The lyrics to “Ol’ Man River” were written by Oscar Hammerstein (with music by Jerome Kern) for the 1927 musical “Show Boat.” The song contrasted the struggles of African-Americans with the constant flow of the Mississippi River. This song was written in 4/4 time and every recording I listened to was in 4/4 time, but to me it sounded great in 6/8 time, so that’s what I went with. If you’re familiar with my Hallelujah tutorial, the F to Dm change so prominent in this song is identical to the C to Am change in Hallelujah, the only difference being that I played this song in the key of F and Hallelujah in the key of C.