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copyright information?

According to CCLI:

As part of the terms and agreement you are responsible for including the copyright information on all songs reproduced under the Church Copyright License. This includes the song title, writer credit(s), copyright notice, and your church’s CCLI license number…for example:
“Hallelujah” words and music by John Doe
©2000 Good Music Co.
CCLI License # 0000
Currently, you can find your CCLI License Number on your License Certificate.
In a printed format, for example a bulletin insert, songsheet or transparency, just include the copyright information at the top or bottom of the page. In computer projections, there are several ways that lyrics are shown. Whether you show your lyrics a few lines at a time or you show the full song on the screen, it’s important that you include the copyright information at least one time for each song.

So, for those of you who project lyrics … where do you include the copyright information to the song?

First slide?
Last slide?
No slide?

Do tell.

Hey, just found out that one of our songs, “Though I Can’t See You” was featured on CCLITV.Com today.  It’s an incredible worship song written by Mack Tucker that we recorded in 2005 during the “Worship Under the Stars” event.  You can see other friends on here including Mandy Thompson, Jay Sellers (twitter), and Shannon Lewis among others.

Please go checkout the song and give it a good rating.  Of course if you enjoy the tune and wish to use it in your worship services, the chord chart is now available in CCLI’s SongSelect.

Thanks, CCLI!

Hey Everyone,

Today’s post is a continuation of an ongoing, yet erratic series that started several weeks ago with my original post where I asked the question, “What Makes a Great Worship Song”?

Since then, we’ve discussed the #1, #2, and #3 top worship songs as reported by CCLI in the USA as of August 2008. Over the next week or two, I’d like for us to come together here on the blog and discuss more of the “Top Worship Songs” according to the most recent, August 2008 CCLI Survey.

Previous Songs:

#1. How Great is our God
#2. Blessed Be Your Name
#3. Here I Am To Worship

CCLI Top 25 Songs

#4: “Open the Eyes of My Heart”
by Paul Baloche

This is definitely one of the most popular songs worldwide. It’s lower #4 spot is reflective in my own thoughts as this one is definitely used the least of the Top 4 in our worship services.

Singable?
Paul Baloche is an incredibly gifted songwriter and knows how to craft a singable melody.  The opening lines are simple and repetitive.

“Open the eyes of my heart, Lord.  Open the eyes of my heart.  I want to see You.  I want to see You.”

The Chorus and Bridge are similarly repetitive and the melodic line is easy to sing.

Theology and Lyrics
This song isn’t saturated with deep theology, but two truths about God are presented clearly:
1.  His being “high and lifted up”
2.  His being “holy”

(see Isaiah 6:1-3 @ YouVersion.Com)

This song brings these two theological statements together with a personal declaration of our desire to have our “eyes opened to see” … a prayer that should always be present in our hearts.

Lyrically the song offers a personal plea … that our eyes be opened.  Even the “high and lifted up” Chorus is a continuation of this personal plea.  With the exception of the Bridge which declares “Holy, Holy, Holy”, the song is more of a personal request than adoration or worship directly to God.  There are some that argue songs like this have no place in our corporate worship … that our music should be full of theology.  Although I agree theology is important, I believe a song like this is vital in ‘preparing’ a worshiper’s heart and helping them engage with God on a more personal level.  The song could be considered a prayer, actually, and I’ve not heard anyone proclaiming that we need to remove prayer from our worship services.  Balance is the key.

Accessibility?
As I’ve said before, I don’t think many songs will make the Top 5 that aren’t accessible.  A few easy chords and easy arrangement make this song special whether it’s a full praise band or a simple guitar or keyboard version.

Personal Arrangement:

As many have discovered, the Bridge segues perfectly into the traditional hymn, “Holy, Holy, Holy”, though you may want to start “Open the Eyes of My Heart” a whole step lower to prevent the hymn from being too high.

Singable? Theology? Lyrics? Simplicity? Accessibility?
What are YOUR thoughts?

Hey Everyone,

Today’s post is a continuation of a new series based on my original post where I asked the question, “What Makes a Great Worship Song”?

Last week we discussed the #1 and #2 worship songs as  reported by CCLI in the USA as of February 2008. Over the next week or two, I’d like for us to come together here on the blog and discuss more of the “Top Worship Songs” according to the most recent, February 2008 CCLI Survey.

Previous Songs:
#1.  How Great is our God
#2.  Blessed Be Your Name

CCLI Top 25 Songs

#3: “Here I Am To Worship”
by Tim Hughes

“Here I Am To Worship” finds it’s home in the #3 spot of most-reported songs in the reporting period ending February 2008.  Once again, I don’t have any problems seeing this song in the Top 5.  I’ll actually be leading this song at a small funeral in a few hours.  I often spontaneously move into this song when I’m leading from the piano alone.  It can be great with a band, but incredible with a solo instrument.

Singable?
Absolutely.  The verse is just short enough that you can easily remember it.  The melodic line flows easily with no tough syncopation and it feels natural.  Would you believe that this entire song only spans the interval of a 5th?  5 scale steps.  That’s it.  No wonder everyone can sing this song.

Theology?
While hanging out in the speaker’s green room at the National Worship Leader Conference I heard Ron Kenoly saying he couldn’t sing the Bridge to this song.  He didn’t agree with the lyrics “I’ll never know how much it cost to see my sins upon that cross”.  He felt like Scripture has made the cost clear – John 3:16.  So, he changes the lyrics to some way of thanking God for the price that Jesus paid.

I watched a few people go down in flames trying to debate with Ron on other subjects so I just kept my peace.  But I disagree with him.  I can “read” what Jesus did for me on the cross. I can be “told” what the price was.  But I’ll never fully comprehend it.  I’ll never “know it” … not mentally, but emotionally and of course, physically.

Lyrics?
The lyrics are simply beautiful.  “Light of the world, You stepped down into darkness”.  What a perfect lyrical description of what God did.  Such contrast – He’s the Light, yet came to darkness for us. I love songs written in such a way where we can vertically express our adoration and worship to God.  The Chorus helps this by humbling us more “Here I am to bow down”.  (I wonder how many people actually have bowed down during that moment?)

Accessibility?
In case you haven’t noticed, songs don’t reach the Top 5 if they aren’t accessible.  Here’s a song that is totally accessible for anyone.  4 chords, 5 notes.

I believe this song will be a legend for decades, if not centuries.  It’s beautiful, well-crafted, and has a timeless message.  The focus of the song is not entirely self and it invokes one to take action in worship to the King.

Personal Arrangement:
This is an addition, on the previous song reviews.  I do this song in the Key of “E”.  Rather than playing the [IV] chord (A) as much, I love substituting the [ii] and adding the 7th and 4th (which actually makes it a 11th).  In other words, in the key of E, I’d play E, B, F#m11, A.

The F#m11 is a beautiful chord on piano and guitar, and includes the F#, A, B, C#, E.  Try it sometime!

Singable? Theology? Lyrics? Simplicity? Accessibility?
What are YOUR thoughts?

Song #3 coming up tomorrow.
(ps: as I’ve been sharing, for some reason, the “subscribe to comments” checkbox is waaay down at the bottom of this page – if you’d like to stay informed when someone posts a comment on this post, leave your comment and scroll way down and check off that box before submitting. Any code monkeys out there that can figure out WHY the seesmic response and email subscribe are stuck at the bottom? I’ve removed the seesmic plugin completely and it had no effect)

Fred

Hey Everyone,

Today’s post is a continuation of a new series based on my original post where I asked the question, “What Makes a Great Worship Song”?

Yesterday we discussed the #1 song reported by CCLI in the USA as of February 2008, which was “How Great is Our God”.  Over the next week or two, I’d like for us to come together here on the blog and discuss more of the “Top Worship Songs” according to the most recent, February 2008 CCLI Survey.

CCLI Top 25 Songs

#2: “Blessed Be Your Name”
by Matt and Beth Redman

“Blessed Be Your Name” finds it’s home in the #2 spot of most-reported songs in the reporting period ending February 2008.  I’ve been leading this song off and on for several years and have always found it to be a corporate gem.  I can easily see why it’s in the Top 5.

Singable?
Overall, this song is quite singable.  It has a broad range, and typically you’ll find the verses to be a bit low for most people.  The Pre-Chorus pulls the melody up in the middle range for vocalists, the Chorus takes it up a notch higher, requiring some emphasis to sing out, and the Bridge skyrockets … still, within the acceptable range for corporate worship.  It’s definitely more rhytmic than “How Great is Our God” in the verses and can be a little harder for some people to sing.  I think this is evident in the fact that I’ve heard the rhythm of the melodic line sung a kazillion different ways.

Theology?
The theological message in this song is probably one of the biggest assets of the tune.  This song explores something that every one of us deal with – learning to praise God in the midst of crisis.  Granted, there is an entire segment in some camps who refuse to sing the Bridge because of the “You give and take away” lyric.   This line comes from Scripture, though not necessarily a theological statement.  It’s really a vent from Job in his crisis as he blames God.  This camp would say that Satan is the one who took away from Job.  The other side says “God allowed it”.  That is a huge debate, and today’s blog is not meant to “go there”.  Regardless, the overall theology in the song is voicing that in the good times and the bad, we’re called to bless the Name of the Lord.

Lyrics?
Most of the lyrical discussion can be associated with the theological discussion above.  In addition, we can comment on the beauty of these lyrics.  The lyrical phrases used to paint the pictures of when things are good and bad are just poetic and beautiful.  Every one of us can relate to these descriptions and the lyrics (especially in the Pre-Chorus) are written in such a way where they “call us” to action.  We go from blessing God’s Name in the verses to declaring our first person intent to give back to God in praise.

Accessibility?
I believe this is a huge part of why these songs become “great songs”.  Just like “How Great is our God”, this song can be sung with an entire band or a simple guitar.  You can slow down the chorus and sing it acapella with huge impact.  You can start on the Pre-Chorus and go to the Chorus without ever singing the verses.

Personally, all of these reasons are valid in making this a “great worship song”.  I believe that the best reason is simply the fact that this song reaches us “where we are”.  Every single one of us finding us in that place where we are “on the road marked with suffering” or where there is “pain in the offering” and we can so identify with it.  When we’re in the plentiful lands, we’re also reminded.  The song basically hits us at every single area of life.  As a result, it’s always … ALWAYS relevant.  That makes a great worship song!

Singable? Theology? Lyrics? Simplicity? Accessibility?
What are YOUR thoughts?

Song #3 coming up tomorrow.
(ps:  as I’ve been sharing, for some reason, the “subscribe to comments” checkbox is waaay down at the bottom of this page – if you’d like to stay informed when someone posts a comment on this post, leave your comment and scroll way down and check off that box before submitting.  Any code monkeys out there that can figure out WHY the seesmic response and email subscribe are stuck at the bottom?  I’ve removed the seesmic plugin completely and it had no effect)

Fred