Compiled by Randye Jones
Below is a list of 25 recordings recommended for those beginning a collection of Spirituals. The list is limited (with two exceptions) to recordings available on compact disc. This list includes a variety of voice types, time periods, interpretative styles, and accompaniment. Selections were compiled from The Spirituals Database.
Marian Anderson, Contralto
Spirituals (1999) RCA Victor Red Seal 09026-63306-2
CD, recorded between 1936 and 1952, with piano
Songs by Hall Johnson, John C. Payne, Harry T. Burleigh, Lawrence Brown, Hamilton Forrest, Robert MacGimsey, Roland Hayes, Florence Price, Edward Boatner, R. Nathaniel Dett
Angela Brown, Soprano
Mosiac: a collection of African-American spirituals with piano and guitar (2004) Albany Records TROY721
CD, variously with piano, guitar
Songs by Angela Brown, Undine Smith Moore, Moses Hogan, Evelyn Simpson-Curenton, Margaret Bonds, Florence Price, Betty Jackson King, Roland Hayes, Joseph Joubert
Todd Duncan, Baritone
Todd Duncan Sings Spirituals (1952) Allegro ALG3022
LP, with piano
Songs by J. Rosamond Johnson, Harry T. Burleigh, Lawrence Brown, William C. Hellman, Edward Boatner
Denyce Graves, Mezzo-soprano
Angels Watching Over Me (1997) NPR Classics CD 0006
CD, variously with piano, chorus, a cappella
Songs by Hall Johnson, Harry T. Burleigh, Marvin Mills, Evelyn Simpson-Curenton, Shelton Becton, Roland Hayes, Robert MacGimsey
Roland Hayes, Tenor
Favorite Spirituals (1995) Vanguard Classics OVC 6022
CD, with piano
Songs by Roland Hayes
Barbara Hendricks, Soprano
Give Me Jesus (1998) EMI Classics 7243 5 56788 2 9
CD, variously with chorus, a cappella
Songs by Moses Hogan, Roland Hayes, Edward Boatner, Harry T. Burleigh
Benjamin Matthews, Baritone
A Balm in Gilead (2000) Ebony Classic Recordings ECR 0001
CD, with piano
Songs by Leo Edwards, Betty Jackson King, Hall Johnson, Florence Price, Edward Boatner, Eva Jessye, Elmer A. Simpson, Lena McLin, Jacqueline Hairston, Margaret Bonds, Willis James, Roland Hayes, Roland Carter, Charles Tindley
Robert McFerrin, Baritone
Deep River and Other Classic Negro Spirituals (1959) Washington WLP 466
LP, with piano
Songs by Hall Johnson, Harry T. Burleigh, William Grant Still, William Lawrence
Jessye Norman, Soprano
Spirituals (1990) Philips 416 462-2
CD, variously with piano, chorus, a cappella
Songs by Willis Patterson, Dalton Baldwin, Jessye Norman, Thomas Kerr, Jr.
Leontyne Price, Soprano
The Essential Leontyne Price (1996) BMG Classics 09026-68153-2
CD, variously with chorus, orchestra, a cappella
Songs by Harry T. Burleigh, Lawrence Collingwood, Leonard de Paur, Roland Hayes, Margaret Bonds, Hall Johnson, Florence Price, Edward Boatner, Dick Dallas, Robert MacGimsey, William L. Dawson, Fred Hall
Florence Quivar, Mezzo-soprano
Ride On, King Jesus: Florence Quivar Sings Black Music of America (2010) EMI Classics 9 67138 2
CD, variously with piano or chorus
Songs by William Grant Still, Margaret Bonds, Hall Johnson. Robert Nathaniel Dett, Robert MacGimsey
Derek Lee Ragin, Countertenor
Negro Spirituals (2006) Virgin Classics 0946 363305 2 5
CD, variously with piano or chorus
Songs by Moses Hogan, Jester Hairston, R. M. Carter, R. E. Williams, Hale Smith
Paul Robeson, Bass-baritone
Paul Robeson: The Complete EMI Sessions, 1928-1939 (2008) EMI Classics 2 15586 2
CD, variously with piano, orchestra.chorus
Songs by Walter White, James Weldon Johnson, Harry T. Burleigh, Ernest Irving, Lawrence Brown, Hall Johnson, Edward Boatner, Ruthland Clapham
Robert Sims, Baritone
Robert Sims Sings the Spirituals of Roland Hayes (2015) Canti Classics 2014-01
CD, variously a cappella, with piano
Songs by Roland Hayes
Darryl Taylor, Countertenor
How Sweet the Sound (2011) Albany TROY1244
CD, with piano
Songs by Betty Jackson King, Harry T. Burleigh, Margaret Bonds, Thomas Kerr, Jr., Jacqueline Hairston, Moses Hogan, Hall Johnson, Hale Smith, Roland Carter, Robert Morris, George Walker, Deon N. Price, Maria Thompson Corley
Louise Toppin, Soprano
He’ll Bring It to Pass: The Spirituals of Hall Johnson for Voice and Piano (2006) Albany Records TROY846
CD, with piano
Songs by Hall Johnson
Various Vocalists
Black Christmas: Spirituals in the African-American Tradition (1990) Essay Recordings CD1011
CD, selections by mezzo-soprano Vanessa Ayers and tenor Thomas Young, variously with piano, chorus
Songs by Hall Johnson, Thomas Young, Wendell Whalum, Willis James, William Dawson, Roland Hayes
Deep River: Featuring 10 Spirituals Arranged for Solo Voice…. (2000) MGH Records 5000
CD, selections by soprano Henrietta Davis, baritone Robert Sims, bass Alfred Walker, accompanied by piano
Songs by Moses Hogan
First Time Buyer’s Guide to American Negro Spirituals (2006) Primo Collection PRMCD6038
CD, selections by sopranos Ellabelle Davis and Dorothy Maynor, contralto Marian Anderson, tenor Roland Hayes, baritone Jules Bledsoe, bass-baritone Paul Robeson
Songs by R. Nathaniel Dett, Lawrence Brown, Harry T. Burleigh, John C. Payne
Good News (2007) Videmus Records VIS 735
CD, performed by Videmus (soprano Louise Toppin, contralto Ruth Hamilton, baritone Robert Honeysucker)
Songs for Hall Johnson, Harry T. Burleigh, Roland Hayes, Margaret Bonds
Negro Spirituals (1998) EMI 7243 5 72790 2 4
CD, selections by sopranos Martina Arroyo, Kathleen Battle, Barbara Hendricks, mezzo-soprano Florence Quivar, contralto Marian Anderson, variously with chorus, piano
Songs by various composers, including R. Nathaniel Dett, Harry T. Burleigh, William Lawrence, Leonard dePaur, William Dawson, Robert Sadin, Hall Johnson, James Miller, Margaret Bonds, Edward Boatner, Roland Hayes, Howard Johnson, Robert MacGimsey
Negro Spirituals: The Concert Tradition, 1909-1948 (1999) Frémeaux & Associés FA 168
CD, selections by sopranos Ellabelle Davis and Dorothy Maynor, contraltos Marian Anderson and Evelyn Dove, tenors Jules Bledsoe and Roland Hayes, baritone John Payne, and bass-baritone Paul Robeson
Songs by various composers, including Lawrence Brown, Harry T. Burleigh, Roland Hayes, John C. Payne, R. P. Parham, R. Nathaniel Dett
Spirituals in Concert (1991) Deutsche Grammophon 429 790-2
CD, solo and duet selections by sopranos Kathleen Battle and Jessye Norman, variously accompanied by orchestra, organ, chorus, flute, harp, piano
Songs by Charles Lloyd, Jr., Don Marsh, Sylvia Olden Lee, Hall Johnson, Evelyn Simpson-Curenton, Thomas Kerr, Jr., William L. Dawson, Hale Smith, Kurt Kaiser, Margaret Bonds
Steal Away (2014) Yellow Einstein
CD, solo and duet selections by mezzo-soprano J’nai Bridges and baritone Will Liverman, variously with piano, flute, viola
Songs by Shawn Okpebholo
Watch and Pray: Spirituals and Art Songs by African-American Women Composers (1994) Koch International Classics 3-7247-2H1
CD, selections by mezzo-soprano Pamela Dillard, contralto Ruth Hamilton, baritone Robert Honeysucker, accompanied by piano
Songs by Margaret Bonds, Undine Smith Moore, Florence Price, Julia Perry, Betty Jackson King