Behind the Song: Sweet Beulah Land
This is the song my dear friend was asking me to find, but she was so pleased to re-discover Beulah Land, Is This Not the Land of Beulah and Dwelling in Beulah Land. Sweet Beulah…
Behind the Song: Dwelling in Beulah Land
This is one of the better known versions of a Beulah Land song to people today. The song was written by C. Austin Miles. After attending the Philadelphia College of Pharmacy and the University of…
Behind the Hymn: Is this not the land of Beulah
Not a lot is known about this hymn. The records in the public domain attribute the song to William Hunter and states he wrote the song sometime before 1884. However, other records credit William B.…
Behind the Hymn: Beulah Land
I have a dear friend that is named Beulah. Every time I see her she ask me to sing her song for her. When she first asked I was taken aback by this question and…
Behind the Hymn: I Need Thee Every Hour
I recently came across this hymn during a devotional and was drawn to the words. I was also reminded that this is not a hymn I hear sung in church very often anymore. Yet, even…
Hymn Story: We’ll Understand It Better By and By
I recently had a friend utter the phrase, “we’ll understand it better by and by” and it reminded me of this hymn. The song was written by Charles Albert Tindley, who was born on July…
Behind the Hymn: Rock of Ages
Rock of Ages was written by Reverend Augustus Montague Toplady in 1763. The song was first published in The Gospel Magazine in 1775. Rev. Toplady father died when he was a child. He was sixteen…
From a Wretch to Best Loved Hymn: the story behind Amazing Grace
Amazing Grace is one of the best known and loved hymns of our day. When it was first written it started off as a poem to illustrate a sermon on New Years Day 1773. The…
Behind the Christmas Carol: Angels We Have Heard on High
Angels We Have Heard on High commemorates the birth of Jesus Christ found in the Gospel of Luke. The song focuses on the shepherds encounter with the angels foretelling of the birth of the newborn…
Behind the Christmas Carol: Go Tell It on the Mountain
African Americans have a rich musical history through the use of passing down stories in the guise of a song. These songs are called spirituals and the slaves often sung them in the fields, while…
Behind the Christmas Song: The Birthday of the King
This is a beautiful Christmas song that Daddy and I performed together many times. The lyrics and music were written by William H. Neidlinger in 1890. No other information is known about this beautiful Christmas…
Behind the Christmas Carol: O Little Town of Bethlehem
Imagine traveling to the Holy Land and being inspired by the places where Jesus was born, walked, died and rose from the grave. To ride by horseback out to the fields where the shepherds attended…
Behind the Christmas Carol: Hark! the Herald Angels Sing
The hymn we sing today as Hark! The Herald Angels Sing has had many alterations since it originated. Hark! The Herald Angels Sing first appeared in the 1739 Hymns and Sacred Poems. This is one…
Behind the Song: O Holy Night
In 1847, Placide Cappeau de Roquemaure was most likely shocked when the parish priest asked him to write a poem for Christmas Mass. De Roquemaure was the commissioner of wines in a small French town and…
Behind the Hymn: We Gather Together
We Gather Together is a popular hymn sung at Thanksgiving. The song was written in 1597 by Adrianus Valerius. The original title of the Dutch hymn was “Wilt heden nu treden“. The song was written…
Behind the Song: Ave Maria
Franz Schubert composed the popular Catholic hymn in 1825, as part of his Opus 52. He titled the song “Ellens dritter Gesang” or Ellen’s Third Song. Philip Adam Storck translated and published the poem Lady…
Behind the Hymn: America the Beautiful
In honor of Veteran’s Day this week, I wanted to look at a beloved Patriotic hymn. Katharine Lee Bates and a group of colleagues ascended up Pike’s Peak by prairie wagon in the summer of…
Behind the Hymn: Jesus Loves Me
Jesus Loves Me is the best loved children’s song of all time. The words were written by Anna Bartlett Warner, who was born in 1827. Warner could trace her lineage back to the Puritan Pilgrims…
Behind the Hymn: Nearer, My God, To Thee
Nearer, My God, To Thee is commonly believed to be the last song the Titanic played as the ship sank. The popular hymn was written by Sarah Flower Adams and is loosely based on Jacob’s…
Behind the Story: If You Could See Me Now
If you could see me now is a popular funeral song. The song is often erroneously credited to Don Moen. However, the song was written by Kim Noblitt. Kim Noblitt was a member of the…