HOME :: HYMNS :: SYDNEY
CARTER
Sydney
Carter
(1915-2004)
 Born
in Camden Town, London, on 6 May 1915, and educated at Christ’s
Hospital and Balliol College Oxford, Sydney spent his early years as a
schoolmaster before enrolling for wartime service with the Friends’
Ambulance Unit in Greece and the Middle East, where his encounter with
traditional Greek dance made a lasting influence.
His career as a poet and folk singer began in the 1950s, when he was
approached by Donald Swann for new revue material. In the following decades,
it burgeoned into a diversity of activities that included writing material
for television and cabaret, with hits such as My Last Cigarette,
sung by Sheila Hancock, as well as the composition of the earliest of
his classic songs on themes of belief and doubt (see Lord
of the Dance FAQ page) that have subsequently entered the popular
imagination as enduring anthems of our time.
 By nature
a radical, Sydney was no stranger to controversy, and for a long period
after joining the Stainer & Bell ‘family’ he remained
a marginal figure, outside the theological establishment. That his work
now belongs firmly in the mainstream of worship material used in churches
and schools worldwide is a potent symbol both of evolving attitudes in
society and of the integrity and scope of his vision.
Associated with Stainer & Bell for forty years, Sydney’s songs
have offered inspiration and support to countless individuals for whom
this sad news will likewise be felt as a very personal loss. Yet while
we mourn his passing, we also take hope from the fact that, in the corpus
of songs that includes One More Step, When I Needed a Neighbour
and Lord of the Dance, there lies his
enduring legacy.
Several obituaries for Sydney Carter can now
be found here.
|  In August
1996 Sydney was interviewed by The Times newspaper, for an
article entitled "Folk singer strikes chord with young worshippers".
The story arose out of the fact that in a recent survey of schools
in the UK, three of the most sung copyright songs in assemblies
were composed by Sydney. One More Step came first, Lord
of the Dance was in fifth place and When I needed a neighbour
was the sixth most sung song.
In the interview Sydney said:
"They are songs which can be sung in
a Christian context, but they all had to mean something to me because
I was often on the edge of not believing. The songs certainly have
not made my fortune, but I am still grateful for the royalties when
they come in." ..."There are obvious problems with so
many denominations in schools today, but I had collective worship
at school and I do not think it is a bad thing."
The Times - Thursday August 29 1996
Sydney's
faith was contained in this quotation from his poem Interview:
"So what do you believe in?
Nothing fixed or final,
all the while I
travel a miracle. I doubt,
and yet
I walk upon the water"
|
Publications
These titles can be ordered in our online
shop, or, in the case of rental works, through our Hire
Library. The items with [PDF] after them
are links to free sample pages in the Adobe Actobat format
CD
|
Lord of the Dance
(Ref. CD0087)
Compilation of 26 Sydney Carter Songs featuring The Swingle
Singers, Martyn Joseph, Sarah-Jane Morris, Matt Redman and Sydney
Carter.
Full Details... |
 |
Nothing Fixed
or Final (Ref. CD0092)
A new compilation of 26 songs and poems produced and perfomed
by Australian, Franciscus Henri.
|
Songbooks
|
In the Present
Tense, Book 1 (Ref. 25068)
18 songs with piano or guitar accompaniment.
After six and all day Sunday (A - B); Bird of heaven (A -
A); British Museum waltz (B flat - C); Come, love, carolling
(A - C); George Fox (C - C); Glass of water (G - A); Judas
and Mary (B - B); Like the snow (B - D); Long time since I
had a lesson (C - D); Man with a microphone (A - D); The Mask
I wore (A - B); The Postmaster General (B - B); Say who you
are love (B flat - B flat); Standing in the rain (D - E);
Thou mastering me (B - B); Two thousand years away (C - C);
The Vicar is a beatnik (B flat - B flat); Zero one (B flat
- C)
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In the Present Tense, Book
2 (Ref. 25075)
17 songs with piano or guitar accompaniment.
All alone and all together (D - B); Bell of creation (A -
C); Better take a book to bed (C - C); Bitter was the night
(C - E flat); Down below (B flat - E flat); Feeling sad and
lonely (C - B); Friday morning (C sharp- E); Good literature
(B - B); I want to have a little bomb like you (C - C); Lord
of the Dance (D - D); Middle-aged, middle-class, mediocre
(G - C); Mixed up old man (D - D); My last cigarette (C -
E); Never can tell (A - D); Present tense (B - B); The Rat
race (B - B); Silver in the stubble (B - D)
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In the Present Tense, Book
3 (Ref. 25078)
19 songs with piano or guitar accompaniment.
The Crow on the cradle (B - D); The Devil wore a Crucifix
(B - E); Every star shall sing a carol (C - D); Here we go
up to Bethlehem (D - D); My mum was a woman (D - C); Nowhere
and never (A - C); Plato in a paperback (D - C); Port Mahon
(B - D); Putting out the dustbin (C(B) - D); Run the film
backwards (G - C); Say Mr Barber (B - D); Son of Man (C -
C); Travel on (D - D); Upon a Sunday morning (C - C); When
I needed a neighbour (B - E); When the sailor came ashore
(B - B); When they shouted Hosanna (B - E); When were you
really living? (C - E flat); You think with a bomb (B - D)
|
|
In the Present Tense, Book
4 (Riding a Tune) (Ref. B098)
16 songs with piano or guitar accompaniment.
The Candlelight (A - A); Cattle rule the ranches (A - D);
Come holy harlequin (B flat - B flat); Coming or going away
(C - D); Cruel Ann (D - C); Doctor Spock (C - D); Eros (A
- B flat); Fifth of November (G - G); Girl in a garden (B
- B); Green like the leaves (D - D); The Holy horses (A -
A); Last exit to Brooklyn (B - C); One more step (D - D);
Put the moon in the dustbin (C - C); Shake and Shiver (B flat
- C); Up at the house of Cecil Sharp (A - A)
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In the Present Tense, Book
5 (Ref. B500)
13 songs with piano or guitar accompaniment.
Cape carol (E - E); Carol of the creatures (B - D); Cocks
are crowing (E flat - E flat); Creator of the living (B -
D); Flag of the Earth (E - E); Harvest song (D - D); In the
looking glass of Francis (D - D); I used to dance before the
Lord (B - E); John Bull (C sharp - E); Julian of Norwich (D
- E); Pluck the rose that will not whither (C - D); A Stone
for God (G - E); To the first of my lovers (D - D)
|
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Lord of the Dance and
other songs and poems (Ref. B855)
Songbook to accompany the Lord of the Dance
CD
Poem: My Believing Bones; Lord of the Dance; Present Tense;
Poem: Doubting Tom; Pluck the Rose; Poem: What is Impossible;
Poem: Run the Film Backwards; Come, Holy Harlequin; Judas
and Mary; Poem: The New Song; Poem: Reversal; Poem: By this
Sea; Poem: Robinson Crusoe; Bird of Heaven; After Six and
All Day Sunday; Poem: The Future in the Past; Green like the
Leaves; Shake and Shiver; Poem: Christ’s Hospital; Poem:
In Coram Fields; Poem: Interview; Creator of the Living; Julian
of Norwich; One More Step; Like the Snow; Poem: This Black
Light
Full Details... |
Choral
|
Carol of the Universe (Every
star shall sing a carol) (Ref. W148)
[PDF]
SS (or A) and Piano
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I come like a beggar (Ref. W150)
[PDF]
Unison and Piano
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Lord of the Dance. Multi-purpose edition
(Ref. SS66)
[PDF]
This is a multi-purpose version of the most famous of all
contemporary carols. The arrangement can be played and sung
by any number of voices or instruments: unison, SA, SAB, SATB,
backing group, and speech-singers; treble melody instruments,
bass instruments, guitar, accordian, piano, organ or harp.
Full instructions are given for any combination of amateur
performers.
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Lord of the Dance. Unison arr. John Rutter
(Ref. W202)
[PDF]
Vocal Score. Unison Voices (with optional descant) and piano
This newly published vocal score for John Rutter's arrangement
of Sydney Carters's Lord of the Dance may be used for performance
of the work either with piano accompaniment, or in an orchestral
version, for which the material is available
for rental (Ref. HL339). The internationally recognised
composer and arranger has captured each changing mood of this
much-loved song in a colourful and dramatic adaptation.
For supply to the USA or Canada, please contact Hope Publishing.
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Lord of the Dance. Unison (Ref. 20904)
Unison voices and organ |
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Lord of the Dance. SATB and Piano arr.
John Rutter (Ref. W206)
[PDF]
Vocal Score. SATB and piano
The same arrangement by John Rutter as Ref. W202 but with
the vocal part arranged for SATB. This may either be performed
with piano or with the same orchestral accompaniment as for
the unison version (Ref. HL339). The SATB version has been
recorded by the Cambridge Singers and the BBC Concert Orchestra,
conducted by John Rutter, on the Collegium Album Feel the
Spirit (Collegium COLCD 128).
For supply to the USA or Canada, please contact Hope Publishing.
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Lord of the Dance. SATB Unaccompanied arr.
David Willcocks (Ref. W169)
[PDF]
SATB unaccompanied
For supply to the USA or Canada, please contact Hope Publishing. |
|
Lord of the Dance. SAB or SATB arr. John
Ferguson (Ref. W186)
SAB or SATB with organ or electronic keyboards
For supply to USA please contact ECS Publishing. |
|
One More Step. Unison arr. Craig McLeish
(Ref. W203)
[PDF]
Unison and keyboard
Featuring on Stainer & Bell's Sydney Carter's Lord of
the Dance CD, this new arrangement adds cheeky reggae rhythms
to this much-loved popular song, with accompaniment from acoustic
or electronic keyboard.
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One More Step (Ref. W151)
[PDF]
SSA with optional Piano |
|
Stars of the Cross (Cape Carol) (Ref.
W149)
[PDF]
SSA and Piano |
Poems
|
The Two-Way Clock (Ref.
B287)
Reprinted in 2000 this collection contains Sydney's poetry
collections Nothing Fixed or Final; Love More or Less previously
published separately together with The Feel of Wood as well
as a previously unpublished poem. 107 poems by this prolific
writer. Some will recognise the Housman influence in them.
All can enjoy their language.
ISBN 0 85249 287 1 |
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