Yesterday was once Scrambled Eggs

Did you know The Beatles originally called their hit song ‘Scrambled Eggs’? The song, Yesterday, was originally composed by Paul McCartney. He was living with the parents of his then girlfriend, Jane Asher. He’s stated that he lived in a small attic room in the family’s house. He’d saved enough money to buy a piano Read More

Jesus Loves Me

Jesus Loves Me is the best loved children’s song of all time. The words were written by Anna Bartlett Warner, who was born in 1827. Warner could trace her lineage back to the Puritan Pilgrims on both sides. Her father was Henry Warner, a well known New York City lawyer originally from New England, and Read More

Alexander’s Ragtime Band

This hit was written by Irving Berlin in 1911. The belief is the song refers to the then “new ideas” of standard music that was popping up, from ragtime to the blues and jazz. Vaudeville singer Emma Carus introduced the song and helped make it popular. By the time the Titanic sailed in April 1912, Read More

Nearer, My God, To Thee, Last Song Played As the Titanic Sinks

Nearer, My God, To Thee is commonly believed to be the last song the Titanic played as the ship sank. The popular hymn was written by Sarah Flower Adams and is loosely based on Jacob’s dream in Genesis 28:11-19. This hymn is considered by hymnology students to be the finest hymn ever written by a Read More

Autumn, heard the night of Titanic’s Sinking

There are conflicting reports among survivors regarding the last song the Band played as the Titanic was sinking. We know it was either “Autumn” or “Nearer My God to Thee.” We will discuss the later song next time. Let’s take a look at “Autumn”. I’m familiar with this legend, but knew nothing about the song. Read More

Songs Heard on the Titanic

The White Star Line Songbook Had More than 150 Songs for the musicians to learn. The songs were mainly upbeat and consisted of ragtime and waltzes. Hymns would have been appropriate for Sunday services. The musicians were expected to know all of these songs by memory and play any of them upon request from a Read More

Heroes: The Titanic Band

“They kept it up to the very end. Only the engulfing ocean had power to drown them into silence. The band was playing ‘Nearer, My God, to Thee.’ I could hear it distinctly. The end was very close.” -CHARLOTTE COLLYER, TITANIC SURVIVOR We have all heard the stories of how the Titanic orchestra played until Read More

Christ Arose

Friday we discussed “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross”. The good news is Jesus didn’t stay dead. On Easter Sunday one of the most common hymns you hear in a service is “Christ Arose.” The hymn was written by Robert Lowry, a pastor and musician. Lowry served churches in New York, New Jersey, and Pennsylvania. Read More

Here Comes Peter Cottontail

    As a child I learned to sing, Here Comes Peter Cottontail. So who is Peter Cottontail? Thornton W. Burgess wrote a series of books using the name Peter Cottontail. In 1957 Pricilla and Otto Friedrich wrote The Easter Bunny That Overslept. In 1971 an Easter television special was made based off of this Read More

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross

For Good Friday, I thought we would take a look at a song about Jesus death. When I Survey the Wondrous Cross was inspired by Galatians 6:14: “May I never boast except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, through which the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world.” Isaac Read More