December 21

Who Comes This Night
lyrics by Sally Stevens, music by Dave Grusin,
and sung by one of my very favourite artists: the great James Taylor

Who comes this night, this wintry night,
As to the lowly manger?
The shepherds and the kings did come
To welcome in the stranger.

Who sends this song upon the air
To ease the soul that’s aching?
To still the cry of deep despair,
And heal the heart that’s breaking.

Brother Joseph bring the light!
Fast, the night is fading.
And who will come this wintry night,
To where the stranger’s waiting?

Who comes this night, with humble heart,
To give the fullest measure?
A gift of purest love to bring,
What good and worthy treasure.

Brother Joseph bring the lamb,
For they are asking for Him.
The children come this starry night,
To lay their hearts before Him.

For those who would the stranger greet
Must lay their hearts before Him,
And raise their song in voices sweet
To worship and adore Him.

Brother Joseph bring the light!
Fast, the night is fading.
And who will come this wintry night,
To where the stranger’s waiting?

Brother Joseph bring the lamb,
For they are asking for Him.
The children come this starry night
To lay their hearts before Him.

Pure of heart this starry night
To lay their hearts before Him.

Dave Grusin is a ground-breaking contemporary composer, who has been at the forefront of the music industry, and is most famous for his movie soundtracks. He was the composer for the legendary Oscar-winning film, The Graduate, which is noted for being one of the first films to integrate popular songs into a score. His other credits have included sountracks for two of my favourite films: On Golden Pond (1981), and Tootsie (1982).

James Taylor has been such a tremendously influential musician for so many years, he hardly requires an introduction. His work has spanned many generations, and what constantly amazes me when I attend his concerts is the wide range of ages in the audience-- indeed, I have seen older people bringing their grandchildren along-- and everyone has clearly memorized every word of all the songs.

My sister and I have followed James Taylor for years, and have tried our hardest to attend every concert he has performed in Toronto for the past two decades. I will never forget a night at the Molson Amphitheatre at Ontario Place: an outdoor stadium, with limited protection from the elements. The rain and wind that night were of Biblical proportions, and yet Mr. Taylor played and sang for well over two hours, as the jumbotron screen swayed dangerously in the not-so-gentle breeze behind him. He made a few cracks about the distinct possibility of being electrocuted, but not once did he complain: his music and his audience were the most important things to him. We sat squelchily in our seats as the torrents poured down on us, and loved every minute of it.

Later that night, I discovered that I had brought home an unusual memento of the show. I had been wearing a new, inexpensive purple rain coat for the event, and I guess my exposure to the elements was so extreme that night, the dye released from the fabric and coloured the back of my neck and my arms an alarming shade of grape for about two and a half weeks.

It was worth it.

Mr. Taylor has an incredible website, which I highly recommend. On this site, he is now including a series of short guitar lessons, which give explanations of some of the techniques that he has used in his compositions over the years.

He is also a very active and generous philanthropist. One cause that he supports that I find particularly appealing raises funds to renovate and preserve historical community theatres and music houses around the United States. He plays concerts in these venues, and then donates money for their preservation and upkeep.

"I don't know much about God. But if everything does originate with God, then certainly songs do as well... I believe one hundred percent in the power and importance of music."


--James Taylor