Lay dis Body Down
Language: English
O graveyard, O graveyard, I’m walkin’ troo the graveyard; Lay dis body down. I know moonlight, I know starlight, I’m walkin’ troo the starlight; Lay dis body down. O my soul, O your soul, We’re walkin’ troo the moonlight; Lay dis body down. O moonlight, O starlight, I’m walkin’ troo the starlight; Lay dis body down.
Note: The text was sourced from the historical anthology Slave Songs of the United States (originally published by A. Simpson & Co., New York, 1867), which categorizes each song based on origin and social context
Text Authorship:
- by Bible or other Sacred Texts , "Lay dis Body Down" [author's text not yet checked against a primary source]
Musical settings (art songs, Lieder, mélodies, (etc.), choral pieces, and other vocal works set to this text), listed by composer (not necessarily exhaustive):
- by Jessie Montgomery , "Lay dis Body Down", 2021 [ voice, percussion and string orchestra ], from Five Freedom Songs, no. 3 [sung text not yet checked]
Researcher for this page: Joost van der Linden [Guest Editor]
This text was added to the website: 2025-09-28
Line count: 12
Word count: 56