Josephine Cameron: Music

• MP3 short clip, hi-fi play (broadband)
• MP3 short clip, lo-fi play (modem)

To be honest, I had never heard anyone other than Elvis sing this song, and when a friend of mine asked me to sing it, I was a little surprised. I didn’t really think I’d be able to pull off a song that Elvis had already performed so well. But I love the words and the tune, so I gave it a shot. Shortly after I learned it, the tragedy on September 11 occurred, and changed the song completely for me. There was suddenly a poignancy and sadness inherent in the song that mixed with the hope and devotion, and it was just too much. That’s how powerful music is. It can absorb the emotions we’re feeling and the times we live in and spit them back out with unexpected angles and new, insightful twists. That is the gift of a beautiful, well-written song.

I am tired and weary but I must toil on
Till the Lord comes to call me away
Where the morning is bright and the lamb is the light
And the night is as fair as the day

There’ll be peace in the valley for me someday
There’ll be peace in the valley for me I pray
No more sorrow, no sadness or trouble will be
There will be peace in the valley for me

There the flowers will be blooming, the grass will be green
And the skies will be clear and serene
The sun ever shines, giving one endless beam
And no clouds there will ever be seen

There’ll be peace in the valley for me someday
There’ll be peace in the valley for me I pray
No more sorrow, no sadness or trouble will be
There will be peace in the valley for me