Lyr Req: There's a Song in the Air

Subject: There's a song in the air
From: Gary T
Date: 25 Nov 99 - 07:43 AM

Looking for the lyrics for this Christmas song. I'm pretty sure that's the first line, may also be the title. Last 2 lines of first verse are "And the star rains its fire while the beautiful sing, for the manger in Bethlehem cradles a king", or something like that. Thanks.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: There's a song in the air
From: Gary T
Date: 25 Nov 99 - 07:47 AM

I'm not waiting until I reach retirement age to get forgetful--I'm practicing now! (BG) I forgot to say, it seems to me it's a 3-chord song, but if it's not, I'd also like the chord sequence. Thanks again.

Subject: ADD: There's a song in the air
From:
Date: 25 Nov 99 - 09:09 AM

THERE'S A SONG IN THE AIR
(Words by Josiah G. Holland, Music by Karl P. Harrington)

There's a song in the air!
There's a star in the sky!
There's a mother's deep prayer,
And a Baby's low cry!
And the start rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
For the manger of Bethlehem cradles a King!

There's a tumult of joy,
O'er the wonderful birth,
For the Virgin's sweet boy
Is the Lord of the earth.
Ay! The star rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
For the manger of Bethlehem cradles a King!

In the light of that star
Lie the ages impearled,
And that song from afar
Has swept over the world,
Ev'ry hearth is aflame, and the beautiful sing
In the homes of the nations that Jesus is King!

We rejoice in the light,
And we echo the song
That comes down through the night
From the heavenly throng;
Ay! We shout to the lovely evangel they bring,
And we greet in His cradle our Saviour the King!

Words by Josiah G. Holland
Music by Karl P. Harrington

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: There's a song in the air
From: Gary T
Date: 25 Nov 99 - 11:09 AM

That's great, thank you!

Subject: Lyr/Chords Add: THERE'S A SONG IN THE AIR
From: Genie
Date: 09 Dec 01 - 03:22 AM

Delighted to find these lyrics posted here. I used to sing this as a child, but I was not sure I could remember all the verses. It can be done with 3 chords, but here's an only slightly more complex chord pattern that I think works better.

Genie

There's A Song In The Air
 Words: Josiah G. Holland; Music: Karl P. Harrington
               G            D7                  G              D7
There's a song in the air!  There's a star in the sky!
                 G                    D7                A7           D7
There's a mother's deep prayer, and a baby's low cry!
              G               C (Cm)             D          D7
And the star rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
              G            C         Cm    D       D7   G
For the manger of Bethlemhem cradles a King!
 

There's a tumult of joy, o'er the wonderful birth,
For the Virgin's sweet boy is the Lord of the earth.
Ay! The star rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
For the manger of Bethlehem cradles a King!

In the light of that star lie the ages impearled,
And that song from afar has swept over the world,
Ev'ry hearth is aflame, and the beautiful sing
In the homes of the nations where Jesus is King!

We rejoice in the light, and we echo the song
That comes down through the night from the heavenly throng.
Ay!  We shout to the lovely evangel they bring,
And we greet in His cradle our Saviour and King!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: There's a song in the air
From: masato sakurai
Date: 09 Dec 01 - 03:44 AM

It's in the Cyber Hymnal. CLICK HERE.
~Masato

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: There's a song in the air
From: Gary T
Date: 10 Dec 01 - 12:36 AM

I've been using this chord sequence:

            D           A              D           A   
  There's a song in the air! There's a star in the sky!
            D             A             Bm         A   
  There's a mother's deep prayer, and a baby's low cry!
          D              D              A         A    
  And the star rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
          D         G         A         D    
  For the manger of Bethlehem cradles a king!

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: There's a song in the air
From: Genie
Date: 10 Dec 01 - 09:49 PM

This song brings back memories of my childhood which are funny now, less funny then. I'm a preacher's kid, and when we would sing this song in church, at the part where it says, "... the beautiful sing ...," my older brother would poke me and say something like, "That lets you out, 'cause your're ugly!"

Ah, the joys of siblinghood!

Genie

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: There's a song in the air
From: Joe Offer
Date: 24 Dec 05 - 04:22 PM

I have to say that I've never completely liked this song, although I have to say that the traditional tune sticks in my mind. There's something about it that sounds too "commercial," too closely associated with the megachurches. I thought it was relatively modern, and was surprised to know that the usual tune dates to 1905, and the lyrics to 1874. The lyrics and tune in the version above are from the 1989 United Methodist Hymnal. The lyrics and tune in this post are from the 1975 Baptist Hymnal. The lyrics are only slightly different (shown in italics), but I have to say I like the tune a whole lot better.
Merry Christmas!
-Joe Offer-

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There's a Song in the Air
(Josiah Holland and B.F. White)

There's a song in the air!
There's a star in the sky!
There's a mother's deep prayer,
And a Baby's low cry!
And the star rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
For the manger of Bethlehem cradles a King!

There's a tumult of joy,
O'er the wonderful birth,
For the Virgin's sweet boy
Is the Lord of the earth.
And the star rains its fire while the beautiful sing,
For the manger of Bethlehem cradles a King!

In the light of that star
Lies redemption unfurled;,
And that song from afar
Has swept over the world,
Ev'ry hearth is aflame, and the beautiful sing
In the homes of the nations that Jesus is King!

We rejoice in the light,
And we echo the song
That comes down through the night
From the heavenly throng;
And we shout to the lovely evangel they bring,
And we greet in His cradle our Savior and King!


Words by Josiah G. Holland 1874
Tune KOHOUTEK (Worlds Above), attributed to B.F. White in The Sacred Harp, 1844 - adapted by Carlton R. Young.

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Click to play

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Here's background information from The Baptist Hymnal Companion:

This hymn by Josiah G. Holland appeared as early as 1874 in W.T. Giffe's sunday school collection, The Brilliant (p. 107), set to BETHLEHEM by Josiah Osgood. It later appeared in Holland's Complete Poetical Writings (1879). The first hymnal to use this text was The Methodist Hymnal (1905).
KOHOUTEK is based on a tune attributed to B.F. White in The Sacred Harp (2nd edition, 1850, No. 315), where it is called WORLDS ABOVE and is set to Isaac Watts's hymn "Lord, of all the worlds above." Carlton R. Young's adaptation of the melody, with new harmonization, was made for men's voices to be sung at a Christmas chapel service at Perking School of Theology, Dallas, Texas, in December, 1966. Arranged for mixed voices, this choral number was first published in The Church Musician (Nashville, December, 1967). The hymn-tune version was made for this (Baptist) hymnal, and was named by the arranger for the comet which was discovered March 18, 1973, and became visible in December of that year.

---

I think Carlton Young did a darn good job of it, and I like the story about the comet.
Merry Christmas!

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: There's a song in the air
From: Genie
Date: 04 Jan 06 - 11:49 PM

The chords I posted are for the tune in the CyberHymnal, which Masato linked to. (Thanks, Masato!)

Maybe it's because I was sort of weaned on that tune, but I really prefer it to the other.
Yes, it is stylistically similar to a lot of the other hymns I grew up with, but at the same time it doesn't remind me the least bit of any other Christmas carol melodies. That makes it kind of distinctive at Christmas time.

The CyberHymnal MIDI does sound very "march-like" -- the way just about everything my grandma did when she would play the piano. LOL
But it doesn't have to sound like a march if it's sung more lyrically and slowly. It has a very joyous sound.

Genie

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: There's a song in the air
From: masato sakurai
Date: 05 Jan 06 - 12:06 AM

Genie, how about this one, midi file sequenced by me?

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: There's a song in the air
From: Kaleea
Date: 05 Jan 06 - 12:33 AM

I have worked as a church Musician for most of my adult life, so naturally, this song is quite familiar to me. It sometimes is found in children's Christmas pagents. Weird as it may seem, I always liked it. I've used both versions, depending upon what church I was in at the time & what hymnal they used. I don't hear a "commercial" aspect, though I hear a more modern aspect to the song when compared to many of the carols which are a few hundred years old.

Subject: RE: Req/ADD: There's a song in the air
From: Genie
Date: 05 Jan 06 - 06:39 PM

Thanks, Masato.   Yeah, I like that last MIDI a lot better.

And I agree about the melody, Kaleea. A lot of the hymns I grew up with resembled the popular songs of the late 19th C. or very early 20th C. structurally and melodically.   So does the tune I know for Song In The Air.   Quite different from Silent Night (1818) or the carol melodies spawned by Handel, Mendelsohnn (sp?), etc., or stemming from medieval tunes.

Subject: RE: Lyr Req: There's a song in the air
From: GUEST
Date: 24 Jul 10 - 12:11 AM

I went hunting for this hymn which I had not seen since Christmas 1944 in a POW camp in N. China. I was glad to find I was correct in the    three verses I recalled. We were in a former American Mission Compound in Weihsien. [e-mail].