Oh, Freedom

"Oh, Freedom" is a post-Civil War African-American freedom song. It is often associated with the Civil Rights Movement, with Odetta, who recorded it as part of the "Spiritual Trilogy", on her Odetta Sings Ballads and Blues album,[1] and with Joan Baez, who performed the song at the 1963 March on Washington.[2] Baez has since performed the song live numerous times, both during her concerts and at other events. The song became affiliated with civil rights activism when it was used at protests of the Atlanta Race Massacre in 1906 1906 Atlanta race massacre. [3] The song was first recorded in 1931 by the E. R. Nance Family as "Sweet Freedom". Writer and radio producer Richard Durham used it as an opening in his 1948–1950 radio anthology Destination Freedom.[4]

  1. ^ Hawn, C. Michael. "History of Hymns: 'O Freedom' and 'Freedom is Coming'". Discipleship Ministries: The United Methodist Church. Retrieved 19 March 2019.
  2. ^ Trescott, Jacqueline (August 14, 2011). "Music of the Movement: 'Oh Freedom'". The Washington Post. Retrieved 18 March 2019.
  3. ^ Smithsonian Folkways Recordings, 1997, [1] folkways-media.si.edu,
  4. ^ Ashleigh Lawrence-Sanders, March 16, 2018, History, Memory, and the Power of Black Radio AAIHS.org