Dem Bones
Traditional
Correspondent Sandy Fisher has provided the hand
motions to this song! See
below... Both of us found that doing
the hand motions brought us right back to long ago camp days.
A
D A
E7 A
Lord, he thought he'd make a
man - dem bones gonna rise again.
Made him out of clay and sand
- dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS:
A
D
I knowed it, knowed it,
indeed, I knowed it, brother!
A [n.c.] A
E7
A
I knowed it. WHEE!!!! Dem bones gonna rise again.
Thought he'd make a woman too
- dem bones gonna rise again.
He didn't know just what to do
- dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Took a rib from Adam's side -
dem bones gonna rise again.
For to make Miss Eve, his
bride - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Put 'em in a garden wide and
fair - dem bones gonna rise again.
Told 'em to eat what they
found there - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Peaches, pears, plums and such
- dem bones gonna rise again.
But the apple tree you better
not touch - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
One day Miss Eve was walking
around - dem bones gonna rise again.
Spied that tree all loaded
down - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Serpent crawling around that
trunk - dem bones gonna rise again.
At miss Eve, his eye he wunk -
dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Eve, she just took a little
pull - dem bones gonna rise again.
Then she filled her fig leaf
full - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Adam, he took a little slice -
dem bones gonna rise again.
Smacked his lips and said,
"That's nice!" - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
One day the Lord, He was
around - dem bones gonna rise again.
Spied them peelings on the
ground - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
The Lord cried out in his
mighty voice - dem bones gonna rise again.
That shook the heavens to the
joists - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Cried, "Adam, Adam, Where art
though?" - dem bones gonna rise again.
"Here I is Lord, I's comin' now." - dem bones gonna rise
again.
CHORUS
"You ate my apples, I believe." - dem bones gonna rise again.
"No, massa, Lord, I 'spect 'twas Eve - dem bones gonna rise
again.
CHORUS
Then the Lord rose up in his
might wrath - dem bones gonna rise again.
Said ya'll just beat it down
the path - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Put an angel at the door - dem
bones gonna rise again.
Said ya'll don't come 'round
here no more - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Eve took the needle, Adam took
the plow - dem bones gonna rise again.
That's why we all working now
- dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
To this tale there ain't no
more - dem bones gonna rise again.
Eve got the Apple, and Adam
got the core - dem bones gonna rise again.
CHORUS
Motions:
"Dem bones" = circle your hands
over each other in front of your chest (like a football referee motioning the
"Offsides" penalty)
"gonna" = drop your hands to
your lap, side by side
"rise again" = slap your thighs
& raise your arms (palms down) to your shoulders.
Sandy's variation:
"I know it, know it" = move your
hands & arms from right to left in time with the song's beat as follows:
"I" = right, right
first "know it" = left
second "know it" = right
"Indeed, I" = left, left
"know it" = right
"brother" = left
My variation:
You move your hands in time to
the music and with the same right/left as Sandy's, but instead of just moving
your hands & arms, you make an "L" by holding one hand up before you with your
elbow bent at a 90 degree angle and your palm at eye level. Then, point to the elbow with the other
hand. So, Sandy's variation would
become:
"I" = point to right elbow twice
first "know it" = point to left elbow once
second "know it" = point to right elbow once
"Indeed, I" = point to left elbow twice
"know it" = point to right elbow once
"brother" = point to left elbow once
"Whee!" = throw both hands up in
the air with glee
"Dem bones" = circle your hands
over each other in front of your chest (like a football referee motioning the
"Offsides" penalty)
"gonna" = drop your hands to
your lap, side by side
"rise again" = slap your thighs
& raise your arms (palms down) to your shoulders.