Church Music

I am continuing to enjoy the latest Emmanuel Worship album, Banquet.

This song is by Liam Desic and Chiara Leeds and is a more familiar rock style for Emmanuel Worship.

It looks to be for Gifts or Eucharist, but suitable for more general use.

The lyrics are at their site, where the chord sheet is freely available.

Despite the fact it is a rock song, their version is restrained and would be fine in many liturgical settings.

My backing on the other hand is a little too grunge and plodding. I had no idea what to do for the solo section and the melody is approximate with no lead sheet to guide me. As they say on the T-Shirts, “In my defense I was left unsupervised”.

There was another Australian song called “Promise” recently, which was a prayer of sorts:

I’m doing the five songs in the newest Emmanuel Worship offering, Banquet. With a title like that I’m looking for liturgical uses for the songs.

This was written by Madeleine Luciano. It is a lovely personal reflection, but might be a song for the procession of the gifts, especially if the “I’m” in the chorus became “We’re” etc.

The chord sheet and the lyrics are freely available at their website.

One effect of sitting down and having to figure out the melody for my BIAB backing, is that these songs are bouncing around my poor skull in a way that doesn’t happen if I can just enter the notes from sheet music. I’m not sure whether that’s good or bad. The melody line I used may be somewhat approximate. My backing is a lot shorter than their version but it’s enough for my purposes.

Listening to this backing again I noticed the guitar solo BIAB made up coincidentally matches the melody line in parts. I also think I made this just after seeing David Bridie live, who was accompanied by a guitarist who only played sustained distorted notes and the piano feel (computer generated of course) does have a Bridie style.

This is another great Chiara Leeds/Madeleine Luciani song from Emmanuel Worship‘s latest album Banquet.

While it is a fine reflective song in itself, it could be used during Lent or for a Second Rite of Reconciliation as well. I should note that their recordings for this collection are quite special. This one sounds a bit Natalie Imbruglia.

The chords and lyrics are freely available at the Emmanuel site.

I made a backing with the warning that my melody may be approximate, especially in the bridge. BIAB did a nice job with a spooky instrumental to mimic some of the good ideas in their version.

Since I last looked at Emmanuel Worship they have dropped a five song EP called Banquet. They are a ministry for young people from Brisbane, Australia, and are always worth a look when they bring out something new.

The title of the collection suggests a Eucharistic emphasis and hopefully liturgically useful songs.

This is a great start to the album by Madeleine Luciano and Chiara Leeds. I don’t think I have any especially good songs for Our Lord Jesus Christ King of the World – maybe this will do nicely. It has country tinge which is a bit of a change for Emmanuel.

They provide free chord charts but no longer have sheet music available.

The lyrics are here.

For my backings I have made approximate melody lines to be treated with caution. I may have played up the country styling a little.

Before I go on with more Australian music, Ryan’s parish recently used a Dan Schutte song called “Song of Mary” that has not shown up on my blog yet.

I have a copy of Breaking Bread 2012 in which it is 712. Hymnary lists its other sources. You can purchase the sheet music at OCP. The text is here.

You can sing along with my backing to learn it.

Love the trumpets:

I’ll finish with David MacGregor’s music for the moment but I will certainly return to try and get through more of his music in the near future.

This is another Christmas song of course and ideal for children. The sheet music is at his site. You can also listen to their version there.

I made dance music for children for this one.

Christmas time – we celebrate
Jesus born among us
Christmas time – we celebrate
Jesus born to save us

1. Peace and joy
   God gives to us
   Faith and hope
   God gives to us
   Love and light
   God gives to us
   each and ev’ry Christmas
   each and ev’ry day of the year!
2. Peace and joy
   God, help us give
   Faith and hope
   God, help us give
   Love and light
   God, help us give
   each and ev’ry Christmas
   each and ev’ry day of the year!

Christmas time – we celebrate
Jesus born among us
Christmas time – we celebrate
Jesus born to save us

Christmas time – we celebrate
Jesus born among us
Ev’ry day we celebrate
Jesus lives and save us

David MacGregor
© 2007 Willow Publishing

I’ll round out my first dip in to the cavernous archive that is Davis MacGregor’s Together to Celebrate site with two Christmas songs. I will get back to the rest of them in time.

Today, this one is for children with a trip around the world celebrating Christmas.

You can download the sheet music for free at his site.

My BIAB backing is a bouncy one for the kids to sing along with. I changed the feel to a more definite shuffle, that I think works better. The verses are probably for a teacher.

Christmas round this great big world
Sing your praise! Make it heard!
Jesus comes: God’s own Son
Gift of love for ev’ryone.

Joyeux Noel they sing in France
Feliz Navidad in Spain they dance
Japan: Merri Kurisumasu
Hawaii:Mele Kalikimaka to you.

Christmas round this great big world …

Portugal: it’s Boas Festas
Morocco: Milad Mubarak
Korea: meli keuliseumaseu
Italy: Buon Natale to you.

Christmas round this great big world
Sing your praise! Make it heard!
Jesus comes: God’s own Son
Gift of love for ev’ry
Gift of love for ev’ry
Gift of love for ev’ryone.

David MacGregor
© 2019 Willow Publishing

This is a fine ballad from David MacGregor gently proposing our actions as the face of Christ. It reminds a bit of John Denver channelled through Shirley Erena Murray.

The sheet music is freely available at his website.

I managed to not overdo the backing I made on BIAB for a change.

Christ shows his face
when lives are pained
weary hearts are breaking.
shows God’s grace
while troubles rise,
past foundations shaking

Every smile
Every hand
Every soft embracing
Christ shows his face
when lives are pained,
hope is hard, displacing

Christ shows his face
in thirsting souls
When hunger’s met with feeding
When nakedness for all to see
is met with love’s new clothing

Offered rest
Offered home
Offered hope’s new morning
Christ shows his face
when all seems dark, the
light of Christ keeps shining.

Christ shows his face
in community
extending past their comfort
Sharing tirelessly as one
Self-giving for another

Every smile
Every tear
Every soft embracing, yes
Christ is found
when all seems lost, when
When love’s true heart
When love’s true hope
When love’s true light keeps shining.

David MacGregor
© 2011 Willow Publishing

This is a strong hymn and one the older tunes on David MacGregor‘s site, that might have a use as a reflection or in Lent.

The sheet music is free from the songwriter, but the sheet music is in *.doc form that your computer may not want you to download. I have taken the liberty of converting it to pdf and posting it below.

I can’t find any other recording of this so you can sing a long with my version. It says restrained on the verses, to which I should have paid more attention.

I found a different song called “Chains Around My Heart” by Richard Marx and I decided to post it as well, simply because there is a certain sort of church music that is very much beholding to this 90s style. It’s all there – pads at the start, arpeggio guitars, prechorus build, heavy beat in the chorus – all it needs is make it a love song to Jesus would be a few edits to the lyrics. I suppose there is nothing wrong with holding to traditions of thirty years ago, the past has much to teach us.

Entrance: Canticle of Creation (Watts-O’Brien) AOV NG 20

Psalm 64 (McKenna)

The seed that falls on good ground will yield a fruitful harvest.

Gifts: Bless Our Gifts (Grant) AOVD

Communion:  Seed, Scattered and Sown (Feiten) CWB II 592

Recessional: All You Works of God (Haugen) AOV 1/19