all-American hymn favorites

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there are several hymn threads out there, but I am staying away from some of the angrier forums. what I have in mind are hymns that are uniquely American and identifiable as such. Amazing Grace is probably right up there with God Bless America. I am counting on the many people in the forums from other backgrounds besides Catholic to make contributions. (all those who want to complain about heretical lyrics can switch over to Apologetics, this is not the place for that). Another front runner is Lift Every Voice and Sing, not to mention some of the old spirituals, shape-note singing etc. I love Precious Lord, Just a Closer Walk With Thee, which I think of as American, although I do not know their history. Any background you have on the hymn and author would be great. Amazing Grace has been done to death on other threads. I would like to hear the background of How Great Thou Art, my MILs favorite, and When the Saints Come Marching In, which my mom wanted for her funeral with a Dixieland Band (she didn’t get it sad to say)
 
Amazing Grace is English.

My American favorite: O Little Town of Bethlehem.
 
Is “On Eagle’s Wings” American? If so, then that one gets my vote.
 
My children sing “Jesus loves Me”…it’s so precious when little ones sing that song. :love:
 
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mercygate:
Amazing Grace is English.

My American favorite: O Little Town of Bethlehem.
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no kidding? and it is so identified with American religious culture that every country music star ends a concert with it or has it on a CD. When I think of a definitively English hymn I think of Jerusalem by William Blake (the hymn they were singing at the end of Chariots of Fire)
your other suggestion reminds me of I heard the Bells on Christmas Day.
 
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puzzleannie:
no kidding? and it is so identified with American religious culture that every country music star ends a concert with it or has it on a CD. When I think of a definitively English hymn I think of Jerusalem by William Blake (the hymn they were singing at the end of Chariots of Fire)
your other suggestion reminds me of I heard the Bells on Christmas Day.
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I LOVE “Jerusalem!” and “I Vow to Thee My Country” and “Land of Hope and Glory” – OK. Off topic!
 
let’s open up the thread to “favorite hymn of your country” the ones that seem tied to national identity, whether you are American, British, or other. Let’s go further, what says “my culture, my ethnicity” but I want to stick with hymns, not folk songs.
 
I love “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and “How Great Thou Art” Are these ever sung in Catholic churches? I belonged to a Methodist church and they do have good hymns.

Lisa N
 
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mercygate:
Amazing Grace is English.
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Quite right. John Newton was born in London.

For distinctively American hymns, turn to the old “Negro spirituals.” There is a wealth of simple, heartfelt religion in them.

One of my favorites is “In Christ There is No East or West.” Its lyrics were written by a Brit (IIRC), but the tune is adapted from an African-American hymn. It fits American history well also, having been composed shortly after the end of the American Civil War.

If you want a bit more modern and definitely American, I’m also fond of Andrae Crouch’s “Soon and Very Soon.”

About “How Great Thou Art,” at Resurrection Catholic School where I teach, this song is in the Missalette, and I lobby for its use in Mass periodically.

– Mark L. Chance.
 
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asquared:
let’s open up the thread to “favorite hymn of your country” the ones that seem tied to national identity, whether you are American, British, or other. Let’s go further, what says “my culture, my ethnicity” but I want to stick with hymns, not folk songs.
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“Austria” (Haydn – “Glorious Things of Thee are Spoken”)
“Russian Hymn” (Lvov – "God the Omnipotent!)
“*Wilt heden nu treden” *Dutch Hymn (“We Gather Together”)
England: “I Vow to Thee, My Country” (Spring-Rice/Holst)
 
pnewton said:
America the Beautiful and The Star-Spangled Banner.
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The Star Spangled Banner is a beautiful poem, which nobody ever pays attention to. The 2nd verse is particularly stirring:

On the shore, dimly seen, through the mists of the deep
Where the foe’s haughty host in dread silence reposes,
What is that which the breeze, o’er the towering steep,
As it fitfully blows, half conceals, half discloses?
Now it catches the gleam of the morning’s first beam,
In full glory reflected now shines on the stream;
'Tis the Star-Spangled Banner, O long may it wave
O’er the land of the free and the home of the brave!
 
MIL’s favorite is How Great Thou Art and she is the most orthodox Irish Catholic I know, does anybody have background on who wrote it, when, why? I have heard it many times in Catholic churches, but never played properly until my cousin, an SA officer and organist, toured our parish church, and with Father’s permission, played the hymn with all the stops out. probably the first time in decades that organ had been allowed to speak in vox populi
 
Lisa N:
I love “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and “How Great Thou Art” Are these ever sung in Catholic churches? I belonged to a Methodist church and they do have good hymns.

Lisa N
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These are my favorites too!
“How Great Thou Art” is sung in the Catholic Church (at least my parish)…“You’ll Never Walk Alone”-- I’ve never heard it in church… First time I ever heard it was at my high school graduation ceremonies 43 years ago!
Annunciata:)
 
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puzzleannie:
MIL’s favorite is How Great Thou Art and she is the most orthodox Irish Catholic I know, does anybody have background on who wrote it, when, why?
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According to Cyberhymnal, it’s Swedish. The author was Carl C. Boberg, and he wrote it in 1886. Boberg was a layman, a member of the Swedish Parliament, who wrote several hymns and helped compile the first two hymnals of the Swedish Covenant Church. The tune is a Swedish folk melody.

Although one’s heart may go pit-a-pat when one hears a song like “How Great Thou Art,” such sentimental personal musings might perhaps better be left to non-liturgical venues. This is a showcase song of individual rather than liturgical devotion.
 
Having read these posts, I realize that I may cause some distress when I say that “How Great Thou Art” makes me gag. (It was also a beloved aunt’s favorite and we sang it at her funeral). I’ve often heard it sung badly: slow, with scooping of notes, over emotional, etc.

One of my favorite American hymns is “Go Tell it On the Mountain.”
 
I would have to say the same…

Thanks Lisa
Lisa N:
I love “You’ll Never Walk Alone” and “How Great Thou Art” Are these ever sung in Catholic churches? I belonged to a Methodist church and they do have good hymns.

Lisa N
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It’s a shame that many people don’t seem to know it, let alone sing it. I think it is a LOT better than things like God Bless America, and many of the other patriotic hymns, for instance.
 
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