"Promised Land" is a song lyric written by Chuck Berry to the melody of "Wabash Cannonball", an American folk song. The song was first recorded in this version by Chuck Berry in 1964 for his album St. Louis to Liverpool. Released in December, 1964, it was Berry's first single issued following his prison term for a Mann Act conviction. The record peaked at #41 in the Billboard charts on January 16, 1965. In the lyrics, the singer tells of his journey from Norfolk, Virginia, to the "Promised Land", Los Angeles, California, mentioning various cities in Southern states that he passes through on his journey. It has subsequently been performed by numerous other artists, notably the Grateful Dead.
Chart history
Background
Berry wrote the song while in prison, and borrowed an atlas from the prison library to plot the itinerary. Describing himself as a "poor boy," the protagonist boards a Greyhound bus in Norfolk, Virginia that passes Raleigh, N.C., stops in Charlotte, North Carolina, and bypasses Rock Hill, South Carolina. The bus rolls out of Atlanta but breaks down, leaving him stranded in downtown Birmingham, Alabama. He then takes a train "across Mississippi clean" to New Orleans. From there, he goes to Houston, where "the people there who care a bit about me" buy him a silk suit, luggage and a plane ticket to Los Angeles. Upon landing in Los Angeles, he calls Norfolk, Virginia to tell the folks back home he made it to the "promised land." The lyric: "Swing low sweet chariot, come down easy/Taxi to the terminal zone" refers to the gospel lyric: "Swing low sweet Chariot, coming for to carry me Home" since both refer to a common destination, "The Promised Land," which in this case is California, reportedly a heaven on earth.
In December 1973, Elvis Presley recorded a powerful, driving version. Presley's version of "Promised Land" was released as a single on September 27, 1974. It peaked at number 14 on the Billboard charts and 9 on the UK Singles Chart in the fall of 1974. It was included on his 1975 album Promised Land. The Presley version was used in the soundtrack of the 1997 motion pictureMen in Black.
The Grateful Dead performed the song live 425 times from July 1971 through the band's last show in 1995; live performances appear on nearly 50 of the band's live albums, including the 1976 United Artists released live album Steal Your Face as well as several of the band's Dick's Picks releases.
In 1970 Freddy Weller released a version on an album of the same name. It was a Top 5 country hit in the winter of 1971.
The song was covered in French by Johnny Hallyday, using an adaptation of Presley’s arrangement. His version was released in 1975 and spent one week at no. 1 on the singles sales chart in France.
