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Melody/chord arrangements of Hymns for church bands

For people like me who can't read four-part harmony, or don't want to change chords every beat! I have aimed for one or two chords per bar so that these can be played by guitarists, contemporary keyboard players, and their bands.

The melodies are unchanged so the congregation aren't affected. The harmony is similar to the original hymns but simplified (your dad can still sing his bass lines). Sometimes the keys have been changed to reduce the number of flats or sharps. Best of all, these hymns are all Public Domain so I can give you these charts for free download .

One day I want to arrange some more hymns and put them all together in a book to sell. This will enable me to distribute some of the hymns that are not in Public Domain too. If you have a suggestion of a great hymn you'd like done please let me know .

Copyright situation

The tunes and lyrics for these hymns are public domain. The arrangements are copyright to me. That means it's wrong for you to copy them (even by hand) without my permission. I give you permission to download, store, and print out one copy of each. If you want to make more copies to use them in church, your church needs to have a photocopy licence from CCLI , and you need to report to CCLI how many copies you make. This way I'll get a modest royalty income from the arrangements. If you want to do anything else with the hymns, send me an email first.

Free Download

Amazing Grace
And Can It Be
Be Thou My Vision
Crown Him with Many Crowns
God Has Spoken By His Prophets (melody/chords only – words are copyright)
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah
I Cannot Tell
O, For A Thousand Tongues
Thine Be the Glory (words hopefully coming soon – just checking the copyright situation)
When I Survey

New Tunes for Old Words

There were some hymns whose music was either too dated or too difficult to arrange for bands. I have tried to write new tunes. Please let me know if you sing these ones, or tell me how I can improve. These charts are also free, but if you use them please report your use to CCLI (for both the church copyright licence AND the photocopy licence) so that I get a royalty for the tune.

O God, Our Help In Ages Past
O Love, That Will Not Let Me Go