"Everybody Ought to Treat a Stranger Right" is a gospel blues song recorded in 1930 by Blind Willie Johnson with backing vocals by Willis B. Harris, who may have been his first wife.[1] The song was released in 1930 on Columbia 14597 as B-side to "Go with Me to That Land".[2]
The chorus consists of the lines:
Everybody should treat a stranger right, long ways from home,
Everybody should treat a stranger right, a long way from home.
The verses comment on that idea, notably with reference to the Three Wise Men offering gifts to the Christ-child in the manger.[citation needed]
In 2018, Ry Cooder recorded the song for his album The Prodigal Son.[3] He commented that it was "one of Blind Willie Johnson’s great songs – he’s the go to guy".[3]
