Although I had known about the “Marching Song of the 1st Arkansas,” which was written in 1864 and was sung to the tune of “John Brown’s Body” (or the Battle Hymn of the Republic) – I had not known that there were any audio recordings of this song being performed. Surprise! Two different versions were produced early in the Civil War Centennial years, 1960 and 1961. I find this remarkable, because given the tense nature of race relations at the time, I am surprised that such a recording was made – in both cases, by widely-known white artists.

Pete Seegar (1960)

The first is sung by Pete Seegar, with others, on a Smithsonian Folkways album:

Tennessee Ernie Ford (1961)

The second version is sung by Tennessee Ernie Ford. I find this a particularly rousing version!

I have to thank a post on SlavestoSoldiers for leading me to this rendition.