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Though I'm an atheist/agnostic I still love to sing church music. Here are a few of my favs:
My God How Great Thou Art Distant Land God Be With You Till We Meet Again On Eagles Wings Amazing Grace Let There Be Peace Battle Hymn of the Republic (more of a patriotic song but it's got God in it) Ave Maria & Kyrie Eleison in their many versions Vivaldi's Gloria
What are some of your favorites?
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Amazing Grace All religious Christmas music Battle Hymn the Republic Ave Maria
A lot of old church music from Mozart and other composers.
The Hallelujah Chorus, Handel's Messiah.
Amazing Love, which isn't church music so much as Christian Rock, really, is a song I get stuck in my head a lot. And I don't even go to church anymore.
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I love the song "Great Day" by Eddie From Ohio. I am also an atheist, but this song is beautiful.
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Jesus, Joy of Man's Desiring A Mighty Fortress Is Our God Jehovah Reigns To God Be the Glory Almost all the traditional Christmas carols
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She's written more contemporary Christian Music, rather than hymns, but I love Sara Groves' music. She's awesome. The best lyricist I've had the pleasure of listening to extensively.
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One Tin Soldier! That's the only one I remember from camp, plus the Me First cover is great. Ooh, I remember one about black socks that don't get dirty, but I don't think it was terribly religious.
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Slane (Be Thou My Vision) Finlandia (often Be Still My Soul, but especially with these words:
This is my song, O God of all the nations, a song of peace for lands afar and mine; this is my home, the country where my heart is; here are my hopes, my dreams, my holy shrine: but other hearts in other lands are beating with hopes and dreams as true and high as mine.
My country's skies are bluer than the ocean, and sunlight beams on cloverleaf and pine; but other lands have sunlight too, and clover, and skies are everywhere as blue as mine: O hear my song, thou God of all the nations, a song of peace for their land and for mine.
My favorite "patriotic" hymn.)
St. Columba (O Breathe on Me or The King of Love)
How Can I Keep From Singing
Many more, but those come to mind and haven't already been mentioned.
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The Old Rugged Cross Victory in Jesus All Hail the Power of Jesus's Name Great is Thy Faithfulness To God Be The Glory How Marvelous How Can I Keep from Singing
And many more hymns and other "older" music.
In terms of contemporary stuff- don't even ask- I've way too long of a list.
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Anything with minor keys, and black spirituals.
I also love How Great Thou Art and For the Beauty of the Earth.
Come Thou Fount is definitely one of my favorite hymns/religious songs ever. The words are beautiful, and the meaning so deeply empathized.
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Jewish Cantor music, that I've heard, is absolutely beautiful.
I'd never heard any before that one episode of West Wing where the girl sings (spelling is way off sorry) Hashkevenu, and it's a totally mesmerizing song. I just don't know any of the names of the songs, and not being Jewish I don't go to Synagouge, so I don't get much of it, but what I've heard is wonderful.
Anyone have any suggestions on CDs that I could get? (or how to get an MP3 of that girl from West Wing singing it).
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I really enjoy the music of Eden's Bridge and Iona, both. Celtic-Contemporary style. I love singing them.
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I love "Morning Has Broken" and "Sing to the Mountains", and then Sidney Carter wrote two songs ("Lord of the Dance" and "Julian of Norwich") that I adore. And "We Walk by Faith". Oo, and zillions of others. For ages the singing was half the reason I went to church.
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quote:Originally posted by David Bowles: For contemporary Christian music, Daniel Amos is the only band that matters, IMO.
Will have to check them. I find Jars of Clay to be a dramatically underrated group. "Worlds Apart" off their first and "Oh My God" off their latest are extraordinarily powerful songs to me, but there's very little by them that doesn't move me.
We might be leaving out some really great Christmas music. "The Holly and the Ivy", "O Come O Come Emannuel", "God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen", and "Angels We Have Heard on High" are a few favorites.
A very talented church group that I once worked with featured some spectacular meditations for particular occasions. The pianist would play and sing "Breath of Heaven" for 3rd Advent every year and the percussionist would sing "Were You There" acapella on Good Friday. Both usually resulted in tears, even to those of us who had heard them many times before. Both had degrees in music from North Texas, so they were no slouches, though I don't think either managed to make the 1 o'clock lab band.
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Love At Home (Click on the links, then choose "words and music" and click > to hear performances of these hymns.) You have to hear the MoTabs sing this one to get the real effect. It's ethereally beautiful.
Love One Another Wow I can't listen to this one without getting chill bumps. Once is never enough, either. I want 12 verses to this song.
All Creatures of our God and King (Sorry no link due to copyright restrictions.)
The Spirit of God always gives me strength and courage when I need it.
Teach me to Walk in the Light was played at my baptism, by suggestion of Porcelain Girl, and it's always been a favorite.
How Gentle God's Commands has really good harmonies, and is in 3/4 time when it seems constantly like it ought to be in 4/4. So it's surprising all the way through to me.
Come, come ye Saints is a great work song. "No toil nor labor fear". I always picture the pioneers singing it as they trekked across the plains.
Nearer My God to Thee reminds me always of the Titanic, how the band stayed behind and played this over and over as the boat sank. It's a great hymn!
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I also love "Finlandia." I have a CD with a recording of the Indigo Girls singing this song.
When I was a teenager and more aware of religious music, I very much liked "On Eagles Wings" and "We Are the Reason." I also still fondly remember hymns we sang in Spanish when I was growing up. For whatever reason, traditional English-language hymns tended to leave me cold, while I loved many Spanish ones. My favorite was probably "Pescador de Hombres." (Guitar tabs and lyrics here.) I have actually heard an English translation of it. It's so awkward, though, that I'm convinced the Spanish version came first.
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I know this is odd for an atheist to say, but my favorite hymn has always been "Just a Closer Walk With Thee." I even collaborated on a version of the song.
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We sing "Pescador de Hombres" pretty often. Usually in both English and in our probably badly-accented Spanish.
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Most of Tatiana's, plus: O My Father High on a Mountain Top The Lord is My Shepherd Abide With Me and A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief (you HAVE to hear David Johansson's version of this from the DVD New York Doll - I found it really moving, and quite beautiful)
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Another Jars of Clay fan... Yeah. I like them too!!! Sara Groves opened up for them on one of their more recent tours.
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Okay, I could list more but I'm gonna stop now and read the thread (haven't yet) and see how many I listed that are other people's faves, too. Posts: 21182 | Registered: Sep 2004
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All right, the ones you listed that I didn't but also love: Nearer my God to Thee There Is a Fountain (Emma loves that, I sing her to sleep with it at night. It was the only song that would calm her down as a baby. I sing slightly different words, though. Almost these, but with a few differences.) Lead Kindly Light All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name
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I like O Holy Night-- when it's accompanied by guitar and sung by a baritone (or baritone and tenor.) I've been flat-sopranoed out on it. (We always hear it at least twice in church around Christmas.)
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It's been mentioned already, but "Come, Thou Fount of Ev'ry Blessing" is my very favorite hymn. My mother's favorite is "Lift High the Cross." At my wedding, we used the latter for mothers to process in, and the former for the wedding party to come in. Posts: 4077 | Registered: Jun 2003
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quote:Originally posted by Megan: It's been mentioned already, but "Come, Thou Fount of Ev'ry Blessing" is my very favorite hymn. My mother's favorite is "Lift High the Cross." At my wedding, we used the latter for mothers to process in, and the former for the wedding party to come in.
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It was a nice moment. I enjoyed it standing at the back of the church waiting for my turn (which was not religious and so doesn't really fit the thread--"Elsa's Procession to the Cathedral" from Lohengrin). Posts: 4077 | Registered: Jun 2003
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I like hymns and such in minor keys. It's a shame that so much of the church music I'm familiar with is major key. I like O Come, O Come Emmanuel for that reason.
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quote:Originally posted by Shigosei: I like hymns and such in minor keys. It's a shame that so much of the church music I'm familiar with is major key. I like O Come, O Come Emmanuel for that reason.
You should check out some of the Welsh hymn tunes, there are some lovely minor ones.
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So glad I don't watch South Park. They actually had a decent version of it on the Monk Christmas episode, I think it was 2 years ago.
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