Blood on the Fields


Blood on the Fields is a two-and-a-half-hour jazz oratorio released by Wynton Marsalis in 1997. It was commissioned by Lincoln Center and treats the history of slavery and its aftermath in the United States of America. The oratorio tells the story of two slaves, Jesse and Leona, as they traverse the difficult journey to freedom. The narrative suggests that the individual freedom and agency of its protagonists is necessarily and inextricably intertwined with the empowerment of the community and nation as a whole. The work received the 1997 Pulitzer Prize for Music, being the first time the prize was ever given for a jazz music composition, an honor that had previously been reserved for classical composers.

Track listing

Disc 1

  1. Calling the Indians Out
  2. Move Over
  3. You Don't Hear No Drums
  4. The Market Place
  5. Soul for Sale
  6. Plantation Coffle March
  7. Work Song

Disc 2

  1. Lady's Lament
  2. Flying High
  3. Oh We Have a Friend in Jesus
  4. God Don't Like Ugly
  5. Juba and a O'Brown Squaw
  6. Follow the Drinking Gourd
  7. My Soul Fell Down
  8. Forty Lashes
  9. What a Fool I've Been
  10. Back to Basics

Disc 3

  1. I Hold Out My Hand
  2. Look and See
  3. The Sun Is Gonna Shine
  4. Will the Sun Come Out?
  5. The Sun Is Gonna Shine
  6. Chant to Call the Indians Out
  7. Calling the Indians Out
  8. Follow the Drinking Gourd
  9. Freedom Is in the Trying
  10. Due North

Musicians