Loreena McKennitt - God rest ye merry, gentlemen

O tidings of comfort and joy,
comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy!

From God our Heavenly Father
A blessed angel came
And unto certain shepherds
Brought tidings of the same
How in that Bethlehem was born
The son of God by name

"Fear not," then said the angel
"Let nothing you affright
This day is born a saviour
Of a pure virgin bright
To free all those who trust in him
From Satan's pow'rs and might"

O tidings of comfort and joy,
comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy!

The shepherds at those tidings
Rejoiced much in mind,
And left their flocks a-feeding
In tempest, storm and wind
And went to Bethlehem straightaway
This blessed babe to find

But when to Bethlehem they came
Whereat this infant lay
They found him in a manger
Where oxen feed on hay
His mother Mary kneeling
Unto the Lord did pray

O tidings of comfort and joy,
comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy!

Now to the Lord sing praises
All you within this place
And with true love and brotherhood
Each other now embrace
The holy tide of Christmas
All others doth deface

O tidings of comfort and joy,
comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy!

Lyrics: traditional English (18th cent)
Music: arranged and adapted by Loreena McKennitt
From: A winter garden (1995).
And from: A Midwinter Night's Dream (2008).
and: Under A Winter's Moon (2022)

Source of the lyrics: the CD booklet. With some corrections by Enrico Crisostomo and by me.

Note that the stanza printed in italics above is not sung by Loreena.

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This song is also song by Charlotte Church on her third CD Dream a dream, but in a different arrangement and with these lyrics:

God rest ye merry, gentlemen, let nothing you dismay;
Remember, Christ our Saviour was born on Christmas Day,
To save us all from Satan's pow'r when we were gone astray.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy.

In Bethlehem, In Jewry, this blessed Babe was born
And laid within a manger upon this blessed morn;
The which His mother Mary did nothing take in scorn.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy.

From God, our Heav'nly Father, a blessed angel came,
And unto certain shepherds brought tidings of the same;
How in that Bethlehem was born the son of God by name.
O tidings of comfort and joy, comfort and joy;
O tidings of comfort and joy.

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last modified: 4 November 2022