Paradigm Swap

Still, Still, Still (sample)

I’ve almost got all of the music for my Christmas CD written and recorded. In the next two weeks it will be completed! Yay!

I’ve promised Willowrise that I won’t release full recordings of the pieces. I battled that a bit, but they’re probably right that it will sell more CDs and downloads if you only get to hear samples. Sorry about that. But since the most obvious way to support an artist is to buy their stuff, it makes sense. I hope you don’t think I’m trying to keep something from you, because even though I’d love for you to buy it, I’d rather you hear and not buy the music than neither hear nor buy it! But watch for contests and stuff, because I’ll be giving stuff out for free as much as possible!

So I’m going to post samples that are between one and one and a half minutes long. So all the samples will be less than half of the song. I’ll probably post these samples again as Christmas Approaches, so don’t freak out if you see them showing up again in a couple months!

Anyway, enjoy!

Chas

The music Video to “If You Could Hie to Kolob” is finally done! Yay! Enjoy!

You can purchase sheet music or download a free MP3 of this piece at http://chashathaway.com

Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet

In light of the upcoming LDS General Conference, I thought I’d share one of my favorite talks on the subject of following a prophet. In 1980, President Ezra Taft Benson gave a remarkable talk at a BYU fireside called, Fourteen Fundamentals in Following the Prophet. This was a very timely message, and still badly needed today. I hope you’ll forgive the little harp-strung intro – this was the only MP3 I could find of the talk, but it’s well worth listening to.

The prophet, President Thomas S. Monson, has been called of God, and will be giving us clear direction in a couple weeks. I hope we will all listen and heed his words. Jesus Christ is the head of this church, and is instructing President Monson in all of his words at the pulpit. Do we have the strength of character to heed their words? I hope so. The promises of a more fulfilling life here and eternal life in the next will be fulfilled if we follow the counsel of the Lord’s living servant.

Wow. I think she actually believed me! Thought it took some explaining to help her understand what a black hole is, and that I was taken by aliens. I almost felt bad when she actually sounded convinced!

“I’d really like to make a name for myself… what do you think of the Prankateer General?”

“…Sounds like a pretty good idea.”

The message: be proactive

Be sure to listen through to the end on this. It drags a bit in the middle, but it gets fun again when the kids start eating the dog food.

“So we’ll be secure from the swine flu, right?”

“No, sir.”

“No?”

“If I get myself a degree, maybe I can kill them buggers!”

“I could be wrong, but I think it’s a monkey.”

I’m taking a different approach to releasing my music this time.  Instead of writing a whole CD’s worth of music and then releasing it all at the same time, I’m going to release songs as they are written, and then when there is a CD’s worth, I’ll put them together.

This way the music will be available as soon as it’s recorded.

This song was written by Maria Hathaway (Maria Spencer after tomorrow!  Congratulations, Ria!), and I wrote the music for it.  It will be available for purchase soon!

Enjoy!

Falling Up

Falling Up

Lyrics and Vocals by Maria Hathaway Spencer

Music by Chas Hathaway

Walk to the place

where you can no longer see,

turn your face

to all that’s free,

take a step

into the deep,

fall into light.

Arms will embrace

and you will know it is He.

Call His name, walk His ways

fall into the endless light

of truth

of love

of peace

above.

Walk to the place

where you can finally see.

Gaze upon

Eternity.

Fall into light.

Come Thou Fount

I love the old hymn, Come Thou Fount.  I think it captures the spirit of Christianity everywhere and reminds us that without Jesus Christ, we are nothing, but that with Him, we can become all that He is.  I’ve been intending to create an arrangement of it for a long time, and I finally took the time to do it.  You are welcome to download this arrangement for free.  If I get requests for it in sheet music, I’ll transcribe it and make it available for purchase, so let me know if you would like me to do that.

Of all the words in the song, my favorites are these: “Here’s my heart, O take and seal it, Seal it for Thy courts above.”  It reminds me that I have given my heart entirely to the Lord, and he can do with it as He sees fit.  That heart often needs tuning, even regular tuning, and only He can do it, but I must bring it to Him – over and over and over.  Each time I do, he refines it, purifies it, and returns it to me, better, stronger, and more empowered than before.  I love Jesus Christ.  No matter how much I give, He always give back more.  I guess that’s why He said, “I am come that they might have life, and that they might have it more abundantly.”

He waits on us to give Him all that we are, and when we do, He gives us back a life that is far better than anything we could have imagined.

Below is a copy of the original lyrics by Robert Robinson as he wrote them in the 1700’s:

1.

Come, Thou Fount of every blessing,

Tune my heart to sing Thy grace;

Streams of mercy, never ceasing,

Call for songs of loudest praise.

Teach me some melodious sonnet,

Sung by flaming tongues above.

Praise the mount! I’m fixed upon it,

Mount of Thy redeeming love.

2.

Sorrowing I shall be in spirit,

Till released from flesh and sin,

Yet from what I do inherit,

Here Thy praises I’ll begin;

Here I raise my Ebenezer;

Here by Thy great help I’ve come;

And I hope, by Thy good pleasure,

Safely to arrive at home.

3.

Jesus sought me when a stranger,

Wandering from the fold of God;

He, to rescue me from danger,

Interposed His precious blood;

How His kindness yet pursues me

Mortal tongue can never tell,

Clothed in flesh, till death shall loose me

I cannot proclaim it well.

4.

O to grace how great a debtor

Daily I’m constrained to be!

Let Thy goodness, like a fetter,

Bind my wandering heart to Thee.

Prone to wander, Lord, I feel it,

Prone to leave the God I love;

Here’s my heart, O take and seal it,

Seal it for Thy courts above.

5.

O that day when freed from sinning,

I shall see Thy lovely face;

Clothed then in blood washed linen

How I’ll sing Thy sovereign grace;

Come, my Lord, no longer tarry,

Take my ransomed soul away;

Send thine angels now to carry

Me to realms of endless day.

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