A timeless song that reaches for meaning and understanding by asking a question that has no definite single answer; it's open to interpretation, opinion, and feeling. The song carries weight because it touches on a universal concern -- what is it about us/humans that can be called a "soul"? Some of us think we know, some might say you can't define it but it's something you know when you see it in someone else -- but the song just captures the question and asks it in musical form, with a lively melody and standard blues song structure. Haunting and compelling, a song by a blind black musician/preacher from the late 1920s retains its power across the ages.
A timeless song that reaches for meaning and understanding by asking a question that has no definite single answer; it's open to interpretation, opinion, and feeling. The song carries weight because it touches on a universal concern -- what is it about us/humans that can be called a "soul"? Some of us think we know, some might say you can't define it but it's something you know when you see it in someone else -- but the song just captures the question and asks it in musical form, with a lively melody and standard blues song structure. Haunting and compelling, a song by a blind black musician/preacher from the late 1920s retains its power across the ages.