I Bid You Goodnight

Lay down my dear brother, lay down and take your rest
I want to lay your head upon your Savior’s breast
I love you but Jesus loves you best
I bid you goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
I bid you goodnight, goodnight, goodnight

Lay down my dear brother, lay down and take your rest
I want to lay your head upon your Savior’s breast
I love you but Jesus loves you best
I bid you goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
I bid you goodnight

One of these mornings bright and early and soon, goodnight
Now they’re pickin’ up the spirit to the shore beyond, goodnight
Go walking in the valley of the shadow of death, goodnight
His rod and his staff, gonna comfort me, goodnight
Join the wise, there’s a soul to find, goodnight
[From: http://www.elyrics.net/read/a/aaron-neville-lyrics/i-bid-you-goodnight-lyrics.html ]

Lord send a fire, not a flood next time, goodnight
To leave for the ark, that wonderful boat, goodnight
She really loaded down, getting water to float, goodnight
Now be for the beast at the ending of the world, goodnight
He’ll eat all the children that would not be good, goodnight

I remember right well, I remember right well, goodnight
I went walking to Jerusalem just like John
Goodnight, goodnight, woh goodnight

Lay down my dear brother, lay down and take your rest
I wanna lay your head upon your Saviors breast
I love you, but Jesus loves you best
I bid you goodnight, goodnight, goodnight
I bid you goodnight, goodnight, goodnight

To buy the Music of Robert Plant click HERE

Sunday Sounds – The Blind Boys Of Alabama

Today’s Sunday Sounds features the legendary Blind Boys of Alabama and their version if the iconic “Amazing Grace”.

“Amazing Grace” is a Christian hymn written by English poet and clergyman John Newton (1725–1807) published in 1779. With a message that forgiveness and redemption is possible regardless of the sins people commit and that the soul can be delivered from despair through the mercy of God, “Amazing Grace” is one of the most recognizable songs in the English-speaking world, it is estimated that it is performed 10 million times a year.

This particular version taken from a Daytrotter Session, recorded on the 29th March 2010, departs slightly from the norm as the song is sung to the tune “House Of The Rising Sun” which is very much regarded as being an american traditional folk song, also known as “Rising Sun Blues”.  Alan Price of The Animals who had the biggest hit version of the songs has often claimed that the song was originally a sixteenth-century English folk song about a Soho brothel, and that English emigrants took the song to America where it was adapted to its later New Orleans setting.

“Amazing Grace” – The Blind Boys of Alabama

To buy the music of The Blind Boys of Alabama click HERE

Anniversary

It is hard to believe that it was a year ago today that Gordon Lennon was so cruelly taken from us following his tragic accident.

Much water has passed under the bridge since then, from the initial shock, subsequent grieving and thereafter the series of fund raising events staged to raise money for Kelly and Kai all magnificently organised and managed by Robert Ryan and his numerous hard working committee members.

The final event held recently in the form of a Memorial Dinner was a fitting close to nearly a year of hard mental and physical work on the part of many.

For the family and friends today will be latest of many milestones they will have faced over the last 12 months be it key birthdays, family occassions or DFC events.

Through the year we will all have moved on to  varying degrees, some may even now as they read this feel that events may have dragged on too long, such a view doesn’t make anyone a “bad person”  there is no wrong or right process or concept when handling grief.

Those closest to Gordon will have seen people return to complete normality in their lives whilst they continue to carry the weight of the loss, this is life and although today will be another landmark reached it will not be conclusive, such circles can never be fully closed.

Hard times will continue to face them all, people say time is a healer, personally I have yet to experience any evidence of this at best it can be an enabler which allows one to function at times with some form of normality, whatever that is, life is like a book full of chapters some short some long, some happy some sad, but whenever one closes another opens the door for new experiences and unless we live that chapter we won’t know whether it will be good or bad.

Life is for living,  experience it the best you can, but there will always be room for memories.

“Can’t Give Up Now” – Mary Mary

There will be mountains that I will have to climb
And there will be battles that I will have to fight
But victory or defeat, it’s up to me to decide
But how do I expect to win if I never try.

I just can’t give up now
I’ve come too far from where I started from
Nobody told me the road would be easy
and I don’t believe he brought me this far to leave me

Never said there wouldn’t be trials
Never said I wouldn’t fall
Never said that everything would go the way I want it to go
But when my back is against the wall
And i feel all hope is gone,
I’ll just lift my head up to the sky
And say help me to be strong

I just can’t give up now
I’ve come too far from where I started from
Nobody told me the road would be easy
and I don’t believe he brought me this far to leave me

[Hook:]
I know you didn’t bring me out here to leave me lonely
Even when I can’t see clearly
I know that you are with me(so I can’t)

I just can’t give up now
I’ve come too far from where I started from
Nobody told me the road would be easy
and I don’t believe he brought me this far to leave me bullshit fuck this

To buy the music of Mary Mary click HERE

Sunday Sounds – London Community Gospel Choir

Largely recognised as the pioneers of Gospel music in the UK, The London Community Gospel Choir was founded in 1982 by the Reverend Bazil Meade with the assistance of Lawrence Johnson, Delroy Powell and John Francis.

Initially the idea was to stage a one-off concert. The 120-strong choir concert was staged before an audience of more than a thousand and what started as a one-off event soon matured into a legacy of 25 years travelling and performing worldwide. Currently the choirs membership is some 35 members.

Meade explains: “We were formed from those who were passionate about their faith and were willing to take gospel music into venues that many churches at that time dared not enter.”

The success of the evening at Kensington Temple led to enquiries for appearances in television, radio and various corporate functions across the UK and Europe. The choirs debut television performance on Channel Four’s ‘Black On Black’ proved a resounding success and led to calls from popular artists for Musicians and Singers.

They recorded a version of the OutKast hit “Hey Ya!” with Razorlight (the B-side to their single “Vice”), featured on Will Young’s debut album, From Now On, and sang on Blur’s hit, “Tender”. They also provided backing vocals on the Erasure self-titled album Erasure (1995) and throughout the Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (2005) double album Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus. They also performed in the songs Don’t Get Lost in Heaven and Demon Days on the Gorillaz’ Demon Days album. The choir has also recorded with Paul McCartney, Elton John, Westlife, Tori Amos and Madonna. They gained a worldwide audience as the backing choir turned out head-to-toe in white for Madonna’s Live 8 performance of her hit single Like A Prayer.

This year they have released an album “Glorious” which is targeted at the coffee table religous set, cashing in on the Katherine Jenkins market.

Don’t let that put you off as if you like the sounds of Mahalia Jackson then you may find some interest in this, though me I’ll stick with Mahalia.

This song must be the most covered in recent times

“Hallelujah” – The London Community Gospel Choir

To buy the music of the London Community Gospel Choir click HERE