I'm posting a song a day from the Rise Up Singing songbook, which you may or may not know. It's a pretty invaluable resource for song leaders, and useful for anyone who likes to sing in groups. The book doesn't include the melodies to the songs, just the lyrics and some chords, so I’m trying hard to find the tunes I don’t know, learn them, and post them on YouTube for anyone to learn. That’s where these videos are hosted; the blog is just pretty packaging.
Friday, November 6, 2009
Simple Gifts
Traditional Shaker
Rise up Singing chapter: Faith, p.47
D - / A - / D - A GD /
DA D / - A / D - / A GD
I sometimes play a straight D with no switch to A on the first bar of the second line ("When true simplicity is gained...") like this:
D - / A - / D - A GD /
D - / - A / D - / A GD
'Tis the gift to be simple, 'tis the gift to be free
'Tis the gift to come down where we ought to be
And when we find ourselves in the place just right
'Twill be in the garden of love and delight
When true simplicity is gained
To bow and to bend we shan't be ashamed
To turn, turn will be our delight
Til by turning, turning we come 'round right
Also possible (this is what I always thought it was):
'Tis a gift to be simple, 'tis a gift to be free
'Tis a gift to come down where we ought to be...
And there's a new version written by Victor Ferkiss and Landon Dowdey:
The earth is the Lord's and the fulness thereof
Its streets, its slums, as well as the stars above
Salvation is here where we laugh, where we cry
Where we seek and love, where we live and die
When true liberty is found
By fear and hate we will no more be bound
In love and in life we will find a new birth
In peace and in freedom redeem the earth
Please note that quakersong.org is no more. The current website for our songbook is riseupsinging.org and it includes links to tunes to nearly all the songs in RUS in an online music database called The Music Box (riseupsinging.org/musicbox)
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