"There is a Balm in Gilead" is a beautiful classic Negro spiritual written around the year 1800 based on Jeremiah 8:22.

"The first Africans on American shores arrived in chains. Their hellish voyage aboard slave ships was only the beginning of their sorrows. The breakup of their families, the oppression of bondage, the whips and shackles, their loss of dignity . . . it all combined to kill both body and spirit.

"But the souls of the slaves found release through singing, and a unique form of music evolved called the 'Negro Spiritual.' African-American slaves composed their songs in the fields and barns, the words dealing with daily pain and future hope.

"Often the slaves were allowed to sing while working. Other times, risking the lash or branding iron, they'd slip into torch-lit groves to worship the Lord. Few Negro spirituals can be precisely dated, nor are many specific authors known, but they have mightily influenced American Christian music."

"Then Sings My Soul" by Robert J. Morgan, page 85.