<Tr> <Th> Songwriter (s) </Th> <Td> Traditional </Td> </Tr> <P> "Down in the River to Pray" (also known as "Down to the River to Pray," "Down in the Valley to Pray," "The Good Old Way," and "Come, Let Us All Go Down") is a traditional American song variously described as a Christian folk hymn, an African - American spiritual, an Appalachian song, and a gospel song . The exact origin of the song is unknown . Research suggests that it was composed by an African - American slave . </P> <P> The earliest known version of the song, titled "The Good Old Way," was published in Slave Songs of the United States in 1867 . The song (#104) is credited to "Mr. G.H. Allan" of Nashville, Tennessee, who was likely the transcriber rather than the author . </P> <P> According to some sources, the song was published in The Southern Harmony and Musical Companion in 1835, decades before the effort to gather and publish Negro spirituals gained momentum in the Reconstruction Era . There is in fact a song called "The Good Old Way" in the Southern Harmony Hymnal . That song, however, is a Manx hymn with a completely different melody and lyrics . The lyrics begin as follows: </P>

When i go down to the river to pray lyrics