Hymn with words, from folk sources
Hymns from various folk sources, with words, placed here for my convenience (but maybe you'll enjoy them, too). I have adapted some of the tunes and some of the words, but all these tunes and words are in the public domain and may be freely copied.
Alleluia A short two-part round attributed to W. A. Mozart.
Hold On White gospel tune from Appalachia.
Listen, Listen, Listen A chant by Paramahansa Yogananda.
May the Long Time Sun Shine Upon You A contemporary chant.
The Ocean Refuses No River Anonymous, attributed to Sufi sources.
Sing of a Blessing Call-and-response song.
There's Honey in the Rock African American, from Mrs. Alice Wine.
Yondeh Come Day Pretty much as sung at All Souls in D.C.
I have included "abc notation" for these folk hymns. Why do I include abc notation along with standard sheet music?
- you can play the tune on the abc Convertamatic Web site so you can learn it even if you don't read music
- you can get free abc software that will play the tune for you, display and print standard musical notation for you, and allow you to edit the sheet music (get free abc software here, or search the Web for "abc notation software") *
- abc notation is human-readable (with practice) and some people find it easier to read than conventional music notation
- abc has a large community of people using it, and there are huge resources of traditional tunes available in abc
* About free abc software: I use "Five Line Skink" to work with abc notation, and can recommend it. It's written in Javascript so it can run on a variety of platforms (admittedly, it's mostly a Mac OSX program, but there are Windows and Linux/Unix versions). The downside to Five Line Skink is that it does not support abc plus, which means it will not handle multiple parts.
"Alleluia Round"
A two-part round.
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
1. Alleluia, alleluia.
2. Alleluia, alleluia.
The tune is supposed to have been written by Mozart, but I have not seen an attribution to a specific Kerschel listing.
"Hold On"
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
1. Ain't been to heaven but I've been told,
Ev'ryone there wears a crown of gold.
Ain't been to heaven, here's what I say,
We could make a heav'n on earth some day.
Cho: Keep your eyes, keep your eyes
on the prize, hold on. Hold on!
Hold on! Keep your eyes,
Keep your eyes on the prize, hold on.
2. Paul and Silas, bound in jail,
Had no money for to go their bail.
Paul and Silas began to shout,
Jail door opened and they walked out.
3. The only thing that we did right,
was the day we begun to fight.
The only thing that we did wrong,
Was stying in the wilderness too long.
4. The only chain that I can stand,
Is the chain of a hand in hand.
Sounds like freedom's getting mighty near,
Hold my hand, got nothing to fear.
5. One of these days about twelve o'clock,
This old world's gonna reel and rock.
One of these days at the rising sun,
Weeping and sadness will be gone.
Another version can be found in Guy and Cindy Carawan's Sing for Freedom, published by Sing Out. Theirs is the version Pete Seeger sings.
"Listen, Listen, Listen"
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
Listen, listen, listen to my heart's song,
Listen, listen, listen to my heart's song,
I will never forget you, I will never forsake you,
I will never forget you, I will never forsake you.
This chant was originally written by Paramahansa Yogananda in the early 20th C. I transcribed this version from oral tradition.
"May the Long Time Sun Shine Upon You"
This chant is really in 7/4 time, but my music editing software can't handle 7/4 so the measures are broken up into 3/4 and 2/4.
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
May the long time sun shine upon you,
All love surround you;
And the pure light within you,
Guide your way home.
"The Ocean Refuses No River"
This song or chant may be sung straight through, or as a three part round. Or you may omit the second part, and sing it as a two-part round.
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
1. The ocean refuses no river, no river.
The open heart heart refuses no part of me, no part of you.
2. I am one with all that is, one with all;
All that is is one with me, one with all.
OR use these Arabic words:
Ishq Allah ma' bud lillah, il Allah.
Ishq Allah ma' bud lillah, il Allah.
3. Alleluia, alleluia. La ilaha, il Allah hu.
Alleluia, alleluia. La illah, il Allah hu.
OR you may repeat "Alleluia" throughout.
Supposedly of Sufi origin.
-- "Ishq Allah ma' bud lillah" means, roughly, "Allah is love/lover/beloved" and is pronounced (roughly) "ishk Allah mah bood lillah."
-- "La illah il allah hu" means, roughly, "There is no reality/God but Allah." Some people use the phrase "La ilaha illa huwa" from the Koran (see e.g., Sura 3:2), which means roughly "There is no God but him."
"Sing of a Blessing"
A call-and-response song. (In the abc file, calls and responses appear as two separate tunes in one file.)
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
1.
Sing, sing, sing of a blessing;
Sing, sing, sing of a blessing;
A blessing of peace;
A blessing of justice;
Love will increase;
A blessing of peace.
2.
Sing, sing, sing of a blessing;
Sing, sing, sing of a blessing;
A blessing of hope;
A blessing of courage;
Love will increase;
A blessing of peace.
3.
Sing, sing, sing of a blessing;
Sing, sing, sing of a blessing;
A blessing of peace;
A blessing for now and forever;
Love will release;
The blessings of peace.
I have not found this song published anywhere; I transcribed it from oral tradition.
"There's Honey in the Rock"
Note that measures 9-10 and measures 13-14 are interchangeable, depending on the needs of the lyrics.
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
Chorus:
There's honey in the rock for all God's children,
Honey in the rock, honey in the rock.
There's honey in the rock for all God's children,
Feed ev'ry child of God.
1. (solo) Hypocrite, hypocrite, God despise
(congregation) Feed ev'ry child of God
(solo) Tongue so sweet yet he still tells lies
(congregation) Feed ev'ry child of God.
2. Heart to heart and hand to hand...
Together we'll push to the promised land...
3. When the chains hold us down, gotta break the lock...
Then we'll taste sweet honey in the rock...
Discography: "The Nick Page Songbook," Nick Page and friends.
"Yondeh Come Day"
Also known as "Yonder Come Day."
abc notation
Sheet music (as a PDF file)
Lyrics:
Yondeh come day, day is a-breakin,
Yondeh come day, o mah soul.
Yondeh come day, day is a-breakin,
Sun is a risin, in mah soul!
As sung at All Souls Unitarian Church in Washington, D.C., during the processional, winter, 2005. World Music Press has published an arrangement by Judith Cook Tucker (with descant and low parts, as well as a percussion accompaniment). Tucker attributes the song as traditional African American from the Georgia Sea Islands; but I have also seen this song attributed to the West Indies.