Level: 3
Tuning: Standard

When Ernie Hawkins told Rev. Davis that he was interested in the old songs, he said this was his mothers' mothers' mothers' mothers' (etc.) song. According to Dr. Ellis this actually was one of his oldest. It was a ring shout type number that his grandmother sang while hoeing in the fields. He adapted the original a cappella song for the guitar.

"I sat down studying what keys to play this song in so it sound just like they sang it." It's another one of those Old Testament minor (this time A minor) songs that goes straight to the soul. When he sings, "I rapped and I rapped at the Mercy's door 'til my head got wet with the morning dew," he's not messing around. Children of Zion revolves around the E minor form A minor on the fifth fret, taking advantage of the open A base.

It rolls down to the first position and gives us a chance to improvise on those A minor-C major runs. There is a beautifully used A chord that resolves into the A minor. The timing can be tricky. He often jumped all the way up to the twelfth fret to the A minor octave chord.