She is known for the emotional sound of her ballads. Some of her most popular songs include "Angel", "Building a Mystery", "Adia", "Possession", "Fallen", "I Will Remember You", and "World on Fire". Her best-selling album to date is Surfacing, for which she won two Grammy Awards and four Juno Awards.
Her first album Touch was released in September 28, 1988, recorded in 1987-1988, Vancouver, Canada. The album received both critical and commercial success and included the hit song Vox. During this period she co-operated with Tom Ferris and Dean Russel of Moev, who discovered her as a singer. She contributed backing vocals their 1990 album Head Down and embarked on her first national concert tour as an opening act for The Grapes Of Wrath, another Tom Ferris's band.
Her second album Solace (1991) was a real breakthrough in Canada, spawning the hit singles The Path of Thorns (Terms) and Into the Fire and being certified double platinum for sales of 200,000 copies in Canada.
In 1994 her third album Fumbling Towards Ecstasy quietly became Sarah's international breakthrough, scaling the charts in a number of countries. In the United States, the album was a steady seller that stayed in the middle ranges of the pop charts for almost two years.
Sarah's fourth album Surfacing, released in 1997, brought her international success, selling over 11 million copies worldwide. Still in the spotlight from the album, Sarah launched the highly popular Lilith Fair tour, which helped launch the careers of several well-known female artists.
Her next record Afterglow came out in 2003; it contained the singles Fallen, Stupid, and World On Fire. It was her first album of new material in six years. Sarah took a few years furlough to start a family with her husband and drummer, Ashwin Sood.
Her Holiday album Wintersong came out in October 2006. The album consists of eleven new recordings of well known Christmas songs as well as seasonal favorites interpreted by Sarah. The title track Wintersong is an original work of Sarah.
McLachlan's first studio album of original material in seven years, Laws of Illusion, was released on June 15, 2010. It features 10 new songs in addition to the previously released tracks "U Want Me 2" and "Don't Give Up on Us. The first single Loving You Is Easy was released on April 23, 2010. It was followed by Forgiveness, released on June 30, 2010.
Angels We Have Heard On High
Sarah McLachlan Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Sweetly singing o'er the plains
And the mountains in reply
Echoing their joyous strains
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
What the gladsome tidings be
Which inspire your heavenly song?
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Come to Bethlehem and see
Him whose birth the angels sing
Come adore on bended knee
Christ the Lord the newborn King
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Gloria in excelsis Deo
See him in a manger laid
Whom the choirs are the angels play
Mary, Joseph lend your aid
Why our heard seem loved the rain
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Gloria in excelsis Deo
The first verse of Sarah McLachlan's rendition of "Angels We Have Heard on High" describes the scene of angels singing sweetly over plains and mountains, with their joyful strains echoing back from the mountains. The chorus of "Gloria in excelsis Deo" translates to "Glory to God in the highest," which is a common phrase during Christmas celebrations in Christian churches. The second verse then addresses the shepherds who are hearing these joyful strains and asks why they are prolonging their joyous strains. It is a common theme in Christmas carols to address the shepherds as they were believed to be the first to hear the news of Jesus's birth.
The next line of "What the gladsome tidings be Which inspire your heavenly song?" is asking the shepherds what the good news is that they have heard. The chorus repeats the phrase "Gloria in excelsis Deo," which provides a joyful and celebratory tone to the song. The third verse then invites listeners to come to Bethlehem to see the newborn king, who is the subject of the angels' singing. It is a call to worshippers to come and see Jesus, the reason for the Christmas celebration. The final verse describes the scene of baby Jesus laying in a manger, surrounded by angels, with Mary and Joseph watching over him in awe.
Line by Line Meaning
Angels we have heard on high
We have heard angels singing beautifully over the plains
Sweetly singing o'er the plains
The angels were singing in a delightful manner over the plains
And the mountains in reply
The mountains echoed back the joyous singing of the angels
Echoing their joyous strains
The echoes were repeating the beautiful singing of the angels
Gloria in excelsis Deo
Glory to God in the highest
Shepherds, why this jubilee?
Why are you so happy, shepherds?
Why your joyous strains prolong?
Why are you continuing to sing so joyfully?
What the gladsome tidings be
What is the good news that you are celebrating?
Which inspire your heavenly song?
What inspired you to sing this beautiful song?
Come to Bethlehem and see
Come to Bethlehem and witness for yourself
Him whose birth the angels sing
The angels are singing about the birth of Christ
Come adore on bended knee
Come and worship on your knees
Christ the Lord the newborn King
Christ is the Lord and the newborn King
See him in a manger laid
Look at him lying in a manger
Whom the choirs of angels praise
The choirs of angels are praising him
Mary, Joseph lend your aid
Mary and Joseph, please help
While our hearts in love we raise
As we lift our hearts in love
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC, Songtrust Ave, Kobalt Music Publishing Ltd.
Written by: Steven Lee Lukather, Jeffrey R Babko, Traditional, Sarah Mclachlan, Pierre Marchand
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Christie Raley
This is nothing short of angelic! ❤️
Alan Gauthier
100 percent right! Angelic.
davekanak
She is like a shot in the arm of faith. Glorious Sarah. :)
tearsofra
Lovely 🌹
G. D.
wonderfullll voice!! she sings so honestly!
rose jane
Sarah McLaughlin is beautiful and has the voice of a angel I love her always and forever 💓👌
Sharon McComas
Most beautiful version of this song. Wow
megan mosch
the voice of an angel
Alan Gauthier
Glory to God! Unbelievable. Simply beautiful!
kirk watson
The more we hear them,the more we know