Lena Horne: June 30, 1917 – May 9, 2010

Legendary songstress Lena Horne passed away on Sunday. Lena broke through the color barrier early in her career and later participated in the civil rights movement of the 60's.

Here's the AP news release (please pardon the commercial that precedes it) and perhaps her most famous song. Following those, a few things just for fun. I vote for Moon River as tops in this group!

~~~~~

AP News Release



~~~~~

"Stormy Weather"
Full version from 1943



~~~~~

"It's Not Easy Being Green"
Lena Horne and Kermit the Frog



~~~~~

"I Got Rhythm"
Lena Horne (source unknown)



~~~~~

"I Feel So Smoochy"
Original 1940's recording
Re-released in 1958


This one was for my dad.
"Smoochy" sounds like a word in his vocabulary!

Sound of Majesty Bonus: The Glen Ellyn-Wheaton Chorale

Those of you who are in the Chicagoland area can check out the 25th Anniversary Concert of the Glen-Ellyn Wheaton Chorale this Friday or Saturday. Tickets are just $15 in advance, with discounts for students and seniors.

The chorale is directed by Sound of Majesty host Greg Wheatley.

~~~~~

Promotional Video
featuring Greg Wheatley



~~~~~

Excerpt from Vivaldi's Gloria
The Glen Ellyn-Wheaton Chorale

Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Chorus @ Martin Luther College

Here's the concert of the Wisconsin Lutheran Seminary Chorus at Martin Luther College in New Ulm, Minnesota.

These are schools of the Wisconsin Evangelical Lutheran Synod and their sole purpose is the training of church workers.

Please let All for Hymn know of any other sacred concerts available for embed on the net. You can drop the suggestion in any comment box.

Bob Dylan, Wierd Al and Palindromes: What a combination!

I, MAN, AM REGAL; A GERMAN AM I.

One side topic I wanted to incorporate with this blog was usage and grammar.  I don't see many people writing about this, so I do not have a reference point to go off of (please excuse the dangling participle!).

On a side note, if you know of blogs or other sites that deal with these subjects, feel free to leave a link in the comments.

Back to the topic at hand, facebook friend Bob posted this video from Weird Al Yankovic.  It is a parody of a Bob Dylan song that uses all palindromes.  A palendrome is a word of phrase that is spelled the same forwards and backwards.  Simple palendromes include the word, "noon" and the name, "Bob."  A classic palendrome sentence is, "Able was I, ere I saw Elba."  Another example (provided by Weird Al) is found at the top of this post.

This literary device does not get used much in the church realm, but it does get you thinking about creative writing, so here is Weird Al's "Bob" followed by the original Bob Dylan work, "Subterranian Homesick Blues."

~~~~~

"Bob" by Weird Al Yankovic


~~~~~

"Subterranean Homesick Blues" by Bob Dylan


~~~~~

Note: Can someone explain to me what They Might Be Giant's "I Palindrome I" has to do with Palindromes?

Happy Mother's Day

... to Jewish mothers everywhere!  No, my mother is Jewish (at least going back a couple generations) but these boys happen to be singing to their Jewish mothers.

I once noted to a Jewish friend, some of us are Jewish by blood, others are Jewish by our baptism.  In other words, God chose the ancient Hebrews as His people out of all the other nations.  He preserved a blood line that stretched from Adam all the way to Jesus.

God's plan of salvation was not exclusive to the ancient Hebrews though. He continues to call people from every tribe and nation.  To those who are called later in life, He plants faith in their hearts through the spoken or written Word and forgives and seals them through the "external Word" of Baptism.  To those who are called from birth, Baptism imparts faith and forgiveness and places God's seal on the individual.  In human terms, these infants or young children are not able to believe for themselves, yet with God's promise carried out through the ancient prophets of the Hebrews and fulfilled in our Lord, Jesus Christ faith is imparted into these individuals through the miracle of Baptism.

Here's Shmacapella with the African Freedom Song (Siyahamba, or We are Marching in the Light of God) and a little Mother's Day surprise in the middle.

Deep River: Paul Robeson or William Warfield?

Facebook friend Aaron noted that "Deep River is best with Paul Robeson."

What about William Warfield?" I wondered.

I will leave it to my readership to decide, thanks to the miracle of modern youtube and an old wind-up record player. Cast your votes in the comment box.

Paul Robeson from the 1936 version of Showboat

~~~~~

William Warfield, probably around 1951,
the year MGM's Showboat was released.

Off Topic: Tigers Broadcaster Ernie Harwell Tribute

If you lived in or around Michigan or could pick up the Tigers broadcast over WJR Radio in Detroit, you would most likely hear the voice of Ernie Harwell behind the mic. He began broadcasting for the Tigers in 1960.

The Lord called Ernie home a few days ago. Ernie's speaks of God's work in his life at this tribute to him before a game in September, 2009.