Product Description
In honor of Amelia Dawley, her ancestors,
and her descendants
Joespeh wrote the following to Wilson Moran:
I made this choral arrangement to show my support for the return of the lands taken from your family and others by the federal government after the underhanded conduct of those who continue to deprive the Gullah-Geechee people of their heritage and property. Although the song is now in the public domain, this arrangement is new, and I want you to use my choral version in any way you see fit to spread the word about what happened and hopefully encourage people who can make a difference to take the steps necessary to restore to the Moran family and all others what was wrongly taken from them.
Although this choral arrangement is for men's voices, the highest voice can certainly be taken by a woman - maybe a contralto, since the original Mende is a women's funeral hymn. I used my own spellings, following closely the pronunciation of your mother's and grandmother's recordings of the melody.
My white Delegal and King ancestors were morally wrong to enslave Africans ripped from their homeland in Sierra Leone and other nations, and I was shocked to discover through my own research about what happened on their plantations as well as those of the Butlers. Unfortunately, that poison old Confederate mentality lives on to this day! But progress has been made and will continue to be made in the same of equality and justice. I hope my musical tribute to your family will serve in some small way to make amends and to bring joy into your home during this holiday season.
I couldn't be happier to know that you are my cousins, in the knowledge that Mustafa Shaw is my great-great uncle! His specially chosen name passed from the memory of my great grandmother Katherine Delegal King, who certainly knew him as a child, to the memory of my mother, Julia, and then on to me. What a privilege it is for us to be able to remember together!
Come back!
Ah wakuh muh moanuh komba lee yah lay lil lee quambay
Ah wakuh muh moanuh komba lee yah lay lilly queh
Ha suh wileego seeha yuh kwendieyah
Ha suh wileego dwelin duh queh
Ha suh wileego seeha yuh bongo lilly
Ha suh wileego dwelin duh queh.
Come, mothers and fathers back to the land we cherished!
Oh, come, sisters and brothers, home to the sweet land promised, yeah,
Where the cypress, palmetto, and dogwood trees join the cedars, magnolias, and pines
In a chorus that whispers, "This land we love will be forever more yours and mine."
Come, mothers and fathers back to the land we cherished!
Oh, come, sisters and brothers, home to the sweet land promised, yeah,
Where the heron and ibis and wood stork wade,
And the river runs down to the sea,
Where the mockingbird sits on a high oak branch a' sing-in'
"Come, and make your home with me!"
Come back!
This product was created by a member of ArrangeMe, Hal Leonard's global self-publishing community of independent composers, arrangers, and songwriters. ArrangeMe allows for the publication of unique arrangements of both popular titles and original compositions from a wide variety of voices and backgrounds.