Brother Jerry Holland singing "There Ain't No Grave Gonna Hold My Body Down" This powerful Appalachian gospel song traces its roots to 1934, when a 12-year-old boy named Claude Ely (later known as Brother Claude Ely) was gravely ill with tuberculosis. The doctor declared he was going to die, and as his family gathered around his bedside in prayer, young Claude experienced a profound divine encounter. In those desperate moments, he spontaneously burst into song—words and melody given straight fro