I'll Fly Away
| "I'll Fly Away" | |
|---|---|
| by Albert E. Brumley | |
| Genre | Hymn |
| Text | by Albert E. Brumley |
| Language | English |
| Meter | 9.4.9.4 |
| Melody | "I'll Fly Away" |
| Composed | 1929 |
| Published | 1932 |
| "I'll Fly Away" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Selah Jubilee Singers | |
| Released | ? |
| Format | 78 rpm |
| Recorded | February 21, 1941 |
| Genre | gospel |
| Label | Decca 7831 (reissued Document DOCD 5499) |
| Writer(s) | Albert E. Brumley |
| "I'll Fly Away" | |
|---|---|
| Single by James and Martha Carson | |
| Released | 1951 |
| Format | Short Play |
| Recorded | ? |
| Genre | gospel |
| Label | Capitol 1415 |
| Writer(s) | Albert E. Brumley |
| "I'll Fly Away" | |
|---|---|
| Single by Chuck Wagon Gang | |
| Released | 1950(?) |
| Format | 78 rpm |
| Recorded | December 16, 1948 |
| Genre | gospel |
| Label | Columbia |
| Writer(s) | Albert E. Brumley |
"I'll Fly Away", is a hymn written in 1929 by Albert E. Brumley and published in 1932 by the Hartford Music company in a collection titled Wonderful Message. Brumley's writing was influenced in part by an older secular ballad.
"I'll Fly Away" has been called the most recorded gospel song, and it is frequently used in worship services by Baptists, Pentecostals, Nazarenes, the Churches of Christ and many Methodists. It appears in many hymnals where it is listed under the topics of eternal life, heaven and acceptance. It is a standard song at bluegrass jam sessions and is often performed at funerals.
Albert E. Brumley has been described as the "pre-eminent gospel songwriter" of the 20th century with over 600 published songs. Other titles of his include "Jesus, Hold My Hand", "Turn Your Radio On", "I'll Meet You in the Morning", and "This World Is Not My Home". According to interviews, Brumley came up with the idea for the song while picking cotton on his father's farm in Rock Island, Oklahoma. Brumley says that as he worked he was "humming the old ballad that went like this: 'If I had the wings of an angel, over these prison walls I would fly,' and suddenly it dawned on me that I could use this plot for a gospel-type song." The song Brumley described appears to be "The Prisoner's Song". It was an additional three years later until Brumley worked out the rest of the song, paraphrasing one line from the secular ballad to read, "Like a bird from prison bars has flown" using prison as an analogy for earthly life. Brumley has stated, "When I wrote it, I had no idea that it would become so universally popular."
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