Well, finally it looks like we will have a new book - in a couple of years. Peter Blood and Annie Patterson gave up on getting Sing Out! Magazine to publish a second Rise Up Singing, and they've signed a contract with Hal Leonard. Here's an e-mail from Peter Blood, dated 7 Dec 2012 (posted with permission):

Hi Joe!
Many of you have been asking us for years: when is the new songbook coming out? Well, we finally have some good news: we just signed a contract with Hal Leonard (which already distributes RUS to music stores) to do a new book with 1200 new songs for those who use & love Rise Up Singing!

We hope all of you will help us revisit the list we put together nearly 15 (OMG) years ago for another book. We attach a list of "criteria" to keep in mind in sending in suggestions.


In other news:

1. We are in the process of building a new website. It will be regularly updated with information about the new book as well as serve as a common ground space for people committed to grassroots participatory song in the tradition of Pete Seeger & Rise Up Singing. We are looking for a web developer to help us with this major project. Stay tuned. We'll let you know when it launches.

2. We are offering a holiday sale this year on our current website http://www.quakersong.org/ - free shipping on all orders & 20% off all orders of 5 or more CDs between now and January 6th. Help us clear out some inventory and raise money to help support us in the next two years of intense work bringing out the new book! If you can let the singalong folk in your area know about this we would appreciate it.

Please let us know if you need any changes to the notice for your singalong group at http://www.quakersong.org/singalongs/. Thanks for all you are doing to keep people singing!!
In song,
Annie & Peter

And an attachment:

Announcing a new songbook
by Annie Patterson & Peter Blood
(the creators of Rise Up Singing)
Rise Up Singing has helped create a singing movement around the world far beyond what we dreamed was possible when we first created it in 1988. Over the years it has become a beloved and valued resource for hundreds of thousands of music lovers and has helped people in many walks of life realize that their voices matter. We are proud of the journey that this grassroots songbook has taken over the years. Its success wouldn't have been possible without the help of so many friends who have either been there from the beginning or who have joined in along the way. Today, people sing together on a regular basis using our songbook as a resource in each other's homes & places of worship, libraries & community centers around the world. We feel grateful & humbled that our songbook has played a significant role in what Pete Seeger has called a quiet singing revolution in this new century.
Over the years songbook fans have often asked us: "When are you going to make another songbook with 1200 new songs for Rise Up Singing lovers?" The answer is…drum role, please…"NOW!" It's official. We just signed a contract with Hal Leonard Music and the work on the new book has begun.
You can help us make this new songbook just as great as the original book. We want you to help us identify your favorite songs that are not in RUS.
When we created RUS our years of songleading experience gave us a clear concept of the kinds of songs that would and wouldn't work well in the book. This time, we have a similar vision but will include more genres, different themes, and especially seek to include songs that are familiar and loved by young people today. If you want to send us your suggestions, please pay close attention to the following important guidelines and, above all, have fun!
Much love & thanks ~ Annie & Peter
What are the songs that:
•        You always thought should have been in RUS? ("How did that one get left out?!")
•        Are among the greatest easily singable RUS-type songs written in the past 30 years?
•        Are often requested or you wish you could lead when you get together to sing with others?
•        Are right "on the lips" of you & your friends?
•        You've been dying to get words & chords for to sing with family & friends?
If you want to send us a list, PLEASE include along with each song the following:
1) A way we can try out the song easily:
•        An email link to a Youtube video for the song (preferably one of good audio quality & by the song's composer or at least a well-known performer)
•        An emailed mp3 file
•        Mailing us a disc burned from your i-tune and CD collections, along with list
•        CDs that include one or more song recommendations
You can also cite a Sing Out! issue in which a song appears or copy the song from a leadsheet or songbook, but this is not the best method as it's harder to get a quick feel for the song from a leadsheet than an audio recording.
2) Background information you have about the song, (e.g. composer(s), artists who have recorded it, etc.)
3) Any evidence for including the song you can offer, such as its being widely "covered" by other artists, often sung in your circle of friends, requested at parties / singalongs, "known by all my friends", etc.

Selection Criteria.

We're looking for songs that:
1. Have easy-to-remember tunes (where you can sing the song successfully with just the lyrics & chords). Some factors that contribute to this "sing-ability" are:
•        Consistent musical structure (e.g. the melody repeats in a pattern of verses & choruses)
•        Steady, clearly defined rhythm
•        Relatively simple "catchy" melody
•        Easy and catchy chorus that has the same structure and lyrics each time
Good examples are:   This Land Is Your Land, With a Little Help from My Friends, If I Had a Hammer, O What a Beautiful Morning, Michael Row the Boat Ashore, Over the Rainbow.
2. Are not too difficult for your average "lay" singer & guitar player to pull off
•        Relatively easy chords
•        Not too wide a vocal range (e.g. more than an about 10 steps or an octave & a half)
3. Lend themselves well to group singing – e,g, songs that are
•        Used by songleaders that like to lead their audiences in songs
•        Not primarily "performance" (as opposed to participatory) type songs
•        Ones where audiences often join in when the song is performed
•        Not too lengthy (Turning Towards the Morning & I Wanna Be an Engineer are very long)
4. Are widely known - e.g. songs that
•        Were written or recorded by well-known musicians
•        Are frequently "covered" by other musicians (at performances, on CDs)
•        Appear in many songbooks (e.g. in collections of best-known songs of that particular genre)
•        Are often sung by people you know


Once again: We are very interested in songs from genres that were weakly represented in RUS – Examples include well-known, singable standards from country music, blues, bluegrass, jazz, "rock & roll", drinking songs, bawdy songs, and contemporary and African-American gospel. And we're especially looking for songs that are well-known and loved by young people under 30!



Send email submissions to: annie@quakersong.org   or peter@quakersong.org   
(Please include "song suggestions " in the subject line.)

If you want to mail us burn discs or other "hard" items, send them to:
Annie Patterson & Peter Blood
42 Jenks Street
Amherst MA 01002