Rebel to Redeemed…Sharing HIS Kind of Love
The Haven of Rest was written by H. L. Gilmour. Gilmour was born in Londonderry, Ireland in 1836 and emigrated to America as a teenager. He married Letitia Pauline Howard in 1858. After serving in the American Civil War and spending several months at Libby Prison in Richmond, Virginia he went on to become a dentist. He helped found the […]
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The Tree of Life, How Sweet the Fruit comes from the account of the Tree of life as recorded in the book of Genesis. I’ve been unable to uncover any information on who wrote the song. The melody is described as “Traditional American Melody”. Listening to the version below the melody is the one we know very well. It is […]
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These Are the Days of Elijah is another popular Contemporary Christian song. It was written by Robin Mark and copyrighted 1997 by Daybreak Music Ltd. The song refers to the Old Testament prophet, Elijah.
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Waymaker is a contemporary worship song that is very popular right now. It was written by Nigerian gospel singer Sinach. She released the song as a single and music video on December 30, 2015. The following year, she released Waymaker-Live in November. The song became certified gold by the Recording Industry of South Africa. Sinach was rated as the “female […]
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I Am Forever Who I Am was written by Kurt Von Kampen and Christopher Ahlman and has a 2002 copyright with Concordia Publishing House. The text conveys the message found in Psalm 46 and refers to the Day of Reformation.
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Soul, Adorn Yourself with Gladness was written by Johann Frank. He hymn is often sung for Holy Thursday. Frank was born in 1618 in Brandenburg, Germany. He practiced law during the Thirty Year’s War and held several positions in civil service. He is described as a “significant poet, only to Paul Gerhardt in his day” and wrote 110 hymns. He […]
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Star of the East was originally named “Stern über Bethlehem”. In 1883, composer Amanda Kennedy composed a melody “Star of the Sea”. George Cooper, a New York lyricists, wrote the lyrics in 1890. The song is not the same as the folk carol “Star in the East” or English carol “Star of the East”. Judy Garland recorded the song in 1941.
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Shepherds Arise! Be Not Afraid is first recorded by a church in Dorset England. The carol dates back to the 19th century. The carol was first published in the 1926 A Collection of Dorset Carols. The book was published by William Adair Pickard-Cambridge, a classics scholar and organists, who obtained several manuscripts from the early 19th Century. The author of Shepherd’s Arise in unknown and was […]
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The carol originally appeared as a poem written by Cecil Frances Alexander. The poem was first published in the 1848 Hymns for Little Children. The poem tells the story of the nativity and was combined in a collection with other well-known hymns such as “All Things Bright and Beautiful” and “There is a Green Hill Far Away”. The following year, Henry […]
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In the Bleak Midwinter is based on a poem by Christina Rossetti, an English poet. The poem was published in the January 1872 issue of Scribner’s Monthly under the title “A Christmas Carol”. The 1906 English Hymnal first published the poem set to music by Gustav Holst. In 1911, Harold Darke wrote a more complex anthem which is often used […]
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John Rutter, an English composer and conductor, wrote Candlelight Carol in 1984. He recorded the song with his own group, the Cambridge Singers. The group released the song on their 1987 album Christmas Night. The song was commissioned by a church in Pennsylvania celebrating the Virgin Mary. Rutter is said to draw inspiration from the Geertgen’s painting, Nativity at Night. […]
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The Calypso Carol is often known by it’s opening line “See him lying on a bed of straw”. Some announcers have introduced the song as a traditional folk carol of the West Indies. However, it was written by an Englishman, Michael Perry. Perry wrote the song in 1964 while a college student for their Christmas concert. The song became famous by […]
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God’s own Child was written by Erdmann Neumeister. in Germany in 1671. He went on to serve as a pastor and assistant superintendent in the Eckartsberg district. In 1704, he went to tutor the daughter of Duke Johann Georg and a year later worked for Count Erdmann II von Promnitz. In 1715, he became pastor of St. James’s Church at […]
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Thy Strong Word did Cleve the Darkness was written by Martin H. Franzmann. Franzmann was born in 1907 Minnesota and died in March 1976 in Cambridge, England. He wrote numerous books and hymns. He was an American Lutheran clergyman, theologian, college professor and poet. The song has a 1969 copyright with Concordia Publishing House.
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American Soldier is a song made popular by Toby Keith. He co-wrote the song with Chuck Cannon. Keith said that the song was written “for all the times that I get to meet the troops on these USO tours, and since Courtesy of Red, White, and Blue, the P.O.W.s and the families that have come and brought me back my […]
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The King of Love My Shepherd Is was written by Henry W. Baker. Baker was born in London, England in 1821. He took Holy Orders in 1844 and he wrote many hymns. One of his earliest compositions was the very beautiful hymn, “Oh! what if we are Christ’s”. His hymns are described as “simplicity of language, smoothness of rhythm, and […]
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Thine is the Glory is often performed as an Easter song. The hymn was written by Edmond Budry, a Swiss Protestant minister. The lyrics are set to the tune “See, the Conqu’ring hero comes” from the third section of Handel’s oratorio Judas Maccabaeus. The German Advent hymn Tochter Zion, freue dich uses the same tune. The hymn is also sometimes […]
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Lift High the Cross is a 19th Century English hymn. It was written by George Kitchin and altered by Michael R. Newbolt in 1916. It has been suggested the hymn was inspired by Constantine the Great’s conversion to Christianity and seeing a cross which had the Latin version of “In this sign thou shalt conquer” written on it. Kitchin wrote […]
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Simple Gifts is attributed to Joseph Brackett, a member of the Alfred Shaker Village. It was composed in 1848, and relatively unknown until Aaron Copeland used the melody in the score of Martha Graham’s ballet Appalachian Spring, first performed in 1944. Copeland used the song a second time “in 1950 in his first set of Old American Songs.” Several Shaker […]
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No Tramp of Soldiers’ Marching Feet was written by Timothy Dudley-Smith. The hymn was copyrighted in 1984 by Hope Publishing Company. It is set to the tune Kingsfold which is an English folk tune dating back to the Middle Ages.
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