On a Starry Night

Heather Allington

Heather writes for Sunday Song Book on behalf of the The Salvation Army Oshawa. As a lifelong member of the Army, she has loved these familiar - and some less familiar - songs for many years, and enjoys researching and writing about their origins. She is a wife, mother, grandmother and retired elementary school teacher who likes trying her hand at watercolour painting and poetry writing.

It was on a starry night
When the hills were bright,
Earth lay sleeping, sleeping calm and still.
Then in a cattle shed, in a manger bed
A Boy was born, King of all the world.

And all the angels sang for Him,
The bells of Heaven rang for Him,
For a Boy was born, King of all the world.

Soon the shepherds came that way
Where the Baby lay,
And were kneeling, kneeling by His side;
And their hearts believed again
For the peace of men,
For a Boy was born, King of all the world.

This lovely, lilting Christmas carol is simple enough to be sung by children’s choirs as well as adult ones, and is in the Salvation Army’s “new” Song Book so that congregations, too, can enjoy singing it. The author, Major Joy Webb, wrote most of her songs for adults, and is known for her innovative “Joystrings” – the Salvation Army’s first “pop” band, which became famous in England in the 1960’s. The group even made the radio pop charts of the day, particularly with On a Starry Night and It’s an Open Secret . Major Webb is a classically trained pianist and vocalist who also plays the guitar. In 2004, in her retirement, she was awarded the Order of the Founder – the Salvation Army’s highest honour. It was said that throughout her career she had “demonstrated outstanding commitment to the creative and innovative use of music, poetry and drama in evangelism and worship, achieving unparalleled success in expressing the Gospel in the popular idioms of the day, while constantly reflecting the standards of the Gospel in her personal life.” Her autobiography can be found in her book, Bridge of Songs.