Hymns for the Weary

I have been playing the piano as an accompanist to Christian congregational singing for over twenty years. When I first started, my skills and sensibilities were only in the “contemporary” vein, playing simple chords behind more popular and modern tunes. But as the years went by, what endured both in my life and the lives of the believers around me were traditional hymns. This should not be a surprise because many of these hymns have already stood the test of time over generations and cultures.

For many years I have been asked to play a gentle medley of well-known hymns for various church related functions such as weddings and memorial services. This recording is intended to serve that purpose both for public functions or for private reflection. It has been designed as a “gapless” CD, the benefits of which are lost when computer audio programs add fancy features like shuffling and fading. To understand the flow of the entire recording, turn off these features.

This recording has come about in part because I have been the recipient of a world class grand piano by God’s incredible grace to me and my family. Since I have some basic recording gear, this was tracked live in my living room near Nashville, TN. I hope that the gaffes or noises you might hear because this is a live project will add to its’ authenticity and give you the sense that you’re right in the room with me.

If you aren’t familiar with these hymns, let me encourage you to look them up and read their lyrics to understand the ideas and emotions these tunes are trying to convey. When I studied jazz in college, we were required to read the lyrics to the standards that make up instrumental jazz even though we were not likely to hear them sung.

May these melodies and the lyrics they hopefully call to mind minister to you in times of weariness as they have to me.