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10 songs that feel like Down by the Riverside

Matched to Down by the Riverside by Mahalia Jackson on how the music actually moves — intensity, dynamic swing, texture, tempo — not by genre tag. Here's what makes each one a match.

The song you love
Down by the Riverside
Mahalia Jackson
moderate 46/100 intensity 80 BPM
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I'll Write a Song for You — Earth, Wind & Fire moderate 80 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same uplifting pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (80 BPM).

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U (Man Like) — Bon Iver moderate 75 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (42/100). Same layered texture.

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A Great Day for Freedom — Pink Floyd moderate 78 BPM

Keeps the same emotional pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Measured 99% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (78 BPM).

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Hold On — Adele moderate 72 BPM

Measures 95% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Same layered texture.

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Helplessness Blues — Fleet Foxes moderate 80 BPM

A 99% feel-match — carries the same emotional pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (80 BPM).

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When Love Comes to Town — U2 featuring B.B. King moderate 112 BPM

92% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (49/100). Same layered texture.

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There Must Be a Better World Somewhere — B.B. King moderate 85 BPM

Keeps the same uplifting pull — lands at almost exactly the same energy (43/100). Measured 96% alike. Nearly the same tempo, too (85 BPM).

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Lucky Man — The Verve safe 86 BPM

Measures 96% the same. It lands at almost exactly the same energy (43/100). Same layered texture.

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Too Much Love Will Kill You — Queen moderate 72 BPM

A 98% feel-match — carries the same emotional pull and lands at almost exactly the same energy (46/100). Nearly the same tempo, too (72 BPM).

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I Can Be That Woman — ABBA moderate 80 BPM

96% match across our 8 measured dimensions; it lands at almost exactly the same energy (43/100). Same layered texture.

…and if you want it calmer

Same feeling, measured gentler — for when Down by the Riverside is more than you want right now.

I Was Here by Beyoncé
I Was Here — Beyoncé safe 85 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. Intensity 28/100, down from 46. Nearly the same tempo, too.

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Teach Your Children — Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young safe 92 BPM

Its dynamic range stays a gentler 4 where the original climbs to 7, so it lands at 17/100 — the pull without the edge.

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It's My Turn — Diana Ross safe 80 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while it stays in our safe band start to finish. Reads 38/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Beautiful by Christina Aguilera
Beautiful — Christina Aguilera safe 72 BPM

Holds the same feel while it stays in our safe band start to finish. 37/100, versus the original's 46. Nearly the same tempo, too.

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I Am Moana (Song of the Ancestors) — Auli'i Cravalho safe 72 BPM

Keeps the same feel of the original, but it stays in our safe band start to finish. Intensity 37/100, down from 46. Nearly the same tempo, too.

If I Were a Boy by Beyoncé
If I Were a Boy — Beyoncé safe 92 BPM

Nothing in it lurches or startles, so it lands at 28/100 — the pull without the edge.

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Everybody Hurts — R.E.M. safe 75 BPM

If it's the same feel you're after, this delivers it while its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. Reads 22/100. Nearly the same tempo, too.

But Daddy I Love Him by Taylor Swift
But Daddy I Love Him — Taylor Swift safe 80 BPM

Holds the same feel while its dynamic range stays a gentler 5 where the original climbs to 7. 29/100, versus the original's 46. Nearly the same tempo, too.

Frequently asked

What songs sound like “Down by the Riverside” by Mahalia Jackson?

The closest feel-matches we measure are “I'll Write a Song for You” by Earth, Wind & Fire, “U (Man Like)” by Bon Iver, “A Great Day for Freedom” by Pink Floyd — the top match scores 99% alike. Matching is by how the songs actually move (intensity, dynamic range, texture, tempo, predictability, vocal force), not by genre tag or popularity.

What songs are like “Down by the Riverside” but calmer?

“I Was Here” by Beyoncé, “Teach Your Children” by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young, “It's My Turn” by Diana Ross keep a similar feel while measuring gentler — lower dynamic swing, fewer sudden shifts, or a calmer overall level.

How intense is “Down by the Riverside”?

It measures 46/100 on our intensity scale, computed from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, mild sudden shifts, and dynamic vocals. Tempo is 80 BPM.

How do you decide which songs are similar?

Every song in our catalog is measured on 8 dimensions — intensity, dynamic range, tempo, sudden changes, texture, predictability, vocal force and fine sound detail. Similarity is the distance between two songs across those measurements, so matches cross genres and eras. Shared mood tags break ties.

By the numbers: how this song compares

Computed from this song’s place among the 19,209 songs we’ve measured.

Where it sits in 19,000 songs

On our 19k-song scale this lands in the middle band — more energetic than 44% of songs, calmer than the other 56%. Its intensity reading of 46/100 comes from a dynamic range of 7/10, layered texture, mild shifts, and dynamic vocals. It shares this stretch of the spectrum with thousands of other tracks, so the finer fingerprint below is what really separates it.

What makes it unusual

What stands out most about this song is a slow, unhurried pace: more extreme on that axis than 85% of everything we've measured. At the far opposite end of the library sit the songs built on full chaos — sudden changes, huge quiet-to-loud swings, and relentless energy — the kind of track this one is the counterpoint to.

Feels almost identical to

Closest matches by feel across all 19,209 measured songs — not by genre or artist, by how they actually move.

What it’s good for

Sleep3/10
Focus8/10
Workout3/10
Dinner7/10
Party / hype3/10

Scored from this song’s tempo, intensity, dynamics and texture — not crowd votes.

Mixes smoothly with

Within a few BPM and close in feel — they flow without a jarring transition.

The fingerprint

Intensity46
Dynamics67
Tempo22
Surprise25
Density33
Predictability0
Vocal force75
Trigger load0

The 8-dimension measurement behind every rating on this page.

Want the single closest match, with every dimension compared?

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