Bible Songs — Miscellaneous

Would You Know Why I am Singing?

No. 1239
Tune WOULD YOU KNOW WHY I AM SINGING?
Words F. E. B.
Music F. E. Belden.
Key D major
Time 6/8
4 stanzas

Words

⤢ Full screen

Would you know why I am singing,Singing the whole day long?'Tis because Jesus, my Saviour,Filleth my heart with song.

Chorus.

This is just why I am singing,This is just why I am singing;'Tis because Jesus, my Saviour,Filleth my heart with song.

Sometimes a shadow of sadnessOver my life doth fall;Still in my spirit I'm singing;Jesus is all in all.

Sometimes a flood of temptationOver my path doth roll;Still I keep praying and singing;Jesus will keep my soul.

Whether in sunshine or shadow,Jesus my song shall be;Should I one moment cease singing,That would be loss to me.

About this hymn

As printed As printed: hymn number «1239» (large, left), title «WOULD YOU KNOW WHY I AM SINGING?» centred (condensed capitals and small capitals, «Would You Know Why I am Singing?»); on the next line «F. E. B.» at the left (words), the epigraph «"Therefore we will sing songs all the days of our life."—Isa. 38 : 20.» in the centre (old-style figures) and «F. E. BELDEN.» at the right (music, capitals and small capitals). No meter, no tune name other than the title, no reference line. All four stanzas are interlinear, numbered «1.»–«4.», between the staves of systems 1–2; «CHORUS.» (bold capitals) stands over system 3, and the chorus words are printed once, under systems 3–4; the chorus is sung after every stanza. In system 3 a second line, aligned with the tenor and bass notes that enter after a rest, carries their echo «This is just why I'm singing, … This is just why I'm singing;» — given below after the chorus. Each printed line of words carries two verse lines; they are given here one verse line per line. «Some-times» (stanzas 2–3) is printed with a tight hyphen under two notes; «singing» of the echo is printed whole under two notes. Under the music, centred: «Copyrighted 1886 by F. E. Belden.» The print sets a thin space before «?», «;» and «:» («SINGING ?», «long ?», «fall ;», «38 : 20»); it is closed up here; curly quotes and apostrophes are written straight. Spelling and punctuation are the print's («'Tis», «Saviour», «Filleth», «I'm»).