WORSHIP LEADERS
INSTANTLY SINGABLE & BIBLICALLY RICH - CITYALIGHT | Grant Norsworthy
My last article INSTANTLY SINGABLE - STRAIGHT OUT OF THE BOX highlighted the song “ Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me ” from Sydney , Australia-based music ministry CityAlight .
This is a song that ’ s been in my repertoire “ tool kit ” for some time now and I am very glad to have it . For many ( but not all ) congregations - especially in my home country of New Zealand and my country of origin , Australia - “ Yet Not I …” connects extremely well ; inducing a heartfelt , worshipful response from the congregation . So much so that I am sure congregations in the USA and other countries would resonate equally well .
Not everyone listens to Christian radio , nor has a “ Worship ’ s hot new releases ” Spotify playlist . Even worshippers who are previously unfamiliar with the song quickly and easily join in ! This instant “ singability ” is a very intentional , high priority for the CityAlight songwriters and one of the reasons why the song works so well . Even though “ Yet Not I …” might be new to a congregation , the way the lyrics and melody
work together feels familiar , hymn-like and even predictable - in a good way !
If you ’ re not familiar with “ Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me ” ( or would like a reminder ) watch and listen here :
“ Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me ”( Live )
I recently shared a video call with two of the core members of the CityAlight team in Jonny Robinson and Rich Thompson . I wanted to speak with them to get some background info on CityAlight - and “ Yet Not I …” in particular - for this and my previous article . Jonny and Rich are the song writers for “ Yet Not I But Through Christ In Me ” along with Nashvillebased producer Michael Farren . Michael will be well-known to many readers , although he is not an official part of the CityAlight team .
Jonny and Rich were quick to confirm what I had observed about “ Yet Not I …” and indeed all of the CityAlight catalog . Musically speaking , these songs have been written and produced first and foremost for Christian Church congregations - especially smaller congregations - to sing together .
To me , this is super refreshing . It seems to me that many of the songs that populate the CCLI Top 20 - in their often highly produced , performance-styled original form - do not hold the easy vocal participation of the average congregation as a high priority . They ’ re great songs , sure , but before I can expect Jack and Jill average church attender to sing along , I ’ ll need to make several significant changes .
If you ’ re interested in the sorts of changes I consider necessary , check out another of my articles FROM SLAMMIN ’ TO SINGABLE .
Jonny explained to me some of the motivation behind CityAlight : “ Bethel , Hillsong and so on are obviously serving the church in significant ways because 34 October 2024 Subscribe for Free ...