Since 1986, Groce has hosted the public radio program Mountain Stage.
Biography:
Groce was born in Dallas, Texas, on April 22, 1948. He attended W.H. Adamson High School with future musicians Michael Martin Murphey, Ray Wylie Hubbard, and B. W. Stevenson.
After school, Groce moved around the States — St. Louis, New York, Los Angeles — singing folk music and rhyming tales. Groce recorded four LPs on small labels like Peaceable and Daybreak in the '70s, with his band—Berke McKelvey (bass), and the Currence brothers, Jimmie (banjo, fiddle) and Loren (guitar, fiddle, mandolin); Walt Disney's Vista label Activity Records issued his "Winnie the Pooh For President" as a single. He also recorded the "Disney Children's Favorites" albums on Disneyland Records, featuring many well-loved children's songs, as well as several other Disney recordings during the late 1970s and early 1980s, including the two "Disney Christmas Favorites" LPs.
Early in the 1970s, Groce went to work for the National Endowment for the Arts program which funded appearances by artists in public schools. Groce was sent to West Virginia where working with kids inspired him to write the humorous "Junk Food Junkie", which was recorded in 1975 in front of a live audience at McCabe's in Santa Monica, California. The song, released as a single in early 1976, quickly became a hit in the United States, where it spent 15 weeks on Billboard's Hot 100 chart, peaking at number nine in the week of March 20, 1976.[2] One line in the song says the singer is "a friend to old Euell Gibbons", a naturalist known for appearing in TV commercials for Grape Nuts cereal; ironically, Gibbons died[3] just before "Junk Food Junkie" was released.
The song was followed up by an album and several more novelty numbers. None of them charted, and Groce returned to his work with children. He has written numerous children's songs, several of which have been included on the Disney Children's Favorites albums, including his song "Just For You". He currently lives in Charleston, West Virginia, and is the host of the National Public Radio music program Mountain Stage.
Groce also recorded two albums of hymns in the 1970s and has recently released a Best Of Larry Groce CD, taken from those albums, and another CD of new hymns called On Joyful Wing (Mar 2009).
He has also been in the movie Paradise Park.
[edit]References
Away In a Manger
Larry Groce Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
No crib for His bed
The little Lord Jesus
Laid down His sweet head
The stars in the bright sky
Looked down where
He lay The little Lord Jesus
Asleep on the hay
But little Lord Jesus No crying
He makes I love Thee,
Lord Jesus Look down from the sky
And stay by my side, 'Til morning is nigh.
Be near me, Lord Jesus,
I ask Thee to stay Close by me forever
And love me I pray
Bless all the dear children In Thy tender care
And take us to heaven To live with Thee there
The song "Away in a Manger" tells the story of the birth of Jesus Christ. It depicts a scene in a stable where Jesus was born. The lyrics describe how the baby Jesus was laid in a manger as there was no room for him in the inn. As he lay there, the stars in the sky and the cattle in the stable gazed upon him. Though the cattle began to low, the baby Jesus did not cry. In the last two verses of the song, the singer addresses Jesus and asks him to stay by their side, and bless all the children and take them to Heaven to live with him.
This song is sung as a lullaby and is about finding comfort in the Lord's protection. The imagery of stars and animals creates a dreamlike, peaceful atmosphere. The song has a message of simplicity and humility, as portrayed by the impoverished stable, the lowing cattle, and the humble birthplace of Jesus. The song also encapsulates the message that Jesus was born to bring salvation to mankind.
Line by Line Meaning
Away in a manger,
In a place far from the bustle of the city, there was a manger where the baby Jesus was born.
No crib for His bed
The baby had no bed, except a wooden manger.
The little Lord Jesus
The baby in the manger was God himself, born on Earth as a human.
Laid down His sweet head
The Christ child laid down his head on the hay in the manger.
The stars in the bright sky
The stars above the manger shone brightly.
Looked down where He lay
The stars looked down on the place where the baby Jesus was born.
The little Lord Jesus
The baby in the manger was God himself, born on Earth as a human.
Asleep on the hay
The Christ child was sound asleep on the bed of hay.
The cattle are lowing
The cows in the stable were mooing.
The poor Baby wakes
The baby Jesus woke up from the sound of the cows mooing.
But little Lord Jesus
Despite waking up, the baby was calm and composed.
No crying He makes
The baby made no noise at all and did not cry.
I love Thee, Lord Jesus
The singer expressed their love for Jesus.
Look down from the sky
The singer asked Jesus to look down upon them from heaven.
And stay by my side, 'Til morning is nigh.
The singer wished for Jesus to remain with them until morning.
Be near me, Lord Jesus,
The artist wanted Jesus to be nearby.
I ask Thee to stay
The artist asked Jesus to stay with them.
Close by me forever
The singer prayed for Jesus to always be by their side.
And love me I pray
The singer prayed for Jesus' eternal love.
Bless all the dear children
The artist asked for Jesus to bless all the children.
In Thy tender care
The artist asked Jesus to take care of the children.
And take us to heaven
The artist wished to go to heaven with Jesus.
To live with Thee there
The singer wished to live with Jesus in heaven.
Contributed by Aaliyah E. Suggest a correction in the comments below.
jfamily07no1
My beloved Christmas album from childhood....thank you sooo much!!!
Stacy Thomas
Larry Groce and the kids did such a great job on this song
Brian Runyon
Very beautiful version.
Kenneth Duffy
Thank you for posting this. My favorite Christmas song as a child.
Jennifer C
Omg I remember this album from my childhood, I loved this album so much as a kid