Will the Circle Be Unbroken

Ada R. Habershon wrote the words and Charles H. Gabriel the music for a gospel song published in 1907, "Will the Circle Be Unbroken?" Its chorus is the part still sung today.

In 1935 the Carter Family recorded "Can the Circle Be Unbroken (By and By)." A. P. Carter kept the tune and most of the chorus and wrote new verses about a mother's funeral, and that is the version most people know. The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band named their 1972 album of country and bluegrass veterans after it, and it often closes a jam with everyone singing.