"LEANING ON THE EVERLASTING ARMS"

"The eternal God is thy refuge, and underneath are the everlasting arms."
......Deuteronomy 33:27
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In 1887 Anthony J. Showalter, a minister/evangelistic singer, was in an Alabama town leading a singing school in a church. Two separate letters came during that week from grieving friends back in South Carolina--they had both lost loved ones. In replying to these friends he looked for an appropriate Bible verse and selected Deuteronomy 33:27.

Dealing often with bereaved folks, and thinking about this Bible verse, he wrote this simple hymn about the "everlasting arms." He enlisted Samuel Duncan to compose the music. The hymn has appeared worldwide in over 1000 hymnal editions and in almost every language.The hymn tune was given the name "Showalter." This is a warm and meaningful hymn--loved by generations of believers.

Quoted here are  two of the stanzas:

What a fellowship, what a joy divine,
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms,
What a blessedness, what a peace is mine,
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.

Oh how sweet to walk in this pilgrim way,
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms,
Oh how bright the path grows from day to day,
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms.

Chorus:
Leaning, leaning,
Safe and secure from all alarms;
Leaning, leaning,
Leaning on the Everlasting Arms."
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The Sound Track of "TRUE GRIT" (Remake)

Being a fan of the first "True Grit", I couldn't wait to see the new one.  Imagine my surprise when I sat down to view the remake and first heard the sound track!  The upshot is that I loved the music, and if you do some serious Googling, you will find numerous people testifying as to how much they liked it and what it meant to hear the hymns some hadn't heard since childhood. Some viewers went back to see it numerous times and other couples hummed  or sang softly along with the piano music, right there in the theater.

These days we have brought new music styles into the church, telling the people "This is the way we worship now," so what could be more fitting than taking our old beloved hymns to the movies?

There were actually four hymns used in the sound track: "Leaning on the Everlasting Arms," "What a Friend Have in Jesus," "Hold To God's Unchanging Hand," and "In The Glory Land Way." The first mentioned was the predominant piece, and the last I am unfamiliar with. It was used only once, I think. During my sixteen years as a music director, I ran across "Hold To God's Unchanging Hand" in an old song book, cut it out, and sang it many times as a solo in revivals.

The producers of "True Grit" were astute in selecting excellent musicians and getting a good "historical" sound from the pianist and the orchestra. One is reminded of Ken Burn's similar treatment and feel for music in HIS numerous successful documentaries. That is another subject, but let me just here point out Burns'  use of the old gospel song tune, "How Can I Keep From Singing?" in "Mark Twain," and "Stand Up, Stand Up For Jesus" in "Frank Lloyd Wright."

The comments of a couple of the "True Grit" viewers interested me greatly. From one: "These words, unsung, still weave this film into a bulwark of faith...a beautiful, almost sacred production." And another:"Hearing this music in this production of 'True Grit' gave it a power I was not prepared for. It was amazing how these songs took me back in time."

For you musicians reading this, may I suggest several OTHER hymns that I thought about which might lend themselves to historical-sounding treatment and to being possible movie  sound track selections. Depending on the type movie, I like these: "On Jordan's Stormy Banks," "When I Can Read My Title Clear,""Bringing In the Sheaves," "Come Ye Sinners, Poor and Needy," "How Tedious and Tasteless the Hours," "O Happy Day," "Ash Grove,"and "Autumn." We'll just have to wait and see---what will be the next film to utilize these kinds of great old songs?

You are wondering, "Mil, which 'True Grit' did you like best?" Well, there'll always be a warm spot for the first one; after all it had John Wayne and Robert Duvall. I preferred the ending on the first. But  the second was good too, with Jeff Bridges--and that marvelous, memorable, and unbeatable sound track, "Leaning On the Everlasting Arms!"

From "True Grit":
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VmhBUxUDPTA&feature=youtube_gdata_player


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By Mil
4/22/12



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