secular songs of praise

[Ron McMillan]

I'm enjoying the content of the thread, and appreciative of the sensitive moderation that is keeping it alive despite attempts to take it off on an unwelcome and irrelevant tangent.

ron

[billkilpatrick]

me too - i'm very appreciative of everyone here at "the daily planet" - mostly you, lois - i knew this would raise a few eyebrows but i assure you, my interest is genuine. if i were a real musician, a collection of "secular songs of praise" - cd and book - might be pretty successful ... a brand new niche, uniquely american in flavor.

[Dagger Gordon]

... a brand new niche, uniquely american in flavor.

Not necessarily.

[Ron McMillan]

Not necessarily.

A name like Kilpatrick, and he thinks America might have a monopoly here?

[billkilpatrick]

let's just see how the independence referendum pans-out in 2014, lad-o-roos ... viz-a-viz official state religion.

[Dagger Gordon]

Well we certainly don't want to turn the thread on to state religion - in Scotland or anywhere else.

The question of a referendum on Scottish Independence, however, is fair enough but that would surely warrant a thread unto itself rather than here.

[billkilpatrick]

nyet! i checked after posting and it seems the usa is not the only country to have instituted a separation of church and state. i thought america was the only one, hence my use of the word "unique" - mega "pardon me."

[billkilpatrick]

A day once dawned, and it was beautiful
A day once dawned from the ground
Then the night she fell
And the air was beautiful
The night she fell all around.

So look see the days
The endless coloured ways
And go play the game that you learnt
From the morning.

And now we rise
And we are everywhere
And now we rise from the ground
And see she flies
And she is everywhere
See she flies all around

So look see the sights
The endless summer nights
And go play the game that you learnt
From the morning.

[Ted Eschliman]

The question of a referendum on Scottish Independence, however, is fair enough but that would surely warrant a thread unto itself rather than here.

Not in this forum, please.

[brunello97]

Well, James Brown does reference Noah and the arc in this song which could be considered "non secular encroachments".

Plus its pretty ironic hearing his soulful rendition of what I guess you would call a song in praise of women in that he was repeatedly arrested for domestic violence, assault on women including bashing his last wife in the head with a lead pipe and shooting a gun at her, rape(a former manager), and so many infidelities that all 4 wives (3 officially) pretty much learned to live(in fear) with it. He fathered 9 kids with the 4 known partners, rarely saw any of them as he toured the world as the hardest (literally) man in music and "fathered" at least 3 other children outside of marriage (proven and settled in court after DNA testing). In addition to being arrested for theft at an early age, he was arrested in later years for assaulting a police officer and numerous drug possessions and illegal firearms possessions. He preferred angel dust (pcp) but was happy to abuse most anything he could get his hands on.

He could be an explosive performer too, but I'll pass on him as exemplifying a song of praise.

I didn't realize we were proposing individuals for consideration here but rather 'songs'.

But perhaps you are right. After reading your selected recounting of Mr. Brown's life, I withdraw my suggestion that he be included as representative as 'secular'. The man himself sounds downright biblical.

Mick

[Dagger Gordon]

I take your point Ted. I was just responding to Bill's comment about an independence referendum. It may not have been obvious to many of your US and other readers that it was Scotland he was talking about.

[mandocrucian]

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[Beanzy]

The Streams Of Nantsian

O the streams of Nantsian
In two parts divide,
Where the young men in dancin’
Meet sweetheart and bride.
They will take no denial,
We must frolic and sing.
And the sound of the viol
O it makes my heart ring.

On the rocky cliff yonder
A castle upstands;
To the seamen a wonder
Above the black sands.
‘Tis of ivory builded
With diamonds glazed bright,
And with gold it it guilded,
To shine in the night.

Over Yonder high mountain
The wild fowl do fly;
And in ocean’s deep fountain,
The fairest pearls lie.
On eagle’s wings soaring,
I’ll speed as the wind;
Ocean’s fountain exploring,
My true love I’ll find.

O the streams of Nantsian
Divide in two parts,
And rejoin as in dancing
Do lads their sweethearts.
So the streams, bright and shining
Tho’parted in twain,
Re-unite, intertwining,
Once thenceforth remain.


This I learend from a book "Songs Of The West" by Baring-Gould he also provides the melody by Cecil Sharp which I manged to get to work well on both the mandolin and tenor guitar.

However it's listening to Kate Rusby's version "The Streams Of Nancy" that really gets to the heart of this one musically.

[Astro]

I didn't realize we were proposing individuals for consideration here but rather 'songs'.

But perhaps you are right. After reading your selected recounting of Mr. Brown's life, I withdraw my suggestion that he be included as representative as 'secular'. The man himself sounds downright biblical.

Mick

I agree with you. Should be about the music. I just found his praise ironic given his lifestyle and my personal interpretation of his songs is always tainted by that, not that it should be for everyone. You don't have to be a good person to make good music and as you said this thread is not about the person. I think someone might could use that as a song of praise,despite the biblical reference, just that I couldn't.

Great thread. Lets keep looking. It would be nice to have a master list as its getting hard to keep track of what has already been proposed.

[Dave Gumbart]

Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, Beautiful Day, from Spirit of Music.

[billkilpatrick]

nils make a salient point ...

[billkilpatrick]

i think this is sort of metaphysical:

[billkilpatrick]

here's a song of praise for a machine - a model-T ford - by uncle dave macon: (from a suggestion posted to the fiddlehangout site)

http://honkingduck.com/mc/listen/unc...dixie-bee-line

[Mo Soar]

Speaking of which, I am looking for chords and/or tabs to "Optimistic Voices" from Wizard of Oz. I see piano sheet music for it, but Ebdim and G7sus4 don't translate into mandolin chords that I know how to play....

Here it is on uke:

[billkilpatrick]

fabulous!

[billkilpatrick]

song of praise - certainly. american - yep'

[RoyO]

Ian Tyson: Magpie
Connie Kaldor: I Love That Dog; Spring On The Prairies; Sky With Nothing To Get In The Way
John Denver: Sunshine On My Shoulders; What One Man Can Do (written about Buckminster Fuller); Seasons Suite
Sly & Family Stone: Hot Fun In The Summertime
Beach Boys: Warmth Of The Sun

Probably more out there but it's time to practise my mando.

[TEE]

[RoyO]

Susan Christie: I Love Onions

[Mo Soar]

This was actually hard - looked up the song, but which version to pick? I had to pass up Ella Fitzgerald's version to post this one, which probably counts as a black mark against my very soul.