Category Archives: Recording

Kids Hymns, Our New Album, Coming Soon!

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Hi, everyone! It’s Jay here.

I’ve been thinking… (Uh oh.) I didn’t grow up in a church. Well, at least not a Protestant one that sings a lot of kids songs in Sunday School. Now that I’m a little older, I can’t really decide whether or not I feel like I missed out. Let’s all agree that many of the kids songs sung in Sunday School are just not there, theologically. Some, I would say, downright miss the point or might give kids the wrong impression about God, the Gospel, and the things in life that really matter. Some songs make some really desperate situations and topics into trivialities – like they’re no big deal.

We’d like to take the best kids hymns – all of the ones some of us never got the privilege of learning when we wer young – and remake them. Make ’em cool. We’d like to mostly preserve melodies – especially for those of you who know the songs – but we’ll probably change up rhythms and chords/harmonizations.

If you have a few to suggest that we include, why don’t you go ahead and contact us. Thanks!

Beulah Land demo

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Rosa Celeste: Dante and Beatrice gaze upon the highest Heaven, The Empyrean
A while back I found an old hymnal from the early 1900’s that had a number of songs I had never seen in any modern hymnal. I’ve been working on new melodies for a few of them, and Beulah Land by Edgar Stites (1876) is one of them. My wife made the comment that she liked this one because of its warmth and homey-ness, not because of some great theological depth that we often think of hymns providing. But if thoughts of Heaven make us warm and feel at home, then Amen. That’s good theology right there.

Here’s a demo of the first verse I made using my new fancy Garageband app on my phone (so pardon the quality).

Beulah Land – Verse 1

I’ve reached the land of corn and wine,
And all its riches freely mine;
Here shines undimmed one blissful day,
For all my night has passed away.

Refrain

O Beulah Land, sweet Beulah Land,
As on thy highest mount I stand,
I look away across the sea,
Where mansions are prepared for me,
And view the shining glory shore,
My Heav’n, my home forever more!

My Savior comes and walks with me,
And sweet communion here have we;
He gently leads me by His hand,
For this is Heaven’s border land.

Refrain

A sweet perfume upon the breeze,
Is borne from ever vernal trees,
And flow’rs, that never fading grow
Where streams of life forever flow.

Refrain

The zephyrs seem to float to me,
Sweet sounds to Heaven’s melody,
As angels with the white robed throng
Join in the sweet redemption song.

Refrain