I Will Bow and Be Simple
A Shaker song of humility, "I will bow and be simple, I will bow and be free", in Mary Hazzard's songbook, signed "North Family", undated, between songs dated 1851 and 1852, for 2 to 4 singers. The soprano sings the tune, the alto and tenor sing the words close beneath it, and the bass holds the roots on "oo"; each strain is sung twice, as the book marks it.
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The first verse
Words: Shaker song (Mary Hazzard's songbook, undated, between songs dated 1851 and 1852)Tune: Shaker song (Mary Hazzard's songbook, undated, between songs dated 1851 and 1852)
I will bow and be simple, I will bow and be free,I will bow and be humble, yea bow like the willow tree.
About I Will Bow and Be Simple
I Will Bow and Be Simple is a Shaker song of humility: "I will bow and be humble, yea bow like the willow tree". It survives in Mary Hazzard's manuscript songbook, begun in 1847, which calls itself "A Collection of Extra Songs of Various Kinds Written and Pricked For the Purpose of Retaining them". There the song has no title and is signed only "North Family", with no village, giver or date; it comes between songs dated 1851 and 1852. Our tune and words are read from her page, written in the Shakers' notation of letters, in C, with every pitch as written, and the four parts are our own. This is both strains, each sung twice as the book marks it, for 2 to 4 singers. Courtesy Winterthur Museum, Garden & Library.
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