The Trouble I've Seen: The Big Book of Negro Spirituals

About this book

Bruno Chenu provides an extraordinary record of the origin and history of Negro spirituals and offers exceptional historical and sociological insights into their meaning. Section One focuses on the origin of the spiritual by examining the odyssey of the North American slave trade from the 17th through the 19th centuries. Section Two features an exhaustive study of the various themes found within the spirituals which number today at over 6 000. In Section Three Chenu provides a glimpse into the very soul of the slave through hymns prayers and the astonishing personal testimonies of slaves. The reader will see the formation of the spiritual up close. The collections of stories and interviews with free and former slaves that were used as research for The Trouble Ive Seen will undoubtedly leave a profound and memorable imprint. Includes the words to over 200 moving spirituals as well as a premium quality CD of inspirational spirituals performed by the Moses Hogan Chorale.