Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Mahalia Jackson: How I Got Over

It's a dreary, rainy, cup-of-tea morning in Maine and I felt like I needed a little Mahalia to get me going. The quality of this video goes in and out, but it is *so* worth it.

How I Got Over is my favorite Mahalia Jackson song. She sang it at the March on Washington just before Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. gave his "I Have a Dream" speech in 1963. This particular video is live from a performance in Chicago.

No one can nail this song like Mahalia Jackson. (Well, no one can nail *any* gospel song like Mahalia Jackson.) I love how she creates this slow build and by the time she gets to "I feel like shouting" at the end, she can hardly stand still (and neither, apparently, can the audience). As the song gets worked up, watch the smiles start to spread!

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