(no subject)

[rivka]

Any of my Minnesota friends know a folksinger named Peter Mayer?

We sang one of his songs in church this morning, and I thought it was really lovely. It helps that it's set to my favorite hymn tune, Hyfrydol - the one to which Unitarians sing "Earth Was Given as a Garden" and "Hail the Glorious Golden City," and which mainline Protestants might know as "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling." (midi file)

Here are Mayer's words:

Though below me, I feel no motion
Standing on these mountains and plains
Far away from the rolling ocean
Still my dry land heart can say
I've been sailing all my life now
Never harbor or port have I known
The wide universe is the ocean I travel
And the earth is my blue boat home

Sun, my sail, and moon my rudder
As I ply the starry sea
Leaning over the edge in wonder
Casting questions into the deep
Drifting here with my ship's companions
All we kindred pilgrim souls
Making our way by the lights of the heavens
In our beautiful blue boat home

I give thanks to the waves upholding me
Hail the great winds urging me on
Greet the infinite sea before me
Sing the sky my sailor's song
I was born upon the fathoms
Never harbor or port have I known
The wide universe is the ocean I travel
And the earth is my blue boat home

Edited to add: You can hear a sample of Mayer singing the song here.

Comments

[txanne.livejournal.com]

Gorgeous! (It's one of my favorite hymn tunes too.)

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Are you used to singing "Love Divine" to it, or something else? It seems like one of the tunes that people use over and over, because it's so pretty and so easy to sing.

[txanne.livejournal.com]

Love Divine.

Peter Mayer

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

Nope; sorry. Never heard of him.

B

[kightp.livejournal.com]

Beautiful!

Of course, this tends to confirm my theory that Unitarians are pagans in more practical clothes. (-;

[rivka.livejournal.com]

Of course, this tends to confirm my theory that Unitarians are pagans in more practical clothes. (-;

Sometimes the clothes are more practical. ;-)

(As you know, Bob, Unitarian-Universalism is a creedless religion, and individual UUs are free to follow whatever spiritual path they think best. Quite a few of us are Pagans.)

[kightp.livejournal.com]

More practical than skyclad, probably. (-:

(I'm all for the naked, but not so much when bonfires and candles are involved ...)

[therealocelot.livejournal.com]

We sang this a few weeks ago. I love it, both the familiar tune and the new lyrics. It gave me the shivers.

[ookpik.livejournal.com]

That's lovely.

I've never even been to Minnesota, but Boston's WUMB plays stuff by a folksinger named Peter Mayer. (Probably the same one, although there's apparently at least one other singer-songwriter with the same name.) The song of his that I've especially liked is "Earth Town Square."

[micheinnz.livejournal.com]

Wow. That's just gorgeous.

Peter Mayer

[minnehaha.livejournal.com]

http://pegkerr.livejournal.com/747368.html

B

Re: Peter Mayer

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

Yes! I adore Peter's music, and as minnehaha mentions, I just wrote to him and heard back from him.

I've been raving to everyone about his Midwinter album. He does a perfectly lovely hymn called "Green" to the tune of "Shepherds Shake off your drowsy sleep." And I'm going to be performing the first song on his Midwinter album ("Stables") at my church as a solo at the Christmas Eve morning service.

Re: Peter Mayer

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I did see your post this morning, and enjoyed the coincidence. I'll have to look for that Midwinter album.

Apparently, "Blue Boat Home" has been put into the new supplemental hymnal for UU churches. That must be such a great feeling for a songwriter - not only that people love your music, but that they think others will still enjoy singing it ten, twenty, fifty years in the future.

Re: Peter Mayer

[pegkerr.livejournal.com]

I think I remember hearing/reading somewhere that Peter Mayer might have gone to seminary for awhile. Many of his songs deal with spiritual issues. "God is a River," "Blue Boat Home," "The Birthday Party" and "Like a Mountain are examples.

Re: Peter Mayer

[rivka.livejournal.com]

I saw that this morning! Nice bit of friends list synchronicity, there.

[sraun]

I followed a link to this left by minnehaha B in pegkerr's journal.

We've got a copy of his Elements CD. It has the song "Scatterbrain" on it, which my wife adores - she says it describes her life perfectly!

off topic

[wanderingaengus.livejournal.com]

I read this (http://www.dailykos.com/storyonly/2006/12/12/205517/10) and was thinking it was time for a new post on Respectful of Otters.