have just been asked to write an article for a magazine. (I don’t know if I’m at liberty to disclose the publication, so I’ll err on the side of caution here. I will say that it’s one that I’m honored to be asked to write for, however.) And I could use some help.
The article that I’ve been asked to write is a brief history of several holiday hymns. Specifically, I have been asked to write about one Thanksgiving hymn and several Christmas hymns.
I have a month to write the article (and it won’t be a long one — about 1200 words total), but I want to get started on it. Here’s where I could use some input from you, my faithful and wonderful readers.
What are some Thanksgiving or Christmas hymns that are special to you? In other words, what would be hymns of which you would be interested in reading the history? The history of some hymns is well-known. Others have lesser-known heritages. I’m thinking it would be nice to focus on ones that aren’t especially familiar stories, even if they are familiar songs. But I don’t have a huge amount of time to research, either, so I may have to bend on that! 
Anyway, I’m open to suggestions. Fire away! And when the article actually gets published, I’ll be sure to let you all know.
Until next time,
steve 
Thanksgiving: Come Ye Thankful People, Come
Christmas: Thou Didst Leave Thy Throne
I dost not have a penchant for archaic titles, just happeneth to enjoy these two hymns.;)
Good luck with the article, Steve.
Steve,
I only know of two official “Thanksgiving” hymns – at least, we only sang two when I was growing up – “God of our fathers” and “We gather together”.
However, a couple of years ago, my family recognized that people start singing Christmas songs early because there are not many Thanksgiving songs, so we wrote some… using traditional Christmas tunes.
Our favorite is called “Silent Turkey” (to the tune of “Silent Night”)
Silent turkey, golden-baked turkey.
Give me a breast. Give me a thigh.
Add some taters, pile ‘em high.
And a slice of pumpkin pie.
I will loosen my belt. I will loosen my belt.
You can use that one if you would like too.
Seriously, I don’t know of any other “Thanksgiving” songs.
My favorite Christmas hymn is “O Come, O Come Emmanuel”.
-Alan
“O Come, O Come Emmanuel”
“O, Holy Night”
And personally, I would like to know the history behind “Feliz Navidad” although I doubt your publisher will find it suitable.
Congrats on the writing gig.
Congratulations on the article! That’s cool!
I have always been partial to I Wonder as I Wander, which if my memory is serving me correctly, it is an Appalachian hymn.
I’ll cast my vote for O Come O Come Emmanuel, too. However, I am drawing a big blank on Thanksgiving hymns, other than the traditional two or three that regularly get sung in church services.
Best of luck on writing the article. I know you will do well!
I really like O Come, O Come Emmanuel, O Holy Night, and Silent Night. (Right on, Gordon!)
I don’t think they are hymns, but enjoy I Saw Three Ships and Good King Wenceslas.
Actually, is there a difference between carol and hymn?
Steve, I’m not going to be terribly helpful on your article, but I wanted to stop by and let you know that last weekend we had a “Steve Sensenig weekend”!
On Friday evening we attended the end-of-music-camp concert in Rosen Hall. One of the campers, Rachel Barry, is a family friend so we had to take in the final results of her long month at camp. We were blown away by how talented those kids are. We also were just blessed right out of our socks by your incredible accompaniament skills. (I SAW that piano bounce a couple of times! Dude, you can PLAY!)
Then on Sunday, we took my visiting mother-in-law to see “Keep on the Sunny Side” about the Carter family. Again we enjoyed the fruit of your musical gifts there. Thanks!
One of these days we need to share a meal with your family. It’s high time we all met in person!
Warmly,
Barb Kelley
Nephos, I thank thee for thine input into this situation. Thou speakest in a funny manner, though.
Alan, maybe if I was writing for “The Onion”, your turkey song would be a great suggestion
I enjoyed the laugh.
Gordon, thanks for your input. “O Come, O Come” is definitely one of my favorites, too. You’re probably right about “Feliz Navidad”, but I’ll see what I can dig up anyway while I’m at it
Tony, I believe you are correct about “I Wonder…” being an Appalachian song. I might have to consider that one since I live here in the Appalachians! And you are right about Thanksgiving hymns. Not too many of those.
Mike, good question about carol vs. hymn. I’m not sure what the difference is. My writing limit for this article won’t allow me to delve into that question, but it’s a good one anyway, and you have me curious now!
Barbara, nice to see you again! It’s been a long time, and I was starting to think maybe you had forgotten about us!
Thank you for your very kind comments about my playing at Cannon Camp last week. It was a fun concert for me, and the kids seemed to really enjoy me being there.
And I hope you enjoyed “Sunny Side”. It was a great cast to work with, although it feels very weird to music direct a show and then not actually be part of the performances (this was a first for me).
Do you know if the Rachel you mentioned is the same Rachel I played for in voice lessons during camp?
By the way, we really do need to share a meal together with your family. I haven’t talked about it here on this blog yet, but there is a possibility that we might be moving away from Boone sometime in the next year. (The move would be to Abingdon, VA, so still not too far away, but not here in Boone.)
Maybe we should meet at Panera or something? Email me or Christy and let us know.
Count Your Blessings for Thanksgiving. selahV