This is not an mp3 blog, Lord knows, but here's a music file. I made it, although I didn't write it, and my rendition does it no justice. This is possibly the strangest sacred music I've come across. Of course I'm in love with it. It's a hymn about Science! Atoms! Satellites! Research! It's glorious.
It's "God of Concrete, God of Steel," by Frederick R.C. Clarke, or, in that funky "hymnody" notation, CONCRETE 777777.
(That means that this hymn can be sung to any other melody that fits the 777777 meter -- six lines of seven syllables each. You can sing it to RATISBON or DIX or to something I couldn't find called MINTERNE or something everyone knows calls TOPLADY, which is the name of the melody for "Rock of Ages" ((and if only I could go "da-da-da-dum, da-dee-daaa!" online, I would, because you really have heard this one over and over again, whoever and wherever you are)). But that's not the music that was written for these words. These words of praise -- technological and awestruck praise of a Gleaming God of Science -- were meant for this utterly gorgeous, angular, dissonant melody, CONCRETE.)
You would not believe how long it took me to find this music and then figure out how it goes. Special thanks to the man with the scans, S. Matthew Stolte.
You'd like to sing this at home. And in church. And possibly on public transit. So here are the words, by Richard Granville Jones:
[from The Hymn Book of the Anglican Church of Canada and the United Church of Canada (1971 edition)]
God of concrete, God of steel,
God of piston and of wheel,
God of pylon, God of steam,
God of girder and of beam,
God of atom, God of mine:
all the world of power is thine.
Lord of cable, Lord of rail,
Lord of freeway and of mail,
Lord of rocket and of flight,
Lord of soaring satellite,
Lord of lightning’s flashing line:
all the world of speed is thine.Lord of science, Lord of art,
Lord of map and graph and chart,
Lord of physics and research,
Word of Bible, Faith of church,
Lord of sequence and design:
all the world of truth is thine.God whose glory fills the earth,
gave the universe its birth,
loosed the Christ with Easter’s might,
saves the world from evil’s blight,
claims us all by grace divine:
all the world of love is thine.
I'd like to dedicate this entry to the former members of the Dover School Board. Sing it in their memory.
And have a happy epiphany!
Posted by grant at January 06, 2006 09:43 PMI love this hymn, though I've never had the opportunity to sing it, or hear it sung (until now). I did just use it this Sunday as part of a devotional to start a bible study class. Thank you for your post.
Posted by: Anthony on January 23, 2006 06:22 PMJust thought you'd like to see the sheet music for it on my blog (listed here).
Posted by: Saurkraut on January 25, 2006 12:42 PMI have a friend whose brother was on the Voices United committee when it was created, and we lobbied him furiously to get this included in it, but to no avail.
We are now refusing to speak to him (just kidding).
Am working on a hack version for Trumpet, Alto and Tenor Sax for a couple weeks hence.
Love it!
Hello!
I just found this hymn while doing my devotions this morning, and it inspired me that someone else was willing to worship God in this way! In looking it up online, I of course found out more fascinating information, as you have cited above.
I wanted to let you know that the hymnal I found it in this morning--"Hymns for the Living Church"--records the tune as "NEW HORIZONS". Living in Altoona, PA, it's clear to me that the cities of this nation need new horizons showered in the grace of the God of concrete.
And amen to the Dover school board comment! Thanks.
Posted by: Jason Ibrahim on March 17, 2006 08:23 AMI remember hearing this hymn many years ago but could not find it this week when I was asked by a friend for examples of poetry dealing with creation. I entered the first line of God of Concrete on the Cyber Hymnal search and it came up with your web page so I was able to pass the words on.
Many thanks
Norman
Posted by: Norman on April 1, 2006 09:48 AMI love this one!
I had seen it many times in "Hymns Ancient and Moth-eaten" as it is right next to "God is Love, Let heav'n adore him". Many times I sat there in school assembly looking at other hymns instead of listening to the head teacher going on and on, and this was one which I often tried to think up a melody for!
I will have to put a request in with my choirmaster at church!
Thanks, Samuel
Thanks. I'm linking to this post.
Posted by: Martin LaBar on May 15, 2006 05:16 AM