This being the season of Advent the church lectionary turns its thoughts to prophecies of the end of the world. The greatest and perhaps the most impenetrable account of the end times is to be found in the Book of Revelation. This put me in mind of the old song, John The Revelator, which is a traditional gospel blues call and response song. Music critic Thomas Ward describes it as “one of the most powerful songs in all of pre-war acoustic music … which has been hugely influential to blues performers”. American gospel-blues musician Blind Willie Johnson recorded “John the Revelator” in 1930 and subsequently a variety of artists have recorded their renditions of the song, often with variations in the verses and music.
Blind Willie Johnson recorded “John the Revelator” during his fifth and final recording session for Columbia Records in Atlanta, Georgia in April 1930. Accompanying Johnson on vocal and guitar is Willie B. Harris (sometimes identified as his first wife), who sings the response parts of the song. Their vocals add a “sense of dread and foreboding” to the song, along with the chorus line “Who’s that a writin’, John the Revelator” “repeated like a mantra”.
The song’s title refers to John of Patmos in his role as the author of the Book of Revelation. A portion of that book focuses on the opening of seven seals and the resulting apocalyptic events. In its various versions, the song quotes several passages from the Bible in the tradition of American spirituals. It first came to my attention in a version by Taj Mahal, which was subsequently used in the movie ‘The Blues Brothers 2000’.
Curtis Stigers’ song “This Life” was used as the intro theme for the 2008 television show Sons of Anarchy. The creators liked Stigers so much they asked him to cover “John the Revelator” specifically for the Season 1 finale. The song is played as though from a smoke-filled roadhouse and features a blues slide guitar that would have made Blind Willie smile.
There is second rendition of the song in Blue Brothers 2000, this time it features a full gospel choir and a lead singer with a great tenor voice. Halfway through they switch to a double time that has an excellent energy. While the fast tempo is a great opportunity to show off technical brilliance, it also gives the impression of frantic running around on the Judgment Day.
Our final offerinng comes from Larkin Poe who bring a heavier vibe to the song.
