Topic: Andy Mosely & "Hogman" Maxey Lyrics

[beljum]

Typed this up and thought to post it here too.

?smote? is defined as: To inflict a heavy blow on, with or as if with the hand, a tool, or a weapon.






Brother Mosley Crossed the Water

(Andy Mosley and Hogman Maxey)


Well, Brother Mosley smote the water and the children all passed over
Brother Mosley smote the water and the sea give away
Well, Brother Mosley smote the water and the children all passed over
Brother Mosley smote the water and the sea give away

Sister ain't you glad she missed that sinful army
Sister ain't you glad that the sea give away

Well, Brother Mosley smote the water and the children all passed over
Pray God, Brother Mosley smote the water and the sea give away
Lord,  Brother Mosley smote the water and the children all passed over
Brother Mosley smote the water and the sea give away

Sister ain't you glad she missed that sinful army
Sister ain't you glad that the sea give away

Lord, Brother Mosley smote the water and the children all passed over
Brother Mosley smote the water and the sea give away

(Added JohnM's corrections 11/19/2011)

[Pan]

Absolutely cool, thanks for sharing! 

Cheers

Pan

[Johnm]

Hi beljum,
That is really an interesting cut.  I think Hogman Maxey was in Angola Penitentiary at the same time as Robert Pete Williams, and like Williams was discovered and recorded by Dr. Harry Oster. One of the interesting things about the cut is that Andy Mosley is singing his melody in the key of A flat, and Hogman Maxey is accompanying him in the key of D flat, so they are performing the song in two different keys from beginning to end, a la Kelly Harrell's version of "Wild Bill Jones" that he recorded with Henry Whitter.
I think in the lyric, Mosley is saying,
   Sister, AIN'T YOU glad, etc.
He's obviously singing about Moses, interesting that he calls him Brother Mosley.
I just found the cut on the Arhoolie CD, "Angola Prison Spirituals", Arhoolie CD9036.  It's a great CD.  Thanks for posting the song.
All best,
Johnm

[Bunker Hill]

Andy Mosely can be seen on the cover of Angola Prison Spirituals LP at Stefan's Harry Oster discography

[beljum]

Andy Mosley is singing his melody in the key of A flat, and Hogman Maxey is accompanying him in the key of D flat

This works so well. The mix is just right and makes this another one of those "never gonna improve on this" songs (imho). I will certainly give Harrell & Whitter's"Wild Bill Jones" a listen.

Thanks for the lyric correction. I searched and now realize that this is a popular spiritual with quite a variety of interpretations.

[Johnm]

Hi all,
I just found this video of an especially fine version of "I Know I Got Religion", recorded by Dr. Harry Oster at Angola Penitentiary, featuring Andy Mosley on the vocal with Hogman Maxey providing the guitar accompaniment out of E position in standard tuning.  Andy Mosley puts some unusual "dwells" in his singing of the refrain, but Hogman goes right with him and there's no problem.  I don't know if Andy Mosley is providing the percussion or if another inmate is.  Hogman Maxey is muy, muy funky.  Here is a link to the song:




REFRAIN: Well, I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
And the world can't do me no harm

Meet me, Jesus, meet me
Meet me in the middle of the air
If these wings should fail me, Lord,
I want you meet me with another pair

REFRAIN: 'Cause I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
And the world can't do me no harm

I don't bother nobody
Nobody don't bother me
While I'm on my knees a-prayin',
Somebody always botherin' me

REFRAIN: 'Cause I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
And the world can't do me no harm

SOLO

REFRAIN: 'Cause I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
And the world can't do me no harm

Meet me, Jesus, meet me
Meet me in the middle of the air
If these wings should fail me, Lord,
I want you meet me with another pair

REFRAIN: 'Cause I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
And the world can't do me no harm

REFRAIN: 'Cause I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
I know I got religion and I'm so glad
And the world can't do me no harm

All best,
Johnm

[Malcolm_Pommie_Platt]

Thanks for that John. It's the first time I've heard that song & I notice there's a few lines from that song that Led Zeppelin "borrowed" in their song In My Time of Dying. Led Zep were notorious for "borrowing" from old blues songs.

[alyoung]

I'm not familiar with Led Zepplin's repertoire (he said smugly), but I bet you'll find their song has a more direct link to a previous song. Dylan's "In My Time of Dying" looms as an obvious suspect, but maybe someone more familiar with both can expand on this.

[frankie]

Page and Plant probably never hear of Hogman Maxey until much, much later...  more likely that they had access to the first Bob Dylan record with "In My Time Of Dying" as Al mentioned, and had heard the song "Jesus Make Up My Dying Bed" by Blind Willie Johnson and in particular, Josh White:



It's kind of a popular church song and frankly, the words that you recognize from this song appear as floating lyrics here in "I Got Religion."

[Malcolm_Pommie_Platt]

Thanks Frankie, I'd forgotten about Josh White's song.
Parts of Led Zep's song were from previous songs, especially BWJ  & Josh White (which they later acknowledged). This verse is the part I was thinking of:
Meet me, Jesus, meet me
Meet me in the middle of the air
If these wings should fail me, Lord,
I want you meet me with another pair

What year would the Mosley & Maxey song be from?

[frankie]

This verse is the part I was thinking of:
Meet me, Jesus, meet me
Meet me in the middle of the air
If these wings should fail me, Lord,
I want you meet me with another pair

This is the second sung verse in the JW recording - starts at 1:05

What year would the Mosley & Maxey song be from?

Oster made most of these recordings in two trips in, I think, 1958 and 1959. This was probably recorded at that time, but may have not seen the light of day until recently. Arhoolie has all of Oster's tapes and they've been releasing things from those tapes over time. The recent Smoky Babe LP/CD being an excellent case in point. This song was probably unissued until the Angola Prison Spirituals CD was released.

Speaking of which...  a few more songs from Herman E. Johnson would ALWAYS be nice...

[Bunker Hill]

Everything you needed to know about Dr Oster's recordings but never dare ask 

http://www.wirz.de/music/osterfrm.htm

[Johnm]

Hi all,
Andy Mosely and Hogman Maxey were also recorded with Mosely singing and Maxey accompanying him on "Brother Mosely Crossed The Water".  The song is pretty clearly about Moses delivering the Hebrew children--how he became Brother Mosely is anybody's guess.  The song is given a strange cast by Maxey's accompaniment being in a different key than Mosely's singing.  In an absolute sense, Mosely is singing in the key of G, more or less, and Maxey accompanies him out of C.  Listening at the end of the song, you can hear the duo resolve to two different I notes.  As with many or most of such incidents, if you listen to the rendition a couple of times, you just start to feel like, "That's the way the song goes.", and let it go at that.  Here is a link to their rendition of the song:

 

REFRAIN: Well, Brother Mosely smote the water and the chil'ren all passed over
Brother Mosely smote the water and the sea give away
Well, Brother Mosely smote the water and the chil'ren all passed over
Brother Mosely smote the water and the sea give away

Sister, ain't you glad you missed that sinful army?
Sister, ain't you glad that the sea give away?

REFRAIN: Well, Brother Mosely smote the water and the chil'ren all passed over, Great God
Brother Mosely smote the water and the sea give away
Lord, Brother Mosely smote the water and the chil'ren all passed over
Brother Mosely smote the water and the sea give away

Sister, ain't you glad you missed that sinful army?
Sister, ain't you glad that the sea give away?

REFRAIN: Lord, Brother Mosely smote the water and the chil'ren all passed over
Brother Mosely smote the water and the sea give away

All best,
Johnm

[alyoung]

The song is a gospel/spiritual standard, and the lyric should -- fairly obviously -- be "Brother Moses smote the water", a reference to the parting of the Red Sea. (The "sinful army" refers to the pursuing Egyptians.) I've always assumed that "Brother Mosely" is simply an interesting twist on self-promotion.

[Johnm]

Hi all,
For "Jesus", a trancey sort of praise song, Hogman Maxey backed Andy Mosely out of E position in standard tuning.  The song has a wonderful loping sort of rhythm.  Here is a link to the duo's performance of the song:



Well, thank Jesus, Jesus, whoa, Jesus
Want to thank you, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, Jesus, whoa, Jesus
Jesus, 'cause you brought me from a mighty, mighty long way
A mighty long way

Oh, you been my mother, you been my father
You been my sister, my brother, too
Lord, you brought me from a mighty, a mighty long ways
A mighty long way

Well, well, well, I thank you, Jesus, Jesus, whoa, Jesus
Jesus, oh Jesus, 'cause you brought me from a mighty, a mighty long ways
A mighty long way

Thank you, Jesus, thank you, Jesus, thank you, Lord, whoa,
You brought me from a mighty, a mighty long ways,
A mighty long way

You been my doctor, you been my lawyer
You been my shelter in time of storm, whoa
You brought me from a mighty, a might long ways
A mighty long way

Thank you, Jesus, a-thank you, Jesus, thank you, Lord, whoa,
You brought me from a mighty, mighty long way
Mighty long way

All best,
Johnm