Lyrics For And When I Die By Blood, Sweat & Tears - Songfacts

Toggle navigation

• Home
• Categories
• Places
• Blog
  • Blogs Home
  • News
  • Lists
  • Features
  • Songwriter Interviews
  • Song Writing
  • Fact or Fiction
  • They're Playing My Song
  • Music Quiz
  • Songfacts Pages
  • Songwriting Legends
  • Songfacts Podcast
  • All Titles
  • Authors
    • Amanda Flinner
    • April Fox
    • Bruce Pollock
    • Carl Wiser
    • Corey O'Flanagan
    • Dan MacIntosh
    • Developer
    • Ed Pearce
    • Greg Prato
    • Jeff Suwak
    • Jess Grant
    • Laura Antonelli
    • Leslie Michele Derrough
    • Maggie Grimason
    • Nicole Roberge
    • Roger Catlin
    • Shawna Ortega
    • Stephanie Myers
    • Trevor Morelli
• Browse
  • Songs
  • Artists
  • Places
  • Years
  • Categories

Search

And When I Dieby Blood, Sweat & Tears

Album: Blood, Sweat & Tears (1969)Charted: 2 License This Song  songfacts ®artistfacts

• I'm not scared of dying And I don't really careIf it's peace you find in dyingWell, then let the time be nearIf it's peace you find in dyingAnd if dying time is nearJust bundle up my coffin cause It's cold way down thereI hear that's it's cold way down thereYeah, crazy cold way down thereAnd when I die and when I'm goneThere'll be one child born In this world, carry on, to carry onNow troubles are manyThey're as deep as a wellI can swear there ain't no heaven But I pray there ain't no hellSwear there ain't no heaven And I pray there ain't no hellBut I'll never know by livingOnly by dying will tellYes, only by dying will tell, yeahOnly my dying will tellAnd when I die and when I'm goneThere'll be one child born In this world to carry on, to carry onGive me my freedom for as long as I beAll I ask of the living is to have no chains on me All I ask of living is to have no chains on meAnd all I ask of dying is to go naturallyOnly want to go naturallyHere I go, ahHey, heyHere comes the devil, right behindLook out children, here he comeHere he comeHeyDon't want to go by the devilDon't want to go by the demon Don't want to go by SatanDon't want to die uneasyJust let me go naturallyAnd when I die and when I'm dead, dead and goneThere'll be one child bornIn our world to carry on, to carry on, yeah, yeah Writer/s: Laura Nyro Publisher: Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC Lyrics licensed and provided by LyricFind

• More songs from Blood, Sweat & Tears
• More songs about death
• More songs written by Laura Nyro
• More songs about Karma or reincarnation
• More hit songs originally recorded by other artists
• More songs without a chorus
• More songs performed at Woodstock
• More songs about the cycle of life
• More songs from 1969
• And When I Die Songfacts
• Blood, Sweat & Tears Artistfacts

Your name as you would like it displayed Your Locaton Your Comment send your comment

Comments: 20

• Rapcrapkilledgoodmusic from Wyckoff Heights, Bklyn.Please bring back Headphones. For earbuds sound like you want a can of Budweiser in your ears.
• Irishcalifornian from Cali."I can swear there ain't no heavan, but I pray there ain't no hell" is probably the best lyric I have ever heard in the rock and roll era.I kind of live by that mantra.
• Barry from Sauquoit, NyExactly fifty years today on November 23rd, 1969, Blood, Sweat, and Tears' "And When I Die"* peaked at #2 {for 1 week}, the week it was at #2,the #1 record for that week was "Come Together"/"Something" by The Beatles...The rest of the Top 10 on November 23rd, 1969:At #3. "Wedding Bell Blues"* by The 5th Dimension#4. "Take A Letter Marie" by R.B. Greaves#5. "Na Na Hey Hey Kiss Him Goodbye" by Steam#6. "Smile A Little Smile For Me" by The Flying Machine#7. "Leaving On A Jet Plane" by Peter, Paul and Mary#8. "Yester-Me, Yester-You, Yesterday" by Stevie Wonder#9. "Down On The Corner"/"Fotunate Son" by Creedence Clearwater Revival#10. "Eli's Coming"* by Three Dog Night* As noted above, three of the records in the Top 10 were composed by Laura Nyro, "And When I Die", "Wedding Bell Blues", and "Eli's Coming"...May Ms. Nyro {1947 - 1997} R.I.P.
• Barry from Sauquoit, NyOn October 12th 1969, "And When I Die" by Blood, Sweat, and Tears entered Billboard's Hot Top 100 chart at position #50; and on November 23rd, 1969 it peaked at #2 {for 1 week}...It was BS&T's third straight release to peak at #2, it followed "You've Made Me So Very Happy" and "Spinning Wheel", and all three records each spent 13 weeks a piece on the Top 100...The week "And When I Die" was at #2, the #1 record for that week was "Come Together/Something" by the Beatles.
• Steve from Whittier, CaThe LP version is better due to the instrumental breaks between chorus 1/verse 2 then verse 2/chorus 2. All it needed was a chorus 3.
• Jeff from Beverly Hills, MaHow could a 17-year old write such enduring and profound lyrics? Laura was such a talented writer.
• Camille from Toronto, OhOh, and I want to tip a hat and give a deep curtsy to the songwriter extraordinaire who is known as Miss Laura Nyro. Btw, the instrumentation in the background of this song really stands out when I play it on my ipod and listen to it with the earbuds.
• Camille from Toronto, OhI've mentioned it with other songs, and will repeat here: 1969 was just a banner year for soo much music that was destined to become classic! This is just one of many examples. Blood, Sweat and Tears is a fabulous group with many great hits.
• Steve from Whittier, CaBS&T's take form the fall of 1969 is a lot of fun. I'm listening to the long version on my mp3. The single contained two edit points between the refrains and 2nd and 3rd verses, the imaginative instrumentation.
• Joni from Louisville, KyCould somebody please put Blood Sweat and Tears pictures on here instead of Elvis on the video screen?
• Mike from Matawan, Nj"Laura, I saw you open in L.A., there's somethin' I gotta say, Laura...." Cool info Anne!! I didn't know that and I thought I knew everything about Todd.
• Anne from Kerrville, Italythe song "baby, let's swing" by Todd Rundgren is about Laura ...he said after hearing her he started playing songs like her instead of the who
• Anne from Kerrville, ItalyI totally agree w/ Jay from Brooklyn
• Renee from Minneapolis, MnI'm with Jay on this one. Every time I listen to this song it definitely has a spiritual sort of vibe to it. Obviously Laura Nyro was wise far beyond her years to write something with so much depth and meaning to it.
• Jay from Brooklyn, NyAs far as I know, the Temptations never recorded "And When I Die", but if they had, it would have been incredible. Imagine how this would sound with David Ruffin singing lead and the others doing background harmonies.
• Jay from Brooklyn, NyI agree with Casey, but would like to add more. It's hard to belive that this song, which sounds like an African-American spiritual, was written by a 17 year-old Italian-Jewish girl from the Bronx. Whenever this is on the radio, I crank up the volume and shout it out.
• Stefanie from Rock Hill, ScI've never heard this song. Laura Niro was a great songwriter though. I've heard "Wedding Bell Blues" and "Eli's Comming", just not her versions.
• Casey from Pensacola, FlIt's hard to believe this song was written by a 17 year-old. It just rings with an aged wisdom of someone who has figured out what is really important in life.
• Daniel from Cincinnatti, Orwhy arent there more Blood Sweat and Tears songs on this site. I want to figure out what "House in the Country" is about
• Mike from Ames, IaKept off the top of the charts by the Beatles' "Something / Come Together".

see more comments

More Songfacts:

HumanThe Killers

"Human" by The Killers was the most streamed song on Spotify in 2008, the year that the music streaming service was launched.

HelloAdele

Adele isn't a ghost when she sings, "Hello from the other side" - it means the "other side of becoming an adult."

The House Of The Rising SunThe Animals

"The House Of The Rising Sun" is a traditional folk song, either about a brothel or a prison.

Rock of AgesDef Leppard

The "Gunter Glieben Glauten Globen" intro in Def Leppard's "Rock Of Ages" is something their producer Mutt Lange came up with when he got tired of counting them "1, 2, 3, 4..."

Mamma MiaABBA

The phrase "Mamma Mia" was big in 1976. It was the name of a popular Abba song, and also showed up in the lyrics to "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen.

Dude (Looks Like A Lady)Aerosmith

"Dude (Looks Like A Lady)" by Aerosmith was inspired by Vince Neil from Motley Crue.

Editor's Picks

Who's Johnny, And Why Does He Show Up In So Many SongsSong Writing

For songwriters, Johnny represents the American man. He has been angry, cool, magic, a rebel and, of course, marching home.

The FratellisSongwriter Interviews

Jon Fratelli talks about the band's third album, and the five-year break leading up to it.

Donald FagenSongwriter Interviews

Fagen talks about how the Steely Dan songwriting strategy has changed over the years, and explains why you don't hear many covers of their songs.

Jesus Christ Superstar: Ted Neeley Tells the Inside StorySong Writing

The in-depth discussion about the making of Jesus Christ Superstar with Ted Neeley, who played Jesus in the 1973 film.

Spot The Real Red Hot Chili Peppers Song TitlesMusic Quiz

The Red Hot Chili Peppers have some rather unusual song titles - see if you can spot the real ones.

Christmas SongsFact or Fiction

Rudolf, Bob Dylan and the Singing Dogs all show up in this Fact or Fiction for seasonal favorites.

Songfacts® Newsletter

A monthly update on our latest interviews, stories and added songs

What's your email? SUBSCRIBE

Information

• About Us
• Terms of Service
• Our Privacy Policy
• Google Privacy Policy
• Songfacts API
• Music History Calendar
• Song Licensing
• Affiliate Disclosure
• Contact Us
• Privacy Manager

Follow Us

• Facebook
• X (Twitter)
• YouTube

Contribution

• Message Boards
• Songfacts Writers

©2026 Songfacts, LLC