552 Cooper, And Live Through Endless Day

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Robert Vaughn

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Sep 8, 2022, 1:26:47 PM9/8/22
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In the 2012 Cooper Sacred Harp Book on page 552, there is a nice minor fuging tune written or arranged by G. L. Beck, and added to the book in 1927.
The words to the song are:

Should earth against my soul engage,
And fiery darts be hurled,
Then I can smile at Satan’s rage,
And face a frowning world.
So pilgrims, we are marching home,
On earth no more to stay,
Long for the welcome call to come,
And live thro’ endless day.

In the book itself and in my companion book Songs Before Unknown, the words are credited to Isaac Watts. However, I recently noticed that the words in the fuge, beginning “So pilgrims, we are marching home” probably are not by Isaac Watts. I cannot find them in any of Watts’s material that I can access, and, in fact, have not found them anywhere else. It may be that G. L. Beck wrote them for his tune? Have any of you ever seen the hymn “So pilgrims, we are marching home, On earth no more to stay”? Any idea who might have penned these words?

Thanks! Have a great day.

His glories sing,
Robert Vaughn 
Mount Enterprise, TX
Ask for the old paths, where is the good way
For ask now of the days that are past...
Give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land.

Jesse Pearlman Karlsberg

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Sep 8, 2022, 3:09:49 PM9/8/22
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Hello Robert, et al.,

I suspect that the words to the chorus of 552 were indeed written by G. L. Beck. It occurred to me several years ago that this song is at least structurally something of a minorization of Justin Morgan's MONTGOMERY, most evident in the structure of the fuging section with its two fuges with opposite entrance patterns.

In keeping with this, the words at the beginning of each fuging section seem to consciously echo the words set to the chorus of MONTGOMERY in The Sacred Harp: "So pilgrims, we are marching home" references "So pilgrims on the scorching sand" and "Long for the welcome call to come" echoes "Long for a cooling stream at hand." This strikes me as a particularly clever winking sort of tribute. One could imagine Beck searching for and locating a verse of a hymn that shared these opening words with Watts's "Early, my God, without delay," but it seems much more likely that Beck would have simply written such a stanza himself.

All best,
Jesse

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Jesse P. Karlsberg
Decatur, GA
617 984 9378

Wade Kotter

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Sep 8, 2022, 3:09:56 PM9/8/22
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I'm quite sure you are correct that the words for the fuging section of this tune are not by Isaac Watts but from another source. "Should earth against my soul engage" is the original second verse of "When I shall see my title clear" which I believe goes all the way back to the 1707 first edition of Watts' Hymns and Spiritual Songs, where it appeared with only four verses, not of which match these words. They remind me instead of the old "wandering chorus" phenomenon (these words could easily be used as a chorus with a number of different hymn texts), but apparently this "chorus" hasn't wandered too far if it wandered at all. I've tried all of my usual sources and librarian search "tricks" and come up empty, so I think Beck could well have written them, although it might be best to list them as anonymous. As I'm sure you know, many of those old "wandering choruses" are anonymous.

Wade

Wade Kotter
South Ogden, UT
"Make a Joyful Noise Unto the Lord"


Robert Vaughn

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Sep 8, 2022, 5:08:42 PM9/8/22
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While this song may not be a strict minorization of MONTGOMERY, it is certainly influenced by it. Those who sing Sacred Harp regularly will certainly notice the obvious connection of "Long for a cooling stream" and "Long for a welcome call," if nothing else. 

There are two other songs to which the words probably can be legitimately attributed to G. L. Beck: 561 CALLING ME, and 562 ON TO CALVARY (1st stanza). So, that might help make a case for his composing the words to 552 as well. However, in my opinion, the words on 552 are quite a bit better (poetically speaking) than the words on the other two songs. Of course, that is not disqualifying. I have written a few lines that are quite good, while most of what I write is not so good. Probably by Beck, but we will probably never know.

Thanks, Jesse and Wade, for your thoughts on this.

His glories sing,
Robert Vaughn 
Mount Enterprise, TX
Ask for the old paths, where is the good way
For ask now of the days that are past...
Give ear, all ye inhabitants of the land.
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