Slave Songs of the United States

This historic collection was the first assortment of slave songs to appear in print, and was compiled by white northerners who lived among the ex-slaves in the Sea Islands off the coast of South Carolina and Georgia as teachers and missionaries. The 38-page preface offers valuable insight into performance practice, voice quality, song types, the shout, and other aspects of slave songs. The detailed Table of Contents indicates the geographical sources of the songs and the names of the contributors, and notes are attached to many of the songs. (Southern and Wright, African-American Traditions in Song, Sermon, Tale, and Dance, 1600s-1920.)