No. 7: O come, O come Emmanuel
Technically, this is an advent hymn, but we seem to skip over Advent for Christmas these days anyway, so what the heck.
According to Wikipedia, it is unclear from what period this hymn and its lyrics originate - perhaps as far back as the 8th century.
I was intrigued by this passage on Wikipedia:
"Performance variations exist today over the rhythm of the music. Many performances pause on the last syllable of "Emmanuel", in both the verse and the chorus, however often performances omit these pauses to give a greater sense of understanding to the chorus "Rejoice, rejoice, Emmanuel shall come to thee O Israel". If a pause is included, the meaning is lost as an audible comma is heard between "Emmanuel" and "shall come to thee..."."
I've always noticed this about the song -- I prefer to the pause NOT to be used in the chorus but I DO like it used in the verses.
Couldn't find much on-line. Here is a You Tube version by Whitney Houston that's not bad -- although the photographic slide show is superfluous.
The list so far:
No. 10: Go tell it on the mountain
No. 9: Lo, how a rose e'er blooming
No. 8: In the bleak midwinter
No. 7: O come, O come Emmanuel
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1 comment:
Carl Cartee's version of O Come Emmanuel, on his CD Christmas is my very favorite - he kicks into an awesome driving chorus. The melody is there, completely familiar, with a true-to-Carl groove. Check it out - you won't be disappointed. :)
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