Church Music

My progress through the Prayer and Praise section of Spirit and Song Vol 1 leads me to praise the editorial policies at As One Voice. AOV used all the songs here that could be used by an assembly, so all the ones left that I doing now aren’t really suitable for liturgical use.

That said, this song by Charlie Peacock is a great pop song and I had a lot of fun making a backing for it.

The text is here and the sheet music can be purchased for download at musicnotes.

Peacock channels “Sting” in this late version:

This is the DC Talk version:

This is the original “pop” version by Peacock:

This is fairly recent cover version by Anthem Lights:

… my version is still more fun!

We are still using Paul Taylor’s Mass of St Francis with “Halle, Halle, Halle” as our Gospel Acclamation.

Entrance: Table of Plenty (Schutte) AOV 2/20

Psalm 147 (O’Brien)

Praise the Lord, praise the Lord, Jerusalem.

Gifts: Blessed Be Our God (McKenna) AOV NG 13

Communion: Seed Scattered and Sown GA 195

Unless a Grain of Wheat (Farrell) AOV 1/35

Thanksgiving: Our Blessing Cup (Mason)

Recessional: We Remember (Haugen) AOV 1/81

This is another pop song by Rich Mullins that doesn’t have much to offer a liturgy, but is fine for other circumstances.

It really needs the answering voice in the refrain to be effective. The text is here. It can purchased for download at musicnotes.

Rich Mullins added the echo to the verse as well, which might overdoing things a little.

I’m still blogging the prayer and praise songs in Spirit and Song Vol 1, which mean songs for the assembly are less frequent. This song from Martin Smith is a good example.  You can sing along with the chorus but the verses are too syncopated for group use and the bridge is not going to work at mass. It’s great for a P&W service though.

The text is at spiritandsong where the sheet music can be purchased for download.

This is a song for solo devotional use by Tom Booth.

The text is here (scroll down) and I don’t feel comfortable with it at all – do I really give permission? Is that the same as accepting unmerited grace – I don’t know. You can hear it at this site.

My backing hasn’t quite got the correct unhurried vibe.

I like this song by Bob Hudson, even though I reservations about the need to use the word “thyself.” It is based on James 4:10 but the author of James did not speak Elizabethan English. It really needs the two groups of singers to be effective.

The text is at spiritandsong. It can be purchased for download at Praise Charts.

My backing has the two parts at opposite side of the stereo spectrum.

David asked about this song by Jodi Page Clark. It is a few collections including “Singing the Faith” and the “Celebration Hymnal”.

The text is here. I don’t have the music so I thought it would be fun to figure it out. It has some sort of weird timing and even now I’m not sure I’ve got it right. I was trying to follow the track at small church music which I figure should be accurate. For what it is worth, here is an approximate backing and I hope it doesn’t confuse anyone further.

This version has a more regular timing and smooths things out, but since I don’t have the sheet music I don’t know who is right.

This is another Rich Mullins song and having criticised “Awesome God” I have to say this is a pretty good rock song and the lyrics make some sort of coherent sense this time.  It is let down by a stodgy uninventive bridge but apart from that it’s great. It’s very much a solo vehicle but I suppose an assembly could sing along with the chorus.

The text is here. You can purchase the sheet music for download at musicnotes, but the chords appear to be all over the net.

Somehow I’ve never blogged Fr Frank Andersen’s “Trinity Song”. That link has contact details so you can buy all of Andersen’s sheet music and I would recommend you do so immediately as they are a bargain. His books are worth finding as well and just for interest this is an article he wrote in the Swag as a response to an article by Cardinal Pell in the previous issue – It is worth the time to read the Pell article and the response from Andersen.

The text is here and it is an obvious song for this Sunday, Trinity Sunday. Like most of this man’s songs it is simple, singable and heart felt.

This is a nice solo version if you ignore the sound quality and the “tru-oo-oo-oo at the end of each verse.

This church has all sorts of harmony lines going as well as the same variation on the last word of the verses.

This version is a fairly free C&W version with a touch of the Roy Orbison’s about it.

Entrance: Sing Out Earth and Skies (Haugen) AOV 2/32

Psalm/Canticle for Trinity Sunday (O’Brien)

Glory and Praise forever,

Glory and Praise forever.

 

Gospel Acclamation: Halle Halle Halle (trad) AOV 2/46

Gifts: Trinity Song (Andersen)

Communion: Seed Scattered and Sown (Feiten)

Gather Your People (Hurd) AOV 1/71

Thanksgiving: A New Commandment (Unknown)

Recessional: Glory and Praise to Our God (Schutte) AOV 1/16