Down by the Riverside

For the film, see Down by the Riverside (film).

"Down by the Riverside" (also known as "Ain't Gonna Study War No More" and "Gonna lay down my burden") is a traditional gospel song. It was first published in Carl Sandburg's The American Songbag (1927)^[1] and there are at least 14 black gospel recordings before World War II.^[2]

"Down by the Riverside" has a long history and was known in Civil War times. It was sung by blacks. The line "I ain't goin' to study war no more" perhaps originated about this time. Slaves from the American South sung this song as a work song and added many lines to it from other spirituals. It has endured far into modern times with little changes since.

Lyrics

1. Gonna lay down my burden,
   Down by the riverside,
   Down by the riverside,
   Down by the riverside.
   Gonna lay down my burden,
   Down by the riverside,
   Down by the riverside.

Chorus:
I ain't go study war no more,
study war no more,
ain't go study war no more.
I ain't go study war no more,
study war no more,
ain't go study oh war no more.

1. Gonna lay down my sword and shield
   Down by the riverside...

Chorus

1. Gonna try on my long white robe
   Down by the riverside...

Chorus

1. Gonna try on my starry crown
   Down by the riverside...

Chorus

1. Gonna put on my golden shoes
   Down by the riverside...

Chorus

1. Gonna talk with the Prince of Peace
   Down by the riverside...

Chorus

1. Gonna shake hands around the world
   Down by the riverside...

Chorus

Recordings

Artists who have recorded the song include

• Elvis Presley (on Frankie and Johnny and Million Dollar Quartet)
• Louis Armstrong (on Hello Louis!)
• Lead Belly
• Peter, Paul & Mary (on Around the Campfire)
• Sonny Terry & Brownie McGhee
• Mahalia Jackson
• Sister Rosetta Tharpe (included in the U.S. National Recording Registry)
• The Seekers
• Raffi (on Bananaphone)
• Van Morrison (on the CD reissue of Tupelo Honey)
• The Dirty Dozen Brass Band
• Frederic Rzewski (a classical piano version)
• Million Dollar Quartet, Broadway musical and original cast recording^[3]

Media

Parodies

The song was the basis of an Allan Sherman parody called "Don't Buy the Liverwurst". The tune of "Down by the Riverside" was also used in a McDonald's's 1960s jingle, "McDonald's Is My Kind of Place". In episode 72 of the animated television series Animaniacs, this song was parodied as "U.N. Me" about the United Nations Headquarters and was later released on their 2nd album, "Yakko's World".

References

1. ^ Sandburg C (1927), The American Songbag, (ISBN 9780156056502) at pp 480–481, under the name "Ain' Go'n' to Study War No Mo'".
2. ^ Blues and Gospel Records 1890-1943, 4th ed., OUP, 1997
3. ^ Zielinski, Peter James. "Photo Coverage: Million Dollar Quartet Opens on Broadway". Posted: 12:04 PM; Monday, April 12, 2010. [1]