Norman Luboff (May 14, 1917 - September 22, 1987) was an American music arr… Read Full Bio ↴Norman Luboff (May 14, 1917 - September 22, 1987) was an American music arranger and choir director.

Born in Chicago, Illinois he was taught piano as a child and was part of his high school chorus. Luboff studied at the University of Chicago after which he wrote programs and sang for a Chicago radio station. In the mid-1940s, Luboff moved to New York City to expand his musical horizons but it would be in Hollywood where he would achieve national fame, doing the choral and vocal arrangements for a number of motion pictures. In 1950, he established the Walton Music Corporation to publish his musical works. However, he is best remembered as the founder and conductor of the Norman Luboff Choir, recognized worldwide as one of the leading choral groups of the 1950s, 60s and 70s. The choral group toured extensively and recorded more than seventy-five albums. The holiday albums Songs of Christmas (1956) and Christmas with the Norman Luboff Choir (1964) were perennial bestsellers for years, and the former remains in print as a compact disc re-release. Luboff and his choir also won the 1961 Grammy Award for Best Performance by a Chorus.

The Choir's "Songs of the Cowboy" and "Songs of the Trail" albums were released on CD in 1999 as "Cowboy's Dream" with 25 tracks.

Norman Luboff died of cancer at his home in Bynum, North Carolina in 1987. The Norman Luboff Collection was donated to the Music Division of the United States Library of Congress in 1993 by Mrs. Gunilla Marcus-Luboff.

Joy To The World
The Norman Luboff Choir Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Joy to the world
The Lord is come
Let Earth receive her King
Let every heart
Prepare him room
And heaven, let heaven
Heaven and nature
Heaven and nature sing

Everybody sing
Joy to the world
The Lord is come
(Let Earth receive her King)
Let every heart
Prepare him room
Let heaven and nature sing
Let heaven and nature sing
Go tell of his glory
Go shout the new story
That the Savior is born
Let heaven, heaven
Heaven and nature sing

Let fields and flocks
Rocks hills and plains
Repeat the sounding joy
Repeat the sounding joy
Go tell of his glory
Go shout the new story
The Savior is born
Let heaven, heaven
Heaven, heaven
And nature sing
Sing joy to the world
For the Savior reigns
And makes
His blessings flow

Joyful all ye nations rise
Join the triumph of the skies
With angelic hosts proclaim
Glory to the King
While the angels sing

Everybody sing
Joy to the world
The Lord is come
(Let Earth receive her King)
Let every heart
Prepare him room
Let heaven and nature sing
Let heaven and nature sing
Go tell of his glory
Go shout the new story
That the Savior is born
Let heaven, heaven
Heaven and nature sing

Everybody sing joy
Sing joy to the world
All over the world
Sing joy, oh

Sing joy, everybody sing
Joy to the world

Overall Meaning

The song "Joy to the World" is a Christmas carol that expresses the joy and jubilation of the arrival of the Lord, who is believed to be the Savior. The lyrics acknowledge the presence of God as the King of the earth and implore every heart to prepare a place to receive Him. The song goes on to call on nature to sing and make known the coming of the Savior, and alludes to the joy and triumph of the angels in heaven. The song also encourages people to go out and proclaim the glory of the Savior's arrival to the world. The final verse announces that the Savior reigns and brings blessings to all, calling on everyone to sing for joy and celebrate.

Line by Line Meaning

Joy to the world
Let there be happiness and celebration in the world

The Lord is come
The divine power has arrived

Let Earth receive her King
Allow the planet to accept its ruler and embrace its spirituality

Let every heart
May every individual

Prepare him room
Make space in your heart and soul for the divine presence

And heaven, let heaven
And the holy realm above us

Heaven and nature
The celestial world and the natural world

Heaven and nature sing
Rejoice and make a joyous noise in both the divine and physical world

Let fields and flocks
May the farmland and the livestock

Rocks hills and plains
As well as the mountains, hills, and flatlands

Repeat the sounding joy
Echo the song of happiness