Mighty Clouds of Joy, “Walk Around Heaven All Day” | Music Lifts

In the 1^st edition of Lit Music That Lifts, we’re uplifted by Mighty Clouds of Joy performing, “Walk Around Heaven All Day.”

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elcome to Lit Music That Lifts (LMTL), or Music Lifts for short! This column picks up where Sunday Refresh leaves off.  Like its predecessor, Music Lifts seeks to highlight songs that encourage, inspire, and uplift the spirit; songs that exude fortitude, positivity, and resolve, even in the face of adversity.  Featured songs aren’t genre-specific; songs may or may not be faith-based. The goal is for these songs to make you feel better – be LIFTED to new heights!  So, for the 1^st edition of Music Lifts (2022), we highlight “Walk Around Heaven All Day” as performed by Mighty Clouds of Joy.

“One of these mornings, it won’t be long / You’ll look for me, and I’ll be gone.” Ah, those lyrics hail from the gospel classic, “Walk Around Heaven” which was penned and originally performed by Cassietta George.  For many, that name ‘won’t ring a bell,’ but Ms. George was a member of the legendary gospel collective, The Caravans making her gospel royalty.  Anyways, “Walk Around Heaven,” sometimes referenced as “Walk Around Heaven All Day”, has been performed by many gospel musicians.  Perhaps my favorite version arrives courtesy of Mighty Clouds of Joy.  “Walk Around Heaven All Day” appears on their 1980s album, Cloudburst.  The best version by the collective features the late, great Michael Cook on lead vocals.

“I’m going to a place, I’ll have nothing to do / But just walk around heaven all day,” the first verse continues, radiantly.  Cook sadly passed away as a young man, only 46 years old.  Even so, he was a member of The Mighty Clouds of Joy north of 20 years, leaving an incredible mark with his ripe, falsetto vocals.  He is the perfect lead for this record, which is escapist, reflecting on the glory of what an afterlife in heaven holds. “When I get to heaven, I’ll sing and shout / Nobody will be able to put me out,” Cook sings in the second verse, continuing, “My mother will be waiting / and my father too / And we’ll walk around heaven all day.”

Of course, in order to get to heaven, you have to live right, something the bridge section speaks to.  Cook emphasizes encouragement from God to keep on pressing on and doing the right things.  As the song progresses, there’s an emphasis on the sanctity of the Sabbath Day, and living as a Christian ought.  The ultimate reward is heaven: “Then he’ll say well done / And my race, my race will be won / And I’ll walk around heaven all day.” Even if you’re not a believer, you should be able to appreciate the sincerity and gorgeousness of this inspiring record.

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Mighty Clouds of Joy • Cloudburst • Curb / Word Entertainment • 1980

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Mighty Clouds of Joy, “Walk Around Heaven All Day”: Music Lifts No. 1 (2022) [: Arek Socha, Benjamin Balazs, Brent Faulkner, Clker-Free-Vector-Images, Curb, Ketut Subiyanto, The Musical Hype, Pexels, Pixabay, Word Entertainment]

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