Down By the Riverside / Ain't Gonna Study War No More

Last week I wrote about a "Bus Ride to Justice" experience where twenty Church of Christ preachers--half black and half white--toured and experienced sites from the American civil rights struggle, all with an eye on the racial issues currently facing America.

At the end of that post I shared a native audio recording that captured Brother Jerry Taylor leading our group in a spontaneous rendition of "Down By the Riverside."

A few friends and readers were unfamiliar with "Down By the Riverside," and given the poor quality of the recoding it's hard to make out some of the lyrics. But the lyrics are profound and shouldn't be missed. So here they are:

"Down By the Riverside"

Gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Gonna lay down my sword and shield
Down by the riverside
Ain't gonna study war no more.

I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.
I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.

Gonna lay down my burdens
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Down by the riverside
Gonna lay down my burden
Down by the riverside

I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.
I ain't gonna study war no more,
I ain't gonna study war no more,
Study war no more.