midnight
Al Bowlly & Ray Noble and His Orchestra Lyrics
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That glorious song of old
From angels bending near the earth
To touch their harps of gold
"Peace on the earth, good will to men
From heaven's all gracious king"
The world in solemn stillness lay
To hear the angels sing
Still through the cloven skies they come
With peaceful wings unfurled
And still their heavenly music floats
O'er all the weary world
Above its sad and lowly plains
They bend on hovering wing
And ever o'er its Babel sounds
The blessed angels sing
For lo, the days are hastening on
By prophet bards foretold
When with the ever-circling years
Comes 'round the age of gold
When peace shall over all the earth
It's ancient splendors fling
And our whole world give back the song
Which now the angels sing
"Midnight" is a song that sings about the appearance of angels in the night sky, playing their magnificent harps and announcing "peace on earth." It is suggested that the angels are singing to symbolize that they were excited about the birth of Jesus Christ, a tradition that celebrates the miraculous occasion of the "Savior's" birth. The song is, therefore, more an ode in praise of this special time of year, rather than a celebration of the paranormal. There is something magical and heavenly about the way that the song is sung that causes whoever listens to it to want to sing along, whether there are religious or not.
The first stanza of the song describes the moment when the angels arrived upon a "midnight clear," singing their song of peace to the world. The still and solemn mood of the moment is captured perfectly by the wording within the verse. The second stanza continues in the same vein, describing how the angels have peaceful wings and their music floats over the world. The lyricist says that the world is "weary," but the angels offer a sense of consolation and hope. The final stanza includes the prophecy that one day, the "age of gold" will arrive when peace will be all-encompassing on the earth, and there will be no more violence or conflict.
Facts about "Midnight" include that the song was first published in the year 1849. The poem "It came upon a midnight clear" was written by Edmund Hamilton Sears, and in 1850, Richard Willis composed the accompanying tune. In 1934, Ray Noble and his Orchestra, with vocalist Al Bowlly, released a version of the song that became successful, and it was added to the classic Christmas album "A Merry Christmas with Bing Crosby & the Andrews Sisters." The song has since been recorded by different artists such as Ella Fitzgerald, Josh Groban, and Michael Bublé. The famous French puppet mime Marcel Marceau also recorded a version in which he used only gestures to accompany the music. Additionally, the song has made it into several movies, including "Meet Me in St. Louis," featuring Judy Garland.
The chords for the song are as follows:
Verse 1:
C |F/C |C |G7 |C |F/C |C |G7 |
Chorus:
C |G/C |G7 |C |G/C |A7 |Dm |G7 |C|
C |G/C |G7 |C|
Verse 2:
C |F/C |C |G7 |C |F/C |C |G7 |
Chorus:
C |G/C |G7 |C |G/C |A7 |D |G7 |C|
C |G/C |G7 |C|
Verse 3:
C |F/C |C |G7 |C |F/C |C |G7|
Chorus:
C |G/C |G7 |C |G/C |A7 |Dm |G7 |C|
C |G/C |G7 |C|
Line by Line Meaning
It came upon a midnight clear
The moment of clarity and understanding arrived at midnight
That glorious song of old
A beautiful hymn from the past
From angels bending near the earth
Heaven's messengers appeared close to the ground
To touch their harps of gold
To play their celestial instruments
"Peace on the earth, good will to men
The message from the gracious ruler of heaven, to bring peace to the world"
From heaven's all gracious king"
From the king of heaven, who is merciful to all
The world in solemn stillness lay
Peaceful silence overcame the entire earth
To hear the angels sing
To listen to the beautiful voices of the divine messengers
Still through the cloven skies they come
The angels continued to descend from the sky
With peaceful wings unfurled
Their wings open to promote peace on earth
And still their heavenly music floats
And their celestial song continues to fill the air
O'er all the weary world
Across the entire exhausted earth
Above its sad and lowly plains
Over the unfortunate and humble areas of the land
They bend on hovering wing
They descend on their wings that were carefully pausing in the sky
And ever o'er its Babel sounds
And always over earth's confusion
The blessed angels sing
The divine messengers continue to sing their holy song
For lo, the days are hastening on
Because the days are moving quickly
By prophet bards foretold
As predicted by the legendary lyrics of the songs of old
When with the ever-circling years
When through the years that never end, the time arrives
Comes 'round the age of gold
When the golden era is reached
When peace shall over all the earth
When peace finally comes to the whole earth
It's ancient splendors fling
It restores the ancient glory of the land
And our whole world give back the song
And the whole world will sing the song
Which now the angels sing
The same song that the angels are singing now
Lyrics © DistroKid, Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner Chappell Music, Inc.
Written by: Edmund Hamilton Sears, Richard Storrs Willis
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
@MrAitraining
midnight with the stars and you
midnight and a rendez-vous
your eyes held a message tender
saying "I surrender all my love to you"
midnight brought us sweet romance
I know all my whole life through
I'll be remembering you
whatever else I do
midnight with the stars and you
@1391knug
I was just three years old when this song was performed; now, 87 years later, I have heard it for the first time and I will not forget it.
@apareek96
Happy 90th to you.
@1391knug
@@apareek96 Thank you.
@goldenballs0015
Happy 90th to you again
@yahaha3339
Wishing you many, many, many more years of good health, happiness & prosperity, David. You're the same age as my Dad & he's just like you, a Digital Native as well👍🏻. I ask my kids or my Dad if I need help with anything digital 🥴
@bigshoota4492
Hey hope everything is going great and keep on keeping on
@pdlcvincianne7638
Why do I feel nostalgic about an era that I haven't lived?
This song makes me travel in time, imagining myself dancing with the love of my life that I haven't encountered yet.
@karenhill3970
Me too!!!🇺🇸😘😮💨😮💨😔😔
@govinda102000
Because it's one of the greatest songs sung beautifully by one of the most incredible singers ever.
@debbiebrett6689
One of the most hauntingly beautiful songs ever. The sound of 1930's bands is something quite unique. I love it so much.