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A big family dinner. What could be more better than that?

Amazing Grace

"Amazing Grace" is probably the most famous hymn in the world at the time of writing and had been so for many years previous. The melody is simple, short and strong, which probably is the cause of much of its popularity among the common folk. The words meanwhile, are a heartfelt paean of praise to his god and a massive declaration of his faith in that creature. Such a simple, strong and deep message is presumably the other reason for the hymn's enduring popularity with Christians everywhere, but particularly in the USA, where blind, unquestioning faith in a fundamentalist Jehovah is common.

The words were written by John Newton in 1772 but he did not write the music. From the date of its publication it has been associated with more than 20 different tunes but did not achieve its great fame until 1835, when American composer William Walker set it to the tune "New Britain", which itself is an amalgamation of two melodies: "Gallaher" and "St. Mary", (neither of which are attributed), first published by Charles H. Spilman and Benjamin Shaw in 1829. William Walker's setting was immediately popular, selling 600,000 copies across the USA. Indeed, so accepted was it that it was included in two hymnals given to soldiers during the American Civil War in 1861.

The Mundane

To my ears the tune is neither grand nor subtle, but simple, direct and mundane. It's strength is nevertheless undeniable. I sought a universal theme that could fit such character and decided on the simple joys of the ordinary life.

The great themes on a grand scale are awe inspiring and deeply moving, but do they bring happiness? Are they even really relevant to the daily life of the ordinary citizen who spends his or her time working, relaxing and raising a family?

JRR Tolkien in his great epic "The Lord Of The Rings" spends much time dealing with the greatest of themes and detailing events on the grand stage but he never loses sight of the little people, (the Hobbits), and the simple pleasures of their hum-drum lives. The love of good food, good drink and good company is returned to numerous times and in the end, when the heroic deeds are done, it is such simple pleasures that are reward for all their efforts.

The rich and great may seek to downgrade the poor and humble but, in the final analysis, they are doing the same things as the people they despise: eating and drinking, watching entertainment and carousing with friends and family. Ultimately it is such things that are the reason for living.

Music: "New Britain" (aka "Amazing Grace"), 1829, Anon, (a composite of "Gallaher" and "St. Mary").
Words: Warren Mars, 2020


When morning dawns I rise and shine and greet another day,
It feels so good to be alive, it beats the grave they say.

It's good to drink a cup of tea with toast at breakfast time,
And watch the world stir into life and see the sun sublime.

When midday comes I eat my lunch and idle for a while,
To chat with friends, and share a joke: It always makes me smile.

It's good to feel the workday close and know that you've done well,
To take the load off and relax, the beer is cold and swell.

When ev'ning falls we light the fire and cook ourselves a feed,
The evening tide in love's embrace is very good indeed.

I'm grateful for the little things, that make a house a home,
Like happy times and family, the stars in midnight's dome.

The vocal score with chords is provided here.
I have also provided an SATB arrangement for choirs here. Unlike the great British protestant hymns there is no wonderful standard SATB arrangement for this hymn written by a famous composer to be found and consequently I felt I had to do my own. There are nevertheless numerous extant arrangements available with considerable variation in harmony and even in the melody with the triplets. Hopefully mine is as good as any of the others...

Finally, I have provided a recording of my computer synthesizer playing the SATB arrangement. There is no singing and the synthesizer is very ordinary. Nevertheless the parts are all there and one can sing along with it or use it get an idea of how it should sound with your choir.