God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman by The Blair Band
First off, what a fun song, even before The Blair Band got a hold of it.
The song written in the 15th century, was written as a song by the peasants outside the walls of the cathedral. At the time, songs by organized religion were very dark and somber and usually in Latin. With this song, and several others, the commoners led a quit rebellion against the tone of religious music of their day. The song was finally published in the nineteenth century. The lyrics clearly show that the author had a Biblical understanding of the meaning and weight of the Jesus' birth.
It's an often misunderstood song though.
Today we use the term "merry" as the equivalent to being happy. The original meaning to the word however was mighty or strong. Have you ever wondered why Robin Hood's "merry" men were so happy? That's because they were might men, not happy men.
The word rest also had a different meaning back then. It didn't mean to sleep. It meant to keep or even to make. Toss in a comma and instead of "God Rest Ye Merry Gentleman" we have "God make you mighty, gentleman."
The challenge to readers, with the new, er...old meaning in your mind, go back and look at the lyrics. The song takes on new meaning with the original intent in mind.
My favorite version of this song is by The Blair Band. It's actually an instrumental version. For those who can't find this version, imagine bagpipes, a deep bass drum and lots of dancing. That would describe this version. But don't give up. Try to find a You Tube version of this or on iTunes or something. You'll want to hear their recorded version.
Have a mighty Christmas this season!
(historical info researched and published by Ace Collins)
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