Sammy Davis Jr. in the theme for an old TV show sang the following lyric line: "...keep your eye on the sparrow, when the going gets narrow.” Many churchgoers have sung a hymn that contains a lyric line which says: "His eye is on the sparrow, and I know He watches over me." I want to share a little history about the latter.
"His Eye Is on the Sparrow" is a gospel hymn
written in 1905 by lyricist Civilla D. Martin and composer Charles H. Gabriel.
It is most associated with actress-singer Ethel Waters who used the title for
her autobiography.[1] Mahalia Jackson's recording of the song was honored with
the Grammy Hall of Fame Award in 2010 (wikipedia.org).
The
foregoing is according to Wikipedia, no doubt. Mahalia Jackson was born in New
Orleans, Louisiana, and she passed away in Illinois in 1972. The posthumous
honor from the Grammy Hall of Fame obviously came 38 years after. With relevance to the two hymn authors,
Wikipedia says the following:
Civilla Durfee Martin (August 21, 1866 – March 9, 1948) was a
Canadian-American writer of many religious hymns and gospel songs in the late
19th century and early 20th century. Her husband, Walter Stillman Martin…(wikipedia.org).
Charles Hutchinson Gabriel (August 18, 1856 – September 14,
1932) was a writer of gospel songs and composer of gospel tunes. He is said to
have written and/or composed between 7,000 and 8,000 songs,[1] many of which
are available in 21st century hymnals. He used several pseudonyms, including
Charlotte G. Homer, H. A. Henry, and S. B. Jackson (wikipedia.org).
Sometimes we
learn more about the story behind a hymn or a song with just a little research.
Of course, I always take any information on the internet with a grain of salt. The
mention of Charles Hutchinson Gabriel writing so many hymns may mean he would
probably have to have written about 2 hymns daily for 10 years to get around 7000,
as a possibility example. So, it is possible, but seemingly a lot of work. Paul
Tillich said, "doubt is not the opposite of faith; it is one element of
faith." I felt like adding the foregoing in here even if it may seem
irrelevant.
Oh, by the
way, the Sammy Davis Jr. song was Baretta's Theme which was written by David
Grusin and Morgan Ames. On a personal note, Dave Grusin has been one of my
favorite jazz keyboardist and composers for many decades. I especially love his
collaborations with Lee Ritenour. Done here...blessings!
Reference:
I believe the famous line from Baretta's Theme was probably "don't do the crime, if you can't do the time." I have heard people quote it, and sometimes I wonder if they know from where it came.
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