The Musical Diary of Greg ScheerTheo had just been reading a book of world records and strange facts, which he would quote randomly throughout his bath. This turned into a trippy blues song of random facts, though for the life of me I can’t figure out what the first verse says.
This Christmastide I am unveiling a series of songs done in collaboration with my son Theo. Hence the title “Theophiles.” (Kind of like Theophilus,” but could also sound like “Theo files.” Get it?) These recordings feature tunes that come primarily from bath time goofiness. I don’t remember how we started the tradition of bathtub creativity, but now it’s pretty much required that when Theo takes a bath I need to have my guitar at the ready. In fact, he was so excited to hear that his songs were going public, he wrote two more last night. He’s so prolific–and clean!
Let the juvenile jamboree begin: Freaky Boy
Chris Smit was such a hit singing “Peace in the Valley” at Church of the Servant’s Lessons & Carols service a few weeks ago, that a repeat performance was demanded for the Christmas Eve Service. Sadly, he lost his voice a few days before the service, so his understudy–me–filled in. I felt ill-equipped to follow the footsteps of those who have sung the song in my churches in the past–Chris and Charlotte Kerce–but I stepped in and did what I could. Here’s the recording.
What better time to premiere a new arrangement than on Christmas Eve just before the stroke of midnight? Indeed, last night saw the unveiling of an arrangement of “The First Nowell” for solo, guitar, strings and piano.
It’s been something I’ve been meaning to do for a long time. “The First Nowell” is a classic folk tune, but the arrangement in most hymnals fetters the flowing melody with four part harmony. People, homophony is not the right solution for every song! But enough ranting. My approach was simple: let the melody sing itself and support it with an accompaniment that keeps things moving forward. After a brief string intro, I start small–just guitar and solo voice–and then build momentum over the song’s 6 verses. Take a listen to the MP3 from last night, then email for a score so you can premiere it in your town next Christmas.
Joni Mitchell wrote the quintessential depressing Christmas song, River. (Also check out this beautiful new rendition by Herbie Hancock and Corinne Bailey Rae.) But there’s always room for one more, right? This is a recording of “Silent Star” from a rehearsal with the Allegro String Quartet: MP3. Perhaps next Christmas will see a proper recording of the song.
Strange angels in the sky
interrupt this lonely night
singing peace on earth
but whats that worth
when they sing it from the sky?
No angel will never know
what its like living below
they sing of birth
but that just means more hurt
as another woman cries
Born under a silent star
Live under a silent star
Die under a silent star,
a million miles away.
2,000 years passed since that night
and the only light that fills the sky
are rockets red glare
and bombs bursting in air
under the gaze of satellite
above this maze with restless eye.
Born under a silent star
Live under a silent star
Die under a silent star,
a million miles away.
A silent star, while all the angels sing:
Gloria, Gloria, in excelsis Deo.
My friend Kim over at Wazoo Farm has inspired me to complete a song that has been on the back burner for a long time. She recently issued a call for poems about high heels, and I immediately thought of my sketch “Baby, You’re Not Wearing Pants, Again.” Because, after all, what’s more ridiculous than a song about a woman who keeps forgetting to put on her pants before leaving the house? A song about a woman who goes to the trouble of dressing in high heels, but still forgets to wear pants.
So Eric Clapton, eat your heart out. Your woman may look wonderful tonight, but she’s wearing pants. And that’s just predictable and passé. Sammy Kershaw, maybe she don’t know she’s beautiful because she’s not. Or because she doesn’t have a good pair of high heels that will give her a little confidence.
Let the bottomless festival of ridiculousness begin!: MP3
By now y’all are probably sick of hearing about the Psalms of Ascent series at Church of the Servant. Sorry…
A few weeks ago Psalm 129 came up. Now, if you search hymnary.org for, say, Psalm 8 or 40, you’ll get around 60 hits. And most of them will be viable options. But if you search for Psalm 129, you’ll get two hits. And one of them is “Those hating Zion have afflicted me.” That makes for some tough going if you’re a worship planner trying to plan a service around Psalm 129.
I looked in my bag of tricks (the “bag” in this case is my file folders and google doc of the 150 Psalms) and found a song Bruce Benedict had written using the words of Isaac Watts. The song really grew on me. Psalm 129 is not an easy sell, but this musical setting of it made it feel somehow like the timeless struggle of good versus evil. The Psalm is essentially saying “The MAN (and you know who you are) has pushed me down since the day I was born, but he’s gonna get his in the end, because God’s on my side.” That’s the kind of sentiment that we cheer in a film about a triumphant underdog, but it makes us uncomfortable when we read it in the Bible.
Bruce’s original version has an ethereal, lament vibe, whereas mine is more angry, fight the man take on the music. I don’t know if this is a reflection of the difference between Bruce’s and my character, but it just kind of came out that way. It also came out as a full-blown arrangement with string quartet, piano and guitar. Pretty epic stuff. I described it to my pastor like this: “Imagine a film directed by Clint Eastwood in which a man exacts vengeance on the murderers of his family. This is the music that plays as he walks slowly out of town, with his gun still smoking in its holster.”
Take a listen to the MP3 of COS singing it a few Sundays ago, or geek out with the PDF full score.
I don’t know who Alexandra Fisher Willis is, but she’s written a beautiful Advent text, “Long-weary Earth in Darkness Groans.” From what I gather, she’s in Lester Ruth’s Theology of Songwriting at Duke Divinity, and she wrote this as one of her assignments. Dr. Ruth, give this woman an A+!
Alexandra wrote this text to the tune LASST UNS ERFREUEN (“All Creatures of Our God and King,” etc). This is a perfectly good choice. It is a tune that the Church has sung and cherished for many years–388 to be exact–but somehow I don’t feel the weight of history like perhaps I should.
I wrote a new one: MP3.
“How Can I Keep from Singing?” is an odd hymn. The title phrase gives the impression of a wide-eyed universalist anthem of feel-good hope. This is probably the reason it didnt make it past the eagle eyes of the Psalter Hymnals editors and that it has been sung by New Age artists like Enya.
But a deeper look shows a hymn that recognizes both the struggles of life and the hope of faith in Christ. Its really a lovely text.
The music is a different story. Its awfully sprightly, which is probably why my wife hates it. I dont mind the tunes happy energy, as long as its sung with some muscle and not too fast. But Ive also been playing with a new arrangement of the song that brings out the lament of the verses with a minor harmonization, switching to a major key when the refrain proclaims confidently, No storm can shake my inmost calm.
I wouldnt propose my version as definitive, but a fresh new reading of a classic is never a bad thing, right? PDF, MP3.
In an odd unfolding of Psalmic fate, my top choice settings for two Psalms in the last month were both set to the same tune: SALVATION. In My Distress I Called to God (Psalm 120) and When God Restored Our Common Life (Psalm 126). The tune had not previously gained my attention, though its common enough that I have probably have used it before. Its from Kentucky Harmony, and like all great early American tunes it is rugged as the Appalachian mountains, yet as balanced a melody as Gregorian chant.
Shape note hymn tunes sound perfect in their original settings, with raw, static harmonies, sung with open-throated energy. However, they can sound like fish out of water when theyre set with more modern harmonies. Thats how I felt about the harmonization in the Psalter Hymnal. (Sorry Kenneth…) It wasnt bad, but it just didnt bring out the melodys charms.
Heres what I like about my reharmonization: It puts a big fat accent on the pickup note to each phrase; to my ear thats one of the keys to the tunes character. It uses big block chords, with no harmonic fussiness distracting from the tunes earthy modality. The broad harmonic movement is from D minor (i) in the first two phrases to Am (v) in the last two, which gives the melody a sense of movement. Finally, the deceptive cadence and short interlude gives the congregation a quick chance to breath before diving into the next verse.
Wow. I should be a used harmonization salesman Would you like to take it for a test drive?: PDF, MP3.