     1 2
Fine
5 4

9

b    
3
         .      
   
I looked o - ver Jor - dan and what did I see com - ing for to car - ry me
  
b          
   
13 D.C al fine

 b .. 4      3     
  .        
a band of an - gels com - ing af - ter me com - ing for to car - ry me home
.
home

 .           
b    

Page 29
Here are the rest of the lyrics for the remaining verses in ‘Swing low sweet chariot’

2. If you get there before I do 4. I’m sometimes up, I’m sometimes down
Coming fot to carry me home Coming for to carry me home
Tell all my friends I’m comin too But still my soul feels heavenly bound
Coming for to carry me home.. Coming for to carry me home..

3. The brightest day that ever I saw

Coming for to carry me home
When Jesus wash’d my sins away
Coming for to carry me home..

This next tune, ‘Wade in the water’ is quite a difficult piece and is one of the most difficult
Spirituals you will play in this book so take your time. It is in this book as a good challenge
for you to learn.

It is also a ‘call and response’ tune.

Page 30
 12
Wade in the water
q = 58
5

3 4

        
3 1
        
1 2

     in the

 wa
  chil
Wade in the wa - ter Wade - ter - dren
       
   
1 2 3 5 2 1 1
5 4 4 4 3


5 3 3

   
        
1 1
     ..

Wade in the wa - ter God's a - going to trou - ble the wa - ter
            
      ..

Fine


9

        .           

See that host all dressed in white God's a - going to trou - ble the wa - ter The
            

1 2 
3 5

 5
13 D.C al fine
         .         
    
        
Lead er looks like the Is - rael - ite God's a - going to trou - ble the wa - ter
   

Page 31
Here are the rest of the lyrics for the verses in ‘Wade in the water’

2. See that band all dressed in red 4. If you don’t believe I’ve been redeemed
God’s a going to trouble the water God’s a going to trouble the water
Looks like the band that Moses led Just follow me down to Jordan’s stream
God’s a going to trouble the water.. God’s a going to trouble the water

3. Look over yonder what do I see?

God’s a going to trouble the water
The Holy Ghost a coming on me
God’s a going to trouble the water

Try singing along with the tune

while you play. Some of the words
are a bit different to what you are
used to. Have some fun trying to
pronounce them!

Page 32
Chapter six. Gospel songs
A brief history

It’s quite difficult to attain the exact time when Gospel music actually began.

There are two main divisions of Gospel music, Historic and Contemporary or Modern.
The Historic Gospel is said to have begun as early as 1870. It can also be said to have
begun in the years just prior to the depression up to around 1950. Gospel is comprised
of Gospel songs written from about the 1960’s to the present.

Around four million slaves were freed following the civil war in the 1870’s. Unfortunately
their circumstances hardly improved at all. Although they were considered legally free
from slavery they still faced prejudice and racism. A large amount of the the freed slaves
stayed behind in the south but many travelled north in search of employment and a new
start. In the climate of prejudice and racism and the urbanisation of the African Americans,
Gospel music had its early beginnings.

During the end of the historic period of Gospel songs many of the songs were considered
‘freedom’ songs. Even though the civil rights movement didn’t begin until much later
these Gospel songs already showed the mood of the movement that was to eventuate.

The type of Gospel music sung most often in African American churches then and now is
generally the songs that were written in the historic period.

One of the most important and prolific writers of these songs was Thomas A. Dorsey. He
has over eight hundred songs credited to his name. He is considered by many as the
Father of Gospel music.

Another similar Gospel composer was Charles Albert Tindley. From his humble beginnings
(his parents were slaves and he was ‘hired out’ to work as soon as he was old enough) he
went on to overcome adversity and compose some of the most influential Gospel songs.

Alot of Gospel is improvised meaning it is spontaneous and expresses the singers

inspiration that is said comes from the Holy Spirit.

Gospel music is still hugely popular today and influences a variety of musical styles such
as blues, jazz, hymns and many more.

Page 33
Gospel songs
The next lot of tunes we’re going to be looking at are Gospel tunes.

Dividing up each genre specifically into groups is quite difficult because all these musical
genres influence each other in terms of style content and theoretical aspects.

So some of the songs you’ve already played in this book could be considered Gospel
songs as well as Spiritual and it would be hard to argue the difference.

Alot of these songs will sound very similar to the Spirituals and Hymns.

Take this next tune slowly and listen to the jam track. Follow the music to help iron out
any problems.

Page 34
 13
Bye and bye
q = 58

 1  
4 5

      .
  ..
1
      .  
   
Bye an' bye we all shall meet a - gain
   ..       ..


 
3 2

.
5
 .  1   .
3 5 5 4 5

 .  .     .  
1 1

  
Bye   an'

bye we
   a . - gain 
      
all shall meet O
   . 
1 3

 .  
5 5 5 4
      . 
 .
2
        .  

. 
  . 
bye an' bye we all shall meet a - gain an' I
     ..   
    
 2
4

 1
7 5 5
 . 
2
     
   .      

would - n't mind dy - in
 
if

dy - in
 
was all
   .      
  .   
1
5

Page 35
Chapter seven. E b major
To be able to play some of the other tunes in this book we have to look at a new key
signature.

You will remember the techniques we use to get key signatures and we will apply the

b b
same rules to make the new key signature and subsequent scale. The scale we are
b b b
b
going to look at is the scale of E major. E major has 3 flats in it E B and A .
E major appears quite frequently in Gospel, Spirituals and Hymns so it’s an important
key signature and scale to learn.

As before we’ll start off in the R.H using the two tetrachord rule to make up our scale.

R.H
1 2 3 4 1 2 3 4
b  
b b            
 
W W H
 
H

W

W W
 bb 1st 
key

b  tetrachord          
   
signature 2nd tetrachord

L.H
2 1 3 2 
5
    1
4 3
b     
bb
W W H
W H
W
b tetrachord  2nd tetrachord
 
W

 b b 1st
        
OR L.H
 bb
5 4 3 2 1 3 2 1

b         
written
this way
an
octave
lower
W W H
W H
W W
1st tetrachord 2nd tetrachord

Page 36
I, IV, V progression in E b major.
This is important for us to recognise the chords when playing alot of these tunes.
Remember that alot of this music uses chords from the I, IV, V progression.
b
The three primary triads of E major are E A and B b b b
b
1st note of the scale:
b
E major triad: the I chord


4th note of the scale:
5th note of the scale: b
A major triad:
B major tirad:
the IV chord
the V chord
I

IV V
b 
    
b b 

    

 bb
1
E b 2 3 4
A
b 5
B
b 6 7 8

b b
b b 
Now the same progression in the L.H with the chords in root position.    
L.H

IV

V

I

b     
bb     
1
b 2 3 4
b 5
b
b
E A B

b b
Here is the same progression this time with the inversions     

I IV V

b   
L.H
   
bb       
1
E
b
2 3 4
A
b B
b
5

root position 2nd inversion 1st inversion

A lot of the time these chords will not always appear in root position. So you will see the
b
chords played in a variety of inversions. Here’s a few inversions of the diffferent chords
of E major. Take a look at the inversions play through them. See if you can recognise
the chords in any of the tunes used in this book.

This time when playing the I, IV, V progression try using different inversions in different
hands. Try playing the standard inversions in both hands and then on the next page play
the different inversions in each hand and notice the tonal quality difference. Play through
slowly and take your time, it’s tricky.

Page 37
 I IV V I I IV V I

b   
1st inversion root position 2nd inversion 1st inversion root position 2nd inversion 1st inversion root position

 
 b b       

  

 bb        

      
b
I IV V I I IV V I

b
root position 2nd inversion 1st inversion root position 2nd inversion 1st inversion root position 2nd inversion

This next tune is in E major.

There are lots of chords in this tune so take your time and make sure your getting all the
notes correct.
I love the Lord 14
q = 96
4 4 4
b  2
 b b             
1 1
     

   
I love the Lord He heard my cries and pit - ied

 bb            
   

  
b
2 2 1 3
5 5 5

   
6 5 3 5 5
b  
 b b                
2 1 1 3
 
 -  ry groan
ev
     long as I live
   
when trou - bles
 bb       
b   
1 1 4 3
5 5
11 5 5
b      
b b     
3 3
   


     
rise I'll has - ten to His throne
 bb        

b  
2 4 1 5
5
The next tune is in the key of E minor. The different key gives this Gospel tune a different
feel.

Page 38
 15

The downward road is crowded

q = 96

4 5 4

       
      
2 3 1


 
          
O the down - ward road is crowd - ed crowd - ed crowd - ed O the
   b    
3 1
5 5


6 4 5 3 4

             .     
2 1 1

   ..
        
down - ward road is crowd - ed with un - be - liev - in' souls The win' blows east an' the
        
   
  1 1 1 1 . 1
5 4 4 5 4

11
 
   .      ..  
  
win' blows west

it blows like the judg - ment

day
 an'

 
 


14

                  
5
..
.
  bne - ver did pray
ev - ry po' soul that
      pray that
will be glad to day
        
1 1
.
5
5 4

Here are the rest of the lyrics to ‘The downward road is crowded”.

2. Some people say they believe in him You can’t ride the empty air
An’ then won’t do what he says An’ get to heaven that day

Page 39
Here is another Gospel tune for you to learn. Listen to the track first to get an idea about
how the tune sounds, then try playing through it.

If you can, it’s a good idea to read the music while listening to the track and see if you can
follow it.
16

Stand by me Albert Tindley

     
b 3
 b b     
2 3
        b 

 b        
       
When the storms of life are rag - ing stand by me (stand be me)
   
bb  
3 1
5 5

         
3 5 3
b
b b     
4
 
1 1
      
 bb                 
when the storms of life are rag - ing stand by me (stand by me)

b   
5

 b b        
     
5 4 5
b
  
2 3
 
         
 bb        
when the world is toss - ing me like a ship u - pon the sea
 
b      
 
1
5

 b b        
7 3 5
b
  b    
1 3 2

      b 

       
thou who rul

b b         
- est wind and wa - ter stand by me (stand by me)
b    
 
5 4 1 3
5

Page 40
Here are the rest of the lyrics for ‘Stand by me’

2. In the midst of tribulations

Stand by me
In the midst of tribulations
Stand by me
When the hosts of hell assail
And my strength begins to fail
Thou who never lost a battle
Stand by me

3. In the midst of faults and failures

Stand by me
In the midst of faults and failures
Stand by me
When I do the best I can
And my friends misunderstand
Thou who knowest all about me
Stand by me

4. In the midst of of persecution

Stand by me
In the midst of persecution
Stand by me
When my foes in battle array
Undertake to stop my way
Thou who saved Paul and Silas
Stand by me

5. When I’m growing old and feeble

Stand by me
When I’m growing old and feeble
Stand by me
When my life becomes a burden
And I’m nearing chilly Jordan
O thou “Lily of the Valley”
Stand by me

Page 41
This is the last Gospel tune we will look at in this book.
There are a lot of chords in this tune so take our time to get them right.

17
There's something on my mind
 3
5

          1
    

     
There's some - thin' on my mind that's worr - yin' me There's
    
2

4
 
4 4

     
1
           

        
some - thin' on my mind that's worr - yin me There's some - thin' on my mind that's
        

    
 
1

1
5 3

   
    .
7 5 3

    ..    
3
 
1
..
     ..
worr - yin me so
  
let us watch Lord an' pray as we
  
live
            ..
  . 1 .
5

Here are the rest of the lyrics for ‘There’s somethin’ on my mind’

2. Father’s drinkin’ with their sons that’s what’s worryin’ me

There’s Fathers drinkin’ with their sons that’s what’s worryin’ me
There’s Fathers drinkin’ with their sons that’s what’s worryin’ me
Let us watch Lord an’ pray as we live

3. The church is out of union that’s what’s worryin’ me

The church is out of union that’s what’s worryin’ me
The church is out of union that’s what’s worryin’ me
So let us watch Lord an’ pray as we live

Page 42
Chapter eight. Hymns
A brief history
A hymn is a song of praise or prayer towards God. Singing psalms and hymns has been
part of the Christian worship for hundreds of years.

The most musically interesting change to the hymn came 250 years ago. Dr. Issac Watts,
an English minister, saw that the music was lacking in lively and colorful expression. He
was interested in showing the power and passion of his belief and faith through music.
From this, the modern Hymn came about. Watts gave the religious psalms and hymns
much more freedom and interest. A far more powerful means of expression was created
by using variety. Watts wrote such songs as “Jesus shall reign” and “Joy to the world”.
After Watts paved the way with this new type of interpretation and composition it wasn’t
long until he had many followers keen to write in a similar style.

Dr. Watts’ and others like him helped move the style of singing and hymns away from the
rigid singing of the time toward a more poetic style of religious song.

The songs that were written and played back then were used and adapted to a variety
of situations. The African American Baptist and the Methodist churches both sang these
hymns. They applied their own sense of culture and musical background to these songs
and effectively modified many of the hymns.

Those songs written around 250 years ago are still sung and enjoyed throughout the
world. The influence of these songs is huge affecting many different genres of music.

Page 43
This next tune has an interesting story behind it.

John Newton, the man that wrote the lyrics to ‘Amazing Grace’, left school when he
was eleven to begin the dangerous and rough life of a seaman. He eventually became
involved with the dishonourable business of capturing slaves from West Africa and selling
them around the world markets.

One day there was a fierce storm while at sea and John Newton became fearful that he
would be shipwrecked. He turned to God to save him from the storm.

Later he began to read ‘The Imitation of Christ’ by Thomas A. Kempis. It was through
this book and his fearful experience that he realised the error in his ways and wrote this
beautiful song. Through this spiritual experience John Newton decided to heed the call
to study for ministry. When he was thirty nine years old John Newton was ordained
as a Minister of the Anglican Church in a little village called Olney near Cambridge in
18

Words by John Newton Tune: "American melody" from

and John P. Rees Amazing grace Cirginia Harmony

3 5 2

b       
1 1 4

         
   
        
A - maz - ing grace how sweet the sound that saved a
b          
1 5 3 1
5 3


7

 b   .   .
5
   
.    
 
wretch like
.
me ...I once
    
was lost but


b .          
5 3

12 5 4

 b .    
3

1
       .
. 
.   
 I see..
 b ..   
now am found was blind but now
        
  
5 2 2
4 5

Page 44
Here are the rest of the lyrics for ‘Amazing grace’.

2. ‘Twas grace that taught my heart to fear, 5. Yes, when this flesh and heart shall fail
and grace my fears relieved and mortal life shall cease
How precious did that grace appear I shall possess within the veil
the hour I first believed.. a life of joy and peace..

3. Through many dangers, toils and snares 6. The earth shall soon dissolve like snow,
I have already come the sun forbear to shine
‘Tis grace hath brought me safe thus far, But God, who called me here below
and grace will lead me home.. will be forever mine.

4. The Lord has promised good to me 7. When we’ve been there ten-thousand
His word my hope secures years,
He will my shield and portion be bright shining as the sun
as long as life endures.. We’ve no less days to sing God’s praise
than when we’d first begun.

A very common feature of the Hymns is that they use I, IV, V progressions.

So when playing some of these tunes try to look for and listen for the I, IV, V
progression.

In this next tune remember that the fingering is there only as a guide so you can use your
own fingering if you find it more comfortable.

Remember that the fingering has to be comfortable enough to allow you to play the notes
at the assigned speed.

Page 45
 19
Battle hymn of the Republic
Words by Julia Ward Howe Music by William Steffe

q = 82 5 4 5
1 .  .  
   .. .  .
..  ..  .  .   .
. 
2

3

   .  .  .  .  .  ..   . 
Mine eyes have seen the glo - ry of the com - ing of the Lord He is

.  .  .  .  . 
1 2
5 4
4 3 4
. .
 . .  .
 .  .  ..  ..  .. 
1 2
. 
tram - pling out the vin - tage where the grapes of wrath are stored He hath
.
 .  ..  .. 

.
.  .  .   . 
.  .  . 
1 1
6 5 4 5
 .  .    
 ..  ..  ..  .
.  .  .      
2
 

  
loosed the fate - ful light - ning of His ter - ri - ble swift - sword His truth is march - ing on
. . . . . 
 .  .  ..  .    .   
   

2
Chorus 4
10

4
2 .   
3

 ..  ..  .   .
1
.  .
.  .
.   
Glo - ry glo - ry hal - le - lu - jah Glo - ry glo - ry hal - le - lu - jah
.  .  ..   ..  ..  ..  
 . .

  
 
14 4

 ..  .         .
 ..  .  
2
.
on
  
Glo - ry glo - ry hal - le - lu - jah His truth is march - ing
.  .  ..      .
 . .     .


Page 46
Here are the other verse lyrics for ‘Battle hymn of the Republic’

2. I have seen Him in the watchfires 4. In the beauty of the lillies Christ
Of a hundred circling camps Was born across the sea
They have buried Him an altar in With a glory in His bosom that
The evening dews and damps Transfigures you and me
I can read His righteous sentence As He died to make men holy
By the dim and flaring lamps Let us die to make men free
His day is marching on.. While God is marching on.

3. He has sounded forth the trumpet

That shall never sound retreat
He is sifting out the hearts of men
Before His judgement seat
O be swift my soul to answer
Him be jubilant my feet
Our God is marching on..

You may recognise this next tune. It is often played as a Christmas carol but is also
considered a hymn.

Page 47
 20

Hark the herald angel sing

Words by Charles Wesley Tune: Mendelssohn
q = 96 3 5 4
             
 b    .
1 3 2
.  
          .
.
   

  
Hark the her - ald an - gels sing Glo - ry to the new - born King peace on earth and
    ..     
  .. 

b  1       
5
4

6 5 4 5

 b       ..       2    
3 3 3

             

    
mer - cy mild God and sin - ners rec - on - ciled joy - ful all you na - tions rise
 b   .          
     3
2 3
4 5 5

11 4 4

 b            b       . 

2 2 1

   . 
join the tri - umph of the skies with the angel- ic host pro - claim Christ is born in
.. 
 b       
   
      
1 5 2
4 4

..      
16 3

 b       .     ..
1
.     .
Beth - le - hem Hark the her - ald an - gels sing Glo - ry to the new - born King

 b    .               
..
.     
4

Page 48
Here are the rest of the lyrics for the verses in ‘Hark the herald angel sing’.
2. Christ by highest heaven adored
Christ the everlasting Lord
Late in time behold Him come
Offspring of the virgin’s womb
Veiled in flesh the Godhead see
Hail the incarnate Deity
Pleased as man with us to dwell
Jesus out Emmanuel
Page 49
3. Hail the heaven born Prince of peace
Hail the sun of righteousness
Light and life to all He brings
Rising with healing in His wings
Mild He lays His glory by
Born that we no more may die
Born to raise us from the earth
Born to give us second birth
Keep going!! you’re almost there....
You may have noticed that alot of these tunes are mostly made up of chords, and not alot
of seperate bass notes of melody. Here’s the next tune for you to learn.

21

Holy, holy , holy

Words by Reginald Heber Music by John B. Dykes
3 5 5
b
 b b                    
1 3 2 3

 
Ho - ly ho - ly ho - ly
    
Lord God
   
al - might - y
 
ear - ly
 
in the
 bb            
b 
1` 2 1 2
3 5

6
b   . 5

 b b       .  
 
   
  
2 1
   
morn - ing our song shall rise
  . to Thee Ho - ly ho - ly ho - ly
 bb       .   

       
b 
2 2 1
5 5
11 5
b 
 b b        
3
     b
mer - ci
  
- ful

and

might

- y God in three
 bb     
b  
2 3 1
4
14 5
b
 b b   b  
2 1

  .
.   
 

per - sons bless - ed Trin - i - ty A - men

 bb    .    
b    .   


Page 50
Here are the rest of the lyrics for the verses in ‘Holy, holy, holy’

2. Holy, holy, holy 4. Holy, holy, holy

All the saints adore thee Lord God Almighty
Casting down their golden crowns All Thy works shall praise Thy name
Around the glassy sea In earth and sky and sea
Cherubim and seraphim Holy, holy, holy
Falling down before Thee Merciful and mighty
Which wert and art and God in three persons
Evermore shall be.. Blessed Trinity.

3. Holy, holy, holy

Though the darkness hide Thee
Though the eye of sinful man
Thy glory may not see
Only Thou art holy
There is none beside Thee
Perfect in pow’r
In love and purity..

Page 51
This tune is designed to be played quite fast but don’t worry if you have to start off slow
to get it right.

Remember that the fingering is also a guide so if you find a different fingering more
comfortable then use it.
22
Joy to the world
Words from Psalm 98, adapted by Issac Watts Music, 'Antioch' arranged from George F. Handel

q = 82
    
   . 
. 
.
.    .


.. 

Joy
.. 
to the world the Lord

is

come let
 .
earth
re -
    ..  .. .

   

6
 .  
 .  .      .       .
.    .      .   
 .  .
  .  ..  
cieve her King let ev - ry heart pre - pare Him room and
 
    .    . 
 


12

      .
.   
     ..  
ture sing and
.
heav'n and na - ture sing and heav'n and na -
         
      .     

16
  
     .
.      
heav'n

and
.
heav'n and na - ture sing
     .     
    

Page 52
Here are the rest of the lyrics for the verses in ‘Joy to the world’

2. Joy to the earth the Saviour reigns 4. He rules the world with truth and grace
Let men their songs employ And makes the nations prove
While fields and floods, The glories of
rock, hills and plains His righteousness
Repeat the sounding joy And wonders of His love
Repeat the sounding joy And wonders of His love
Repeat repeat the sounding joy.. And wonders, wonders of His love.

3. No more let sin and sorrows grow

Nor thorns infest the ground
He comes to make
His blessings flow
Far as the curse is found
Far as the curse is found
Far as, far as the curse is found..

Page 53
You’ve done it! You have completed the Jamorama Piano Gospel Book. Just think of
all the Gospel, Spiritual and Hymns you’ve learnt. You’re on your way to becoming a
musician ... all you need is more practice!

Now you are ready to go on to the Jamorama Introduction to Jazz Piano book if you
haven’t already done so.

That’s it for now.

Ruth

Page 54