Thomas A. Dorsey helped bridge blues and church music, but his most famous hymn came from tragedy. In 1932, after losing his wife and child, he sat at the piano and wrote: “Precious Lord, Take My Hand.” The song would go on to become one of the most recognized gospel hymns.
For our Story of a Song series, our own Lee Habeeb shares the story of this iconic gospel standard.
📖 Read the Transcript
Lee Habeeb (00:21):
This is Our American Stories, and up next: If a funeral is taking place in a Black church in America, there’s a strong probability the gospel song Take My Hand, Precious Lord will be a part of the service. The song was written by Thomas Dorsey, who was born in a small town forty miles west of Atlanta.
Lee Habeeb (00:42):
One of seven brothers and sisters, Dorsey grew up in and around the church. His dad was a Baptist preacher; his mother, the church organist. In his late teens, Dorsey left his gospel roots to try his hand at the blues, working first in clubs in and around Atlanta and then landing on Chicago’s South Side.
Music (01:02):
A lot, Lord, Lord, lot.
Music (01:14):
Ain’t nobody.
Music (01:18):
You badu.
Lee Habeeb (01:21):
He’d go on to become the bandleader for blues singer Gertrude “Ma” Rainey. But the call of God tugged. Dorsey joined Pilgrim Baptist Church in Chicago, where he directed church choirs and began composing songs of his own, over three hundred in all.
Lee Habeeb (01:43):
With his blues experience integrated into the gospel music he composed and the choirs he led and inspired, he was at the top of his game and about to become a father for the first time when tragedy struck, a tragedy that would forever change his life and out of which Take My Hand, Precious Lord would emerge. Dorsey was invited to a gospel convention in St. Louis, but he was nervous about leaving his wife, Nettie, who was days away from giving birth.
Lee Habeeb (02:05):
But Nettie gave her husband her blessing, and on the road he went. While in St. Louis, he received a Western Union telegram that there had been complications with his wife’s childbirth and that she had died. Deep in grief, he raced home, where he learned his baby boy, Thomas Jr., had survived. By morning, there was more tragedy to come.
Lee Habeeb (02:31):
Dorsey was told by doctors that his son had not survived the night. There was a double funeral the next day at Pilgrim Baptist Church. And these are the words that Dorsey told his biographer about that day: “I looked down that long aisle which led to the altar where my wife and baby lay in the same casket.”
Lee Habeeb (02:51):
“My legs got weak. My knees wouldn’t work. My eyes became blind with a flood of tears.” Dorsey fell into a state of depression and spiritual doubt, questioning his faith for days. “I closeted myself.”
Lee Habeeb (03:12):
“I felt that God had done me an injustice. I didn’t want to serve Him anymore or write gospel songs.” A friend persuaded him to leave his apartment and go out on the town for dinner at a local community center. After the meal, Dorsey wandered over to an idle piano, and he began playing variations of the melody to an old gospel classic from the late seventeenth century, Must Jesus Bear the Cross Alone, but adding new lyrics.
Lee Habeeb (03:33):
He called his friend to the piano and began singing what he believed was a new song with a new title, Blessed Lord, Take My Hand. His friend, who was beside him listening, suggested a slight but profound change to what would become the title of one of the most famous gospel songs of all time.
Lee Habeeb (03:54):
“No, man. Call Him ‘Precious Lord.’” Dorsey made the switch and returned home to finish the song. In less than two days, he debuted Take My Hand, Precious Lord at his own church’s Sunday worship service.
Lee Habeeb (04:16):
He didn’t expect much of a reaction, but was shocked to see congregants rise from their seats and cry out the chorus. The song touched a deep nerve within the congregation in ways only testimony and music combined can do. Dorsey’s song would become a gospel hit.
Lee Habeeb (04:38):
Many giants in music would go on to cover this song, including Sister Rosetta Tharpe in 1941.
Music (04:45):
Precious Lord, take my hand, lead me on, let me stand.
Lee Habeeb (05:00):
Mahalia Jackson in 1956.
Music (05:05):
[Music]
Lee Habeeb (05:31):
Aretha Franklin would record the song on her 1972 gospel album Amazing Grace, which would become the best-selling gospel record of all time and the best-selling album of Franklin’s career. The song was a favorite of the Reverend Martin Luther King Jr.
Lee Habeeb (05:56):
Moments before he was assassinated in Memphis in 1968, King had a musical request for a rally later that day for his friend and sax player Ben Branch: “Play ‘Precious Lord.’ Play it real pretty.” Those would be the last words King ever spoke.
Lee Habeeb (06:19):
Mahalia Jackson sang the song, and sang it real pretty, five days later at King’s funeral in Atlanta. Dorsey would become the first African American selected for the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the Gospel Hall of Fame and the Blues Hall of Fame.
Music (06:42):
To the star.
Lee Habeeb (06:45):
Do it by.
Music (06:48):
Lead me to love, to take my hand, precious.
Lee Habeeb (06:57):
Lee Habeeb here, and I’d like to encourage you to subscribe to Our American Stories on Apple Podcasts, the iHeartRadio app, Spotify, or wherever you get our podcasts.
Lee Habeeb (07:21):
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