AFRICAN-AMERICANA.

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Slave Songs of the United States. First edition of the first systematic collection of African-American music, gathering the spirituals of formerly enslaved persons and recording them in vernacular dialect.This collection was the first of many attempts to preserve the spiritual from extinction. There was a widespread belief - shared by many formerly enslaved people - that the old "slave songs" would disappear with emancipation; the editors note in the preface that they were "already becoming difficult to obtain" and were being displaced by newer forms of worship music "closely imitated from the white people".The work gathers 136 songs, arranged by region. The footnotes add substantial historical detail, record regional variants, and explain how the compilers encountered them. Included are phonetic renderings of now-famous songs such as "Roll, Jordan, Roll", "Nobody Knows the Trouble I've Had", and "Come Along, Moses". A lengthy preface discusses the history and traditions of the songs and singing practice among the enslaved.

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