Joshua Fought The Battle Of Jericho

Album: various (1922)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • The origin of this well-known African American spiritual is lost to time, but it was probably composed on the fly by a slave or slaves working on a plantation in the antebellum Deep South.

    Whatever its origin, the song was clearly inspired by the Old Testament tale of the fall of Jericho, from the Book Of Joshua. The Israelite army led by Joshua marched around the city blowing their trumpets - ram's horns - and after Joshua ordered them to shout, the walls collapsed.

    It remains to be seen how much of the tale can be attributed to myth and how much to history.
  • The song title is also rendered as "Joshua Fit The Battle Of Jericho" and "Joshua Fit De Battle Ob Jericho," and has been widely recorded. The reference to the walls coming tumbling down is an all too obvious metaphor for escape from slavery.
  • The first known recording was in 1922 by Harrod's Jubilee Singers (after the Fisk Jubilee Singers), but it has also been recorded by white artists, including Elvis Presley. >>>
    Suggestion credit:
    Alexander Baron - London, England, for above 3

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Mike Campbell

Mike CampbellSongwriter Interviews

Mike is lead guitarist with Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers, and co-writer of classic songs like "Boys Of Summer," "Refugee" and "The Heart Of The Matter."

Steve Cropper (Booker T & the MG's, Blues Brothers)

Steve Cropper (Booker T & the MG's, Blues Brothers)Songwriter Interviews

Steve Cropper on the making of "In the Midnight Hour," the chicken-wire scene in The Blues Brothers, and his 2021 album, Fire It Up.

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"

Ian Anderson: "The delight in making music is that you don't have a formula"Songwriter Interviews

Ian talks about his 3 or 4 blatant attempts to write a pop song, and also the ones he most connected with, including "Locomotive Breath."

Millie Jackson

Millie JacksonSongwriter Interviews

Outrageously gifted and just plain outrageous, Millie is an R&B and Rap innovator.

Evolution Of The Prince Symbol

Evolution Of The Prince SymbolSong Writing

The evolution of the symbol that was Prince's name from 1993-2000.

The Punk Photography of Chris Stein

The Punk Photography of Chris SteinSong Writing

Chris Stein of Blondie shares photos and stories from his book about the New York City punk scene.