He Who Would Valiant Be (Song Version).

[5to22a]

Beautiful with the classical guitar, friend. Praise Jesus.

[andypandywright]

i went to bedford, bunyan's town, and on the hill is the mansion that inspired his "Beautiful House" in Pilgrim's Progress - well he used to struggle up that hill with his anvil to mend their pans etc. and i had to think that the nobles and their mansion are long gone and forgotten, but the tinker who came to their tradesman's entrance is now world famous! - cheers, martin.

[Horsemarine100]

Brilliant!!! I have heard many versions of this inspiring hymn, but never one quite like this. I know thw Monk's Gate tune is a 20th century addition, but I feel sure that Bunyan would relate better to this than to many modern versions, especially those using Percy Dearmer's sanitised words.

[andypandywright]

thanks a lot for your comment, Horsemarine100, and i too am more a fan of the older tunes than the new versions (what about "Lord of all Hopefulness" and "in the Bleak Midwinter" for starters!) - also, like you, i prefer original, un-tampered words - cheers from the uk to incomparable ireland - martin.

[ClaireSapphyck]

Fantastic Andy!  You really capture the feel of the old Sussex folk tune, you sound like Martin Carthy! I only realised today when I was researching it that Ralph Vaughan Williams had a hand in this, John Renbourn too?

[andypandywright]

really glad you like it, Claire, and i guess the Martin Carthy bit might be because we're both from 'up north' - i think Renbourn did a nice version, and i sometimes add one of Renbourn's transcriptions to "He Who. . ." (Bransle de Bourgoune) - it just seems to follow on naturally - Martin (the Andy tag's a long story!).

[idell50]

Very nicely done! Love the words to that hymn...and the melody. Your guitar accompaniment was excellent. :)

[andypandywright]

thanks for your nice comment, mom, and glad you like my version - it is a great tune and john bunyan's words are really fine - cheers from the uk to amazing america - martin.

[idell50]

I love your guitar playing! Beautiful hymn; great words.

[andypandywright]

thanks again, mom, and glad you like my guitar playing style - martin.

[IgnorantAussie]

Nice treatment of a wonderful hymn - well done!

[andypandywright]

nobody can be called an IgnorantAussie if they like my stuff (well, that's what i say!) - glad you liked the hymn - cheers from the uk to awesome australia - martin.

[RodHullIOnceWasHim]

I'm an Atheist just finished transcribing this hymm and now find you destroying my efforts lol. Have you put your tab for this anywhere? (or will I just have to keep watching this vid over and over ;-))

[andypandywright]

yes, that's happened to me before - transcribing "Sweet Lorraine" and "All Through the Night",

RodHullIOnceWasHim, still, to get you set up for this one,the chords are G, C, D, Am and Bm - and the D is sometimes played as String 5 Fret 5 together with String 4 fret 4, - and the Bm is played as Am up 2 frets - also on the word "intent", second syllable "- tent" - the chord is String 5 Fret 3, together with String 4 Fret 2 and String 3 Fret 2 - hope that helps! - cheers martin.

[anglicanbeachparty]

I am revisiting this and sharing it with my FaceBook friends. It is just as awesome as the last time I heard it. Thanks again!

[andypandywright]

paul - it's good to hear that it can be appreciated second time around - cheers again from the uk - martin.

[ianhorst]

This made me smile and shake off some unhappy feelings. Many thanks.

[andypandywright]

glad that my posting helped, ian, and music does have the power to do such things - cheers, martin.

[elsalovescheese]

thankyou very much- its really good. We sing this at school- it's our School Hymn!

[andypandywright]

really glad you like my posting, elsa, and the other three you kept - and it's a great school hymn - also, i like cheese too! - martin x

[MsSharonGail]

One of my favorite hymns . I'm undergoing cancer treatments and these lyrics particularly resonate. Like your accent, North England?

[andypandywright]

i'm very glad that my posting was pertinent for you, also i hope your treatment turns out to be a success - let me know. yes, my accent is from "up north", i wasborn in nottingham and seem to have picked up a bit of derbyshire accent too - all best wishes from the UK to you in the good old U S of A - martin.

[anglicanbeachparty]

Well done!!

[andypandywright]

thanks for that - martin

[kholmes39]

Very nicely done. I like your style of playing--not a style heard in the western US. Martin Carthy/John Renbourne, etc...not a huge influence around here. Good singing, too. And what a great hymn this is.

[andypandywright]

thanks for your complimentary comment, and i have to agree, it's a pretty good hymn - cheers from the uk - martin.

[serenstarbright]

This is one of my favourite hymns.

We sang it the first day I went to the Grammar School and it brings back so many memories.

You sang it so well

Ally

[andypandywright]

thanks for your comment, ally, and i too remember it from grammar school - martin.

[tonytheexpat]

I used to sing this 45 years ago at school....it is still my favorite, many thanks for posting

[andypandywright]

glad you like this, tony, all the way over there in estonia - cheers, martin.

[NashWolfy]

I really enjoyed listening to this, thanks.

As a child I learned the lyrics as "Who would true valliance see, let him come follow" - any idea where that might come from?

Either way, athiest as I am, Im thinking I'd enjoy playing this on the guitar as much as the organ.

Thanks :D

[andypandywright]

glad you liked my posting - and i'm finding out that there are all kinds of variations on the lyrics, which now includes your version (which i've never come across) - cheers from the uk - martin

[elfinia]

"let him come follow" -

Intriguing ! so what rhymed with "follow" ? Hollow? Apollo ? wallow ?

[NashWolfy]

I have not the faintest.

Those were the lyrics in my piano teachers' book, which I recall from 25 years ago. I've looked for the rest ever since but no joy :/

Andy (pandy?) - my girlfriend's group perform medieval music; I'm strongly considering converting this arrangement for guitar and viol.

[elfinia]

Hobgoblin nor foul fiend

Can daunt his spirit;

He knows he at the end

Shall life inherit.

Then fancies fly away;

He'll fear not what men say;

He'll labor night and day

To be a pilgrim.

by John Bunyan

[andypandywright]

and this verse is just about exactly as i found it - thanks for these 3 replies alexandra - take care, martin.

[elfinia]

Whoso beset him round

With dismal stories,

Do but themselves confound;

His strength the more is.

No lion can him fright;

He'll with a giant fight,

But he will have a right

To be a pilgrim.

[andypandywright]

again some interesting changes - the lion's gone and he now "makes good his right" - martin

[elfinia]

Here is Bunyan's Original poem

Who would true valor see,

Let him come hither;

One here will constant be,

Come wind, come weather;

There's no discouragement

Shall make him once relent

His first avowed intent

To be a pilgrim.

[andypandywright]

that's great, alexandra, and really interesting to see how all the verses in bunyan were adapted to fit the music. as in the character "valiant" adapted to "true valour see" - martin

[elfinia]

"true valour see" is the original Bunyan version....

I think that some of the version you sing is the Reverend Percy Dearmer's adaption over 100 years later ... I think he tried to make the words a little more "Anglican" ( with "masters" etc)

[andypandywright]

thanks alexandra - all of this is making me want to read old bunyan again - martin.

[elfinia]

Wonderful AndyPandy...cheered me up and made my evening !

 you foul fiend,you ( you blew my cover :) )

[andypandywright]

alexandra - glad to be of assistance - martin.

[andypandywright]

short, but right to the point - thanks, martin.

[raymond52044]

Amen!

[glaoud]

Good work Martin . ***** J.C.

[andypandywright]

glad you likes this, jean-claude, even when you've already heard the instrumental i played - martin.

[glaoud]

Yes, I play the version of John Renbourn in open tuning .

Friendly .J.C.