“I’ll Fly Away” is perhaps the world’s most covered and recorded gospel song. You almost certainly know it. It dates back to 1929, when it was written by Albert E. Brumley, and recordings date back as far as 1941. Here’s the earliest known recording by The Selah Singers:
…but it was The Chuck Wagon Gang’s version in 1948 that became a popular success, becoming one of the all-time best-selling gospel records:
More recently, Alison Krauss and Gillian Welch popularized it via the movie soundtrack album for O Brother Where Art Thou?
Once Krauss and Welch returned the song to popularity, the floodgates opened, and since then the number of notable covers is almost too long to keep track of: The Avett Brothers, Alan Jackson, Willie Nelson, The Blind Boys of Alabama, Johnny Cash, Randy Travis, and more–even Kanye West–have all taken a turn at it.
The song’s popularity is tied to its comforting lyrics, reassuring the suffering that no matter their travails on this earth, no matter how much their circumstances might seem like a prison–in the end, we all fly away.
Some bright morning when this life is over
I’ll fly away
To that home on God’s celestial shore
I’ll fly away
To that home on God’s celestial shore
I’ll fly away
I’ll fly away, oh glory
I’ll fly away in the morning
When I die, Hallelujah by and by
I’ll fly away
I’ll fly away in the morning
When I die, Hallelujah by and by
I’ll fly away
When the shadows of this life have gone
I’ll fly away
Like a bird from these prison walls I’ll fly
I’ll fly away
I’ll fly away
Like a bird from these prison walls I’ll fly
I’ll fly away
Unsurprisingly, “I’ll Fly Away” is often performed at funerals and memorial services–perhaps most memorably by Aretha Franklin in tribute to Princess Diana.
It’s a song that comforts both the singer and the audience, so perhaps it shouldn’t be a surprise that Bruce would comfort us all with it when he returned to the stage for the first time following the passing of long-time bandmate and friend Danny Federici.
Following an emotional main set, Bruce returned to a darkened stage with only his acoustic guitar and simply said, “This one’s for Dan.” And if the song started out melancholy, it quickly turned celebratory, with the E Street Band stepping forward to share the vocals. Even Max gets a rare turn in the foreground, picking up a tambourine instead of drumsticks.
It was a fitting way for the E Street Band to pay tribute to their fallen friend.
And after the song ended? They went straight into “Rosalita (Come Out Tonight).” Life goes on.
I’ll Fly Away
First performed: April 22, 2008 (Tampa, FL)
Last performed: April 22, 2008 (Tampa, FL)
