You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond
| "You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond" | |
|---|---|
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| Single by Blind Willie Johnson | |
| Released | 1930 |
| Format | 10-inch 78 rpm record |
| Recorded | New Orleans, Louisiana, December 11, 1929 |
| Genre | Gospel blues |
| Length | 3:05 |
| Label | Columbia (no. 14504) |
| Songwriter(s) | Traditional or Blind Willie Johnson |
| "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Single by Donovan | ||||
| from the album What's Bin Did and What's Bin Hid | ||||
| B-side | "The Little Tin Soldier" | |||
| Released | November 1965 (US) | |||
| Format | 7-inch 45 rpm record | |||
| Recorded | 1965 | |||
| Genre | Folk | |||
| Length | 4:04 | |||
| Label | Hickory (45-1375) | |||
| Songwriter(s) | Traditional or Blind Willie Johnson | |||
| Producer(s) |
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| Donovan US singles chronology | ||||
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"You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond" (later titled "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond") is a gospel song that is attributed to both tradition and to gospel blues musician Blind Willie Johnson. Johnson first recorded the song in December 1930, although Delta blues musician Charley Patton recorded a similar "You're Gonna Need Somebody When You Die" in October 1929. Over the years, several other musicians have recorded renditions of the song.
The lyrics of "You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond" deal with "the idea that we will all need a legally binding guarantee to gain access to heaven" and that Jesus as our advocate "will provide us with a guarantee or bond, if we follow His ways".
Johnson sang the song on the streets of towns in Texas as both entertainment and a calling to adhere to the teachings of Jesus. As with many of his songs, "You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond" is performed with Johnson on lead vocals and slide guitar and an unknown female singer accompanying him on vocals. While it was first believed that his wife Angeline Johnson provided those backing vocals, it has since been refuted by Johnson's lead biographer. The second version, titled "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond" is nearly identical to the first, with slightly more subdued vocals and backing vocal provided by Willie B. Harris, sometimes considered to be Johnson's first wife.
Johnson recorded the first version of the song for Columbia Records as "You'll Need Somebody on Your Bond" on December 11, 1929, in New Orleans, Louisiana. He later recorded a second version titled "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond" on April 20, 1930, in Atlanta, Georgia, which was Johnson's last recorded song. The songs appear on several Johnson compilation albums – both are included on The Complete Blind Willie Johnson (1993), while the second version is found on The Soul of a Man (2003).
In 1964, Buffy Sainte-Marie recorded "You're Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond" with slightly altered lyrics and included the song on her debut album, It's My Way!. While her debut album did not chart, it proved influential to both the American and British folk communities. Sainte-Marie recorded the song on acoustic guitar without using a slide and sang without any backup vocals.
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Wikipedia