There’s something everyone should know when considering and analyzing Beyonce’s Grammy performance of Thomas Dorsey‘s gut-wrenching gospel staple “Take My Hand, Precious Lord.”
It’s this: The song was written after Dorsey’s wife and newborn baby died and he writhed in pain, begging God to take even a piece of the hurt away. And anyone who is familiar with the African-American church — funerals in particular — has heard this song sung with a gut-punch. It’s not upbeat. It’s not fast. Rather, it’s poignant and intended to show how God does heal the singer and, as many in the black church might say, it offers proof of the “comforter” of the Holy Spirit.
It’s not a song to be sung lightly or without consideration. And that’s why there is a schism between those who appreciated Beyonce’s literal, angel-in-a-see-through-dress translation of the song and those who preferred Ledisi’s rendition (as Mahalia Jackson) in the movie “Selma.”
Read the rest of ADRIENNE SAMUELS GIBBS excellent analysis here and then tell us what did you think of it?
