None the less, this minor fact does not diminish the honesty captured in his hymn. Today, Amazing Grace is sung in times of joy and times of sorrow, in times of war and in times of peace, in times of slavery and in times of freedom. It has come to epitomize the Christian faith and journey. Sure, life can be hard, but God is full of grace and willing to save any wretch that kneels before him. That fills most of us wretches with a great deal of hope and comfort.
Over 3200 different recordings exist of Amazing Grace.
There are almost 1000 arrangements of the hymn.
It appears on 1100 different albums.
John Newton wrote hundreds of hymns to express the simple, heartfelt faith of his preaching. Amazing Grace originally consisted of 6 stanzas and was entitled “Faith’s Review and Expectation.” It was sung to the tune of many different folk songs.
Sources differ on when Amazing Grace first appeared in America. The tune we most associate with Amazing Grace was first known as a plantation melody. Some believe it was published here as early as 1789. An 1829 Methodist hymnbook which just contained the words to hymns shows that Amazing Grace was sung at outdoor religious gatherings. Some believe the earliest publication of the tune was found in a book entitled The Virginia Harmony published in 1831 in Winchester, Virginia.
Amazing Grace is considered the anthem of the Cherokee Indian Nation because it was sung on their tragic Trail of Tears during 1838-39.
Scarcely a hymnal appeared throughout the South during the remainder of the nineteenth century that did not include Amazing Grace. It was even included in the soldiers’ hymnals during the Civil War.
The final stanza – “When we’ve been there ten thousand years…” was added by Edwin Othello Excell in 1909 and was taken from another hymn.
The first folk recording of Amazing Grace was made by The Wisdom Sisters in 1926. The first gospel recording was made in 1936 by Rev. H. R. Tomlin.
In 1947 Mahalia Jackson recorded a version of the hymn that was often played on the radio to comfort our country as it recovered from World War II.
Amazing Grace became the anthem of the civil rights movement in the 1960s. Martin Luther King and fellow activist Fannie Lou Hamer would lead the song at marches and peace demonstrations.
Amazing Grace was performed by Arlo Guthrie at Woodstock in 1969. Arlo Guthrie said, “The reason I’ve been singing it for so long is because I love the story about the man who wrote this song.”
Judy Collins had a surprise pop hit with Amazing Grace in 1971. It was near the end of the Viet Nam War and Collins’ version spent 67 weeks on the UK charts. Judy Collins said, “It has the ability to transform the room into something different and better. It really is powerful.”
In 1972, an instrumental version by the Pipes and Drums and Military Band of the Royal Scots Dragoon Guards spent 5 weeks at #1, also reaching the top spot in Australia.
A survey of British teens during the mid 1970s found that the majority thought Amazing Grace was a love song about a girl named Grace.
Pete Seeger said, “I see Amazing Grace as a song of very definite hope.”
Joan Baez sang Amazing Grace to open the Philadelphia stage of Live Aid in 1985. There were over 100,000 people there and most sang it with her.
In 1986 the space shuttle Challenger burst into flames before our nation’s eyes. Amid the prayers and eulogies of the memorial service for the Challenger astronauts, Amazing Grace was played.
E.D. Hirsch’s 1987 book Cultural Literacy includes a list of 5000 names, phrases, dates and concepts that every American should know. There are 33 songs on the list, 5 of which are religious. Of the 5, two are Christmas carols, two are spirituals and one is the hymn Amazing Grace.
Amazing Grace is the favorite hymn of Presidents Carter, Clinton, and Bush. It was sung at the funerals of Richard Nixon, Sonny Bono, Barry Goldwater, Joe DiMaggio, and John Kennedy Jr.
In 1995 terrorists detonated a bomb at an Oklahoma City federal Building. 168 people were killed. Congregations around the country prayed together for the victims and their families. As television news cameras covered these services, Amazing Grace was heard across the land.
Amazing Grace was regularly played on bagpipes of the funerals of police officers and firemen who died in the attacks on the World Trade Center. It was the song most sung at memorials in the days directly following 9/11.
On Sunday, February 18, 2007, millions around the world lifted their voices together to sing the timeless hymn Amazing Grace. The event was called Amazing Grace Sunday.
When it was suggested to John Newton that he retire from ministry at the age of 82 due to poor health and a failing memory, he responded with, “My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Savior.”
Newton’s tombstone reads: “John Newton, Clerk, once an infidel and libertine, a servant of slaves in Africa, was, by the rich mercy of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ, preserved, restored, pardoned, and appointed to preach the faith he had long labored to destroy.”
I guess that’s the most amazing fact of all – God’s grace can save anyone. All a person needs to do is believe God and accept Jesus as Savior. Then you think about it – that’s pretty amazing!
