This song by Daniel Pereira & Laurie Prattis is from Proclaim Lismore Wildfire‘s 2025 album, It’s Good to be Alive.
It is a fine ballad for personal reflection, devotions and school use. The chords and lesson plans are their site.
They are a most inspiring group of young people.
CHORUS I am nothing without You I am nothing without You I am nothing without You I am nothing without You VERSE 1 Here in this space I fall at Your feet And in my surrender I accept my defeat Finally I’ve reliased Only You know the plan For the rest of my life I lay it all in Your hands CHORUS x2 VERSE 2 I’m just a fool I’ll never understand How much You love me And how much You care So how can I thank You For all that You’ve done For all that You’re doing All the victories You’ve won? CHORUS x2 BRIDGE 1 x2 You are all I need You’re my everything BRIDGE 2 You are all I need (I am nothing without You) You’re my everything (I am nothing without You) CHORUS x2 OUTRO x2 You are all I need You’re my everything 2025 Proclaim Lismore Wildfire Pereira – Pratt All rights reserved by the Diocese of Lismore Catholic School
This is another song from Proclaim Lismore Wildfire’s 2025 album, It’s Good to Be Alive.
It was written by Evronia Allan & Eliza Blunn and is a very lovely song by talented young people.
Get all the supporting material including chords and lesson plans at their site. It finds it’s place for personal reflection and in schools. I’m not sure if it would work liturgically – maybe as a reflection where the readings are reflected in the stories mentioned.
I suspect we need to live in the stories of our tradition and this song looks at that from a young person’s optimistic perspective looking forward. That is humbling for a grumpy old man who looks back too much.
VERSE 1 You parted the waters You made a way through the sea No longer slaves Cause You set Israel free You provided manna as they sleep And You did it all for me VERSE 2 You chose a child In a war where armies flee He had no armour, But a giant he did defeat It was a victory that no King could see But You did it all for me CHORUS Storyteller, You are You’ve written miracles and victories, I can’t wait to see what You’ll make of me Will You write my story too? VERSE 3 You went to Capernaum Met a man who was in need His servant was suffering And You listened to his plea You healed him cause faith was the key And You did it all for me VERSE 4 You took the disciples Made your way across the sea But a storm was raging And the boat was filled with fear But Lord, You told the wind to cease And You did it all for me And You did it all for me CHORUS BRIDGE x2 If I let You hold the pen If I let you write the words Then I know You’ll write me in Your glory If I let You set the scene If I let You turn the page Jesus, You’re the author of my story VERSE 5 You were persecuted On the hill at Calvary Tortured and beaten And they nailed You to a tree But that didn’t stop Your victory And You did it all for me You did it all for me! CHORUS OUTRO Will You write my story too? Will You write my story too?
2025 Proclaim Lismore Wildfire Allan – Blunn All rights reserved by the Diocese of Lismore Catholic Schools
I think I need a short break from traditional hymnody. I will get back to it.
Coming back to the present time and songs written in Australia, it is always good to see what the youth group in Lismore is up to. Lismore Diocese is in the North of NSW in Australia and is known for the effort they put into supporting the Catholic youth there, especially with their own music.
They provide lesson plans for each song at their site, where the chords are also available. The songs are free to use.
They don’t often have more than chord charts, but that is all their target audience need I suspect. Without at least a melody line chart, I won’t be making my own backings, but you can sing along with their Youtube clip to learn the song.
This song is the title track from their 2025 album. It was written by Evronia Allan, Eliza Blunn, Ashlinn de Dassel, Jaz Letchford, Alex Pereira, Daniel Pereira and Laurie Pratt.
It is a song of praise and thanksgiving and it is great to sing of our need to be grateful.
VERSE 1 As we walk on this journey We grow and change His love is the reason For every step we take VERSE 2 Everyday is a blessing His love remains the same We’ll live every moment With a joy we can’t contain PRE CHORUS We won’t be shaken Cause with our God we thrive He’s never changing Oh CHORUS 1 It’s good to be alive Oh It’s good to be alive VERSE 3 In all of our weakness His joy is our strength So we’ll keep on praying Proclaim His holy name PRE CHORUS CHORUS 2 It’s good to be alive Oh It’s good to be alive Oh It’s good to be alive Oh It’s good to be alive BRIDGE X2 Lord, I thank You for Your goodness everyday And I thank You for the blessing of Your grace CHORUS 2
2025 Proclaim Lismore Wildfire Allan – Blunn – de Dassel – Letchford – Pereira – Pereira – Pratt All rights reserved by the Diocese of Lismore Catholic Schools
I really didn’t spend much time on Christmas Carols when I came to them when doing the As One Voice hymn books all those years ago, and my backings were… ahem – interesting.
This is of course a Christmas staple and it will be sung at Christmas liturgies every year or there will be trouble.
The text is another from Charles Wesley – with some “alt” going on – who is nothing if not prolific. Is there a fix for rhyming “behold him come” with “the Virgin’s womb”? There are many better rhymes for “Virgin’s womb” my favourite being “nom de plume”.
I used this chance to do a more traditional backing with the fake BIAB organ.
1 Hark! the herald angels sing “Glory to the newborn King; Peace on earth, and mercy mild, God and sinners reconciled!” Joyful, all ye nations, rise, Join the triumph of the skies; With th’angelic host proclaim: “Christ is born in Bethlehem!”
Refrain: Hark! the herald angels sing “Glory to the newborn King!”
2 Christ, by highest heav’n adored; Christ the everlasting Lord! Late in time behold him come, Offspring of the Virgin’s womb: Veiled in flesh the Godhead see; Hail th’incarnate Deity, Pleased with us in flesh to dwell, Jesus, our Emmanuel.
[Refrain]
3 Hail, the heav’n-born Prince of Peace! Hail the Sun of Righteousness! Light and life to all he brings, Ris’n with healing in his wings. Mild he lays his glory by, Born that we no more may die, Born to raise us from the earth, Born to give us second birth.
[Refrain]
I has been done in just about every style by just about everybody – here is a small selection:
This one is also in CWB II, but as “Hark! a Herald Voice is Calling” and I blogged it here.
It is an Advent hymn with the text being Edward Caswell‘s translation of an ancient Latin hymn. Compared to yesterday’s cryptic crossword of a text, this one is perfectly clear. There are a lot of variations in the text and the one below is what is in the NLPHB.
This is another hymn set to AVE VIRGO VIRGINUM, but this is a new text to me.
That said it is very old: a translation of a C13 text by John Peckham, Archbishop of Canterbury – when they were still good Catholics – and translated by Ronald Knox only a century or so ago.
There is more variation than usual in the texts I have found and I have firstly given the words from this hymnal below. These lyrics are rather more convoluted than most hymn texts and require so much analysis to divine its meaning (something Eucharistic), that it hard to see how it can succeed as a hymn. Maybe it made more sense in Latin.
Nonetheless, I had yet another go at the tune and I think each time the organ backing is a little less annoying:
1 Hail, true Victim, life and light unto sinners lending;
Every older form and rite has in thee it’s ending.
Spotless in the Father’s sight evermore ascending,
Holy Church in bitter fight evermore befriending.
2 Hail true Manna from the sky, Israel never knew thee;
Pilgrims, for the day’s supply, daily homage do thee.
When our souls in sickness lie, yields that sickness to thee;
Christians, when they come to die, live immortal through thee.
3 Hail, Christ’s Body, gift he made, his own death forshowing,
(Godhead under earthly shade like a jewel glowing);
Sacred mem’ries, ne’er to fade, on his Church bestowing,
When to earth farewell he bade, to his passion going.
4 Plead, true Victim, in our stead to the Father crying,
Thou, thy children’s daily bread, daily health supplying.
Banquet for the exile spread, grant us life undying;
May our love from thine be fed, self and sense denying!
This is another commonly sited text:
1 Hail, true Victim, life and light Unto sinners lending, Ev’ry older form and rite Hath in Thee it’s ending. Spotless in the Father’s sight, Evermore ascending, Holy Church in bitter fight Evermore befriending.
2 Jesus, truly in this place, God and man resideth; Him no shadow doth replace, Him no rent divideth. Very flesh, although His face, Glorified, He hideth; Garnered in this little space All of Christ abideth.
3 Plead, true Victim, in our stead, To the Father crying, Thou, Thy children’s daily bread, Daily health supplying; Banquet for the exile spread, Grant us life undying: May our love from Thine be fed, Self and sense denying!
The New Living Parish Hymn Book from 1987 compiled and edited by John de Luca, is a collection of mostly traditional hymnary in use in Australian Catholic Church of that era, with many of de Luca’s own arrangements. They are especially of interest when he takes folk mass era hymns and gives them a more musical gloss. This is not one of those.
Even the traditional hymns I have already covered are worth another look, to give them better backings and some more background information.
I looked at this more than ten years ago from one of the music selections posted by Ryan, and he is still sending song lists after all these years, that give looking for song suggestions on this site a greater breadth.
Exemplifying the use of Protestant Hymnody by the Catholic Church when vernacular liturgy arrived, this is a text by Charles Wesley, here set to LLANFAIR by Welsh composer Robert Williams. It is even in CWB II.
It is a hymn for the Ascension. The text below is that found in this hymnal – many variants exist.
When I looked at this hymn previously, I made the mistake of thinking the setting I knew was the one all Catholics knew. Luckily, Mary at Godsongs let me know the wider picture.
Still, the New Living Parish Hymn Book selected REX as well, and so did The Australian Hymn Book, Together in Song and Gather Australia, so maybe it is at least the one used more in Australia.
The text is by Patrick Brennan (with a little bit of “alt” going on) and the setting, REX, is by William Henry Grattan Flood. It is a natural hymn for Christ the King. The text below is what is printed in the NLPHB.
I covered this C19 hymn in a desultory fashion once before here, but since my home parish is now Star of the Sea, George Town, Tasmania, I really should do a bit more. We are near the Bell Bay port and many seafarers pass us by and have done so for many years, so here is a prayer for those wanderers.
John Lingard’s text was inspired by the chant Ave Maria Stella. It is set to STELLA by Henri Freidrich Hemy, a gentleman who failed to make his way in Australia in the 1850s and had to settle for a return to England and fame as a musician.
I’m sure this song has more YouTube clips than any other hymn – I have a selection below.
This hymnal has John de Luca’s arrangement, but alas this backing I made is still just my fake BIAB organ.
1 Hail, Queen of heav’n, the ocean star, Guide of the wand’rer here below: Thrown on life’s surge, we claim thy care Save us from peril and from woe. Mother of Christ, Star of the sea, Pray for the wand’rer, pray for me.
2 O gentle, chaste, and spotless maid, We sinners make our prayers through thee; Remind thy Son that He has paid The price of our iniquity. Virgin most pure, star of the sea, Pray for the sinner, pray for me.
3 Sojourners in this vale of tears, To thee, blest advocate, we cry; Pity our sorrows, calm our fears, And sooth with hope our misery. Refuge in grief, star of the sea, Pray for the mourner, pray for me.
4 And while to him who reign above, In Godhead one, in Persons Three, The source of life, of grace, of love, Homage we pay on bended knee; Do thou, bright Queen, star of the sea, Pray for thy children, pray for me.
Goodness, this sheet music is in Eb – de Luca sensibly brought it down to C – thanks be to God.
I've worked my way through the As One Voice books and other collections making backings on Band in a Box to help me (& you if you're interested) learn new songs for church. This is aimed at churches and musicians that own the collections but haven't exploited them fully. If you don't have them they are certainly worth buying. This site is educational, nonprofit and designed to enhance the commercial prospects of songwriters. This site does not distribute copyrighted sheet music.
Disclaimer
Any opinions expressed here are personal views and not the responsibility of any Church.
All music backings posted are created by myself and the intention is for them to be used to learn the songs. If any copyright holder wishes me to cease publicising and promoting their wares and directing people to where sheet music can be legally purchased please let me know.
Mason’s “Mass of Glory and Praise”
To access my backings for Paul Mason's mass go to Feb 2011 in the archive.
