"Great God" known in the world by the English name "How Great Thou Art", How great you are!) Is a Christian hymn of the 19th century. In total, more than 1,700 different artists have recorded the anthem "How Great Thou Art". The words of this hymn have been translated into many languages of the world.
George Beverly Shea and Cliff Burrows played a major role in popularization during the period of Billy Graham's evangelistic campaign. The anthem was chosen as one of the favorite works of the British program "BBC" - "Songs of Praise". "How Great Thou Art" ranks second (after "Amazing Grace") on Today's Christian magazine's 2001 list of favorite hymns of all time. In April 1974, the Christian Herald magazine in a poll of its readers named the "Great God" the # 1 anthem in America.
The words of this hymn have been translated into many languages of the world, it is sung on all continents and is sung in common at Christian meetings, and by many famous and little-known singers both at evangelistic events and at concert venues. The anthem is often used as soundtracks for feature films and television programs. "How Great Thou Art" was named the favorite gospel song of the three US presidents.
The original Swedish text was the poem "O store Gud" (Russian: Oh, Great God), written by the Swedish pastor and member of the Swedish parliament Karl Boberg in 1886. The full text included 9 stanzas.
According to the recollections of contemporaries, the idea of writing this poem came to Boberg when he was amazed at the greatness of the Lord, seeing such a picture: a suddenly bursting thunderstorm was replaced by the clear midday sun and the joyful chirping of birds. It was in a state of peaceful calm, inspired by nature on the Gulf of Mönsteros, that Boberg felt inspiration, and on the same night he wrote the first verses of poetry. Boberg recorded his praises in a nine-line poem that begins with the Swedish words "O store Gud, nar jag den varld beskader."the greatness of the Lord wrote in the New Testament and the Apostle Paul in his epistle to the Romans: "For His invisible, His eternal power and Godhead, from the creation of the world through the viewing of creatures are visible" (Rom. 1: 19-20). Modern theologians argue that divine wisdom and infinite grace can be considered to understand the essence of God's creation. People were taught by God through nature and life experiences.
The author of Twice Born Hymns (1976) and Let's Sing Them Again (1985) J. Irwin Erickson writes:
Karl Boberg and his friends were returning from the Swedish city of Kronobäck to Mönsterås, where they took part in the afternoon worship. Nature was filled with the peaceful calm of a fine autumn. The sky was clear and cloudless. But soon the picture was replaced by thunderclouds and fiery lightning split the entire sky. Stormy winds sweeping at great speed raised clouds of straw dust. At that moment, it went dark around, thunder struck and pouring rain began. When the storm gradually receded and the wind died down, a rainbow and a dazzling sun appeared in the sky. Returning home, Boberg opened the window and before his eyes appeared the Mönsteros Bay, which looked like a mirror ... Then he heard the soothing, pleasant singing of birds from the trees nearby. With the coming of evening, the church bells began to ring regularly. It was this sequence of sounds, events and experiences that inspired him to write the song.
--D. Irwin Erickson
The author himself characterizes his essay as an attempt to tell how he was struck by the greatness of the Lord. But before Boberg was visited by the idea of writing a poem, events took place, which the author himself described as follows:
This happened at a time of year when everything around was acquiring a rich color. Birds sang outside the window. And on one of these warm sunny days, we were caught by a thunderstorm with awe-inspiring flash of lightning. We had to hurry in order to have time to hide from the elements. But to my surprise, the storm suddenly ended - and the thunderstorm that broke out was replaced by the clear midday sun and the joyful chirping of birds. Back home, I opened the window overlooking the sea. And I heard the mesmerizing ringing of bells playing the melody "When the hours of eternity called my saved soul to the sacred day of rest." Obviously, a funeral was taking place somewhere nearby. I wrote O Store Gud that evening.
- Karl Boberg
The anthem's melody is based on an old Swedish folk song. The first performance of the anthem was recorded in a church in the Swedish province of Värmland in 1888. O Store Gud was first published in Mönsterås Tidningen on March 13, 1886. Eight verses with music to them were published in 1890 in the magazine "Sions Harpan".
One of the leading preachers of his time, Boberg became a successful publisher of the magazine Sanningsvitten (True Witness) in 1890. On April 16, 1891, a nine-verse anthem was published in Sanningsvittnet magazine. In the musical text, the hymn was presented with a measure of 3/4. In 1894 in the Songbook of the Presbyterian Covenant Church in Sweden (Swedish: Svenska Missionsförbundet sångbok), the poem O Store Gud was published, where the time signature is 4/4 (four quarters).Boberg later acquired the ownership of the Svenska Missionsförbundet (Russian Presbyterian Covenant Church in Sweden). The instrumentation for the anthem for piano and guitar belongs to Adolf Edgren (1858-1921), organist and music teacher who migrated to the United States.(Karl Boberg's grand-nephew, Bud recalls:
As my dad used to say, O Store Gud is a paraphrase of Psalm 8, which was read in an “underground church” (a church not belonging to any recognized denomination) located in Sweden in the late 1800s. In those years, both Baptists and close friends of missionaries were persecuted.)
Lord, our Lord, how wonderful is Thy name in all the earth, for Thy splendor is exalted above the heavens! From the mouths of infants and nursing children You have arranged praise for your enemies, to destroy the enemy and the avenger. When I see the heavens - the works of Thy fingers, the moon and the stars, which Thou hast established, then what is it, that You remember him, or the son of man, that You visit him? With something small, you belittled him before the angels, crowned him with glory and honor, and set him over the works of your hands, subjugated everything under his feet: sheep and all oxen, and also cattle in the fields, birds of the air and fish of the sea, everything that passes the paths of the sea. Lord, our Lord, how wonderful is your name throughout the whole earth!
- Psalm 8
Later, in 1907, the text of this song was translated from Swedish into German by Estonian resident Manfred von Glen (1867-1924 and became known as "Wie gross bist Du" (Russian How Great You Are). The anthem enjoyed wide popularity in Germany, where it is still known as “Wie groß bist Du.” Manfred first heard this anthem in Estonia, where it was sung by the Baltic Swedes. First published in the magazine “Blankenburger Lieder.” The words “Du großer Gott” are found in the first stanza of the German anthem.
In 1912, one of the founders of the evangelical movement in Russia, Ivan Stepanovich Prokhanov (1869-1935), who can be called the "Martin Luther" of Russia, translating the poems of Manfred von Glen, translated the words and this hymn into Russian. It is known that Prokhanov was very fond of this anthem and often sang it. He included it in the collection of sacred hymns published in Leningrad - "Cymbals".Boberg's poem consisted of 10 stanzas, Prokhanov wrote in Russian the lyrics of the song of 8 verses. In 1922, several collections of Prokhanov were combined into a large volume - "Songs of Christians". Later, Prokhanov's translation of the hymn was included in the official collection of liturgical hymns of Evangelical Christians-Baptists The Song of the Renaissance, being one of the most popular hymns.
In 1925, Gustave Johnson (1893-1974) of North Park College, Chicago, Illinois, made the first literal translation of a Swedish text. But this text did not become popular. This translation differs from the modern English text, but it can still be found in some hymnbooks. Johnson's literal translation is titled “O Mighty God, When I Behold the Wonder” (Russian. Oh, almighty God, when I see miracles). His translations of verses 1, 2, and 7-9 were published in the Covenant Hymnal hymnbook under the title O Mighty God in 1925.
The first three psalters, translated into English, were included in the 1973 collection of church hymns, Covenant Hymnal. This version included all nine stanzas of Karl Boberg's original poem. The authors of the collection considered it necessary to replace Johnson's version with the more popular version of the British missionary Stuart Hine "How Great Thou Art". Pastor and Chairman of the Covenant Hymnal Commission, Glen Weyberg explains:
The anthem “How Great Thou Art” translated by Stuart Hine was widely popular in the late 60s and early 70s. The commission defended the rights of the more popular version, but at the same time did not refuse the translation by Gustave Johnson. Unfortunately, we were unable to pay the high price demanded by the publisher who owned the copyright for the hymn, even though the original belonged to the Presbyterian Church of the Covenant. This is one of the paradoxes of a speculative deal that had to do with music!
In 19ymnal — A Worshipbook, Johnson's translation was replaced with the original. The editors explained this by saying that "the version of Gustave Johnson is the closest to the original, because Johnson used an archaic language in translation." Glen Weeberg also notes: “The sympathy of the commission was on the side of the original text of the hymn with the Swedish poetry translation, but the members of the commission agreed to a compromise.They suggested not to abandon Johnson's translation and publish it on the back page. Thus, both Karl Boberg's text and Gustave Johnson's translation were included in the collection. It is interesting that after Johnson's translation into modern language, new metaphors appeared in the text of the anthem, which generally gives the impression of an unfinished text."
In 1933, the English missionaries Rev. Stuart K. Hine (1899-1989) and his wife served among the Ukrainian people. In those years, Hein first heard this chant in Russian. Stuart Hine then became seriously interested in the history of the anthem for the first time, and the more he learned, the more serious the interest became. Michael Island writes: “Hine and his wife, Edith, having carefully studied the Russian translation, began to actively use it in evangelistic work in western Ukraine. It was then that Hein first began to work with the texts of hymns written in Russian."Having met the collection "Songs of Christians" published in New York by friends of Prokhanov from the American Bible Society, and later published in Russia, Hein began to use it for his evangelistic campaigns.In Ukraine, the Hain couple got acquainted with the Russian translation of "O store Gud", recalling how they sang it in a duet in dark, non-evangelical places, and what impact it had on non-believers. Shortly thereafter, the Hines went to the Carpathian Russia. The first three verses in English were written under the unforgettable impressions of the Carpathians (the fourth verse was later written in England). In the Carpathians, Hain, amazed by the beauty of the mountains, wrote the first three verses of the anthem in English. Thus, the first two verses were written, inspired partly by the words of the Russian translation of the hymn, and partly by miracles that inspire awe.During the evangelism in the Carpathians, when the Monk Hein and his wife were also distributing the Gospels in the villages, the third verse was translated. In 1939, after the outbreak of World War II, the Hine couple was forced to return to Britain, where the last fourth verse was written. The entire hymn "Great God" in English was printed by Hein in 1949 with his own lyrics and Swedish melody.
Stuart Hine was a Methodist minister. His parents were active in the Salvation Army. Hein himself converted to Christ on February 22, 1914, thanks to the Christian educational activities of Madame Annie Roalle, and was quickly baptized thereafter. Hein said that he was most influenced by the teachings of the English preacher and theologian Charles Spurgeon.
It was typical for Hine to go to the village and do his best to gather complete information about what interested him. In this case, Hain was interested in how many people in this Ukrainian village had converted to Christianity. He learned that the only Christians in this Ukrainian village were a man named Dmitry and his wife, Lyudmila. Lyudmila could read, which was obviously a rare occurrence for that time. According to Lyudmila herself, she acquired the reading skills herself, without resorting to anyone's help.The woman also told a curious story about how one Russian soldier who lived in their village forgot the Bible, and Lyudmila found it. It was the Bible that became her first book. When Hein arrived in the village and visited Dmitry's house, he heard Lyudmila read aloud the Gospel of John in the next room filled with guests. In Ukraine (since I know this from my own experience!) The final stage of confession (the act of repentance) requires the repentant to sincerely speak out loud about the sins he has committed. It was then that the Hines heard for the first time how people directly addressed God. People turned to the Lord with a request for the granting of patience in times of trouble and expressed their hope in His mercy and support.Hein and his wife could not break the moment of the fulfillment of the work of the Holy Spirit, so they stayed outside and continued to listen. Hine hastily wrote down everything he heard from the lips of repentant sinners. In the end, these words became the basis of the third verse, which we know today: "When I see the face of Christ, humble, who was a slave to the people in the world, as on the cross He died, the King of the universe, and acquired forgiveness for us with the cross."
- Michael Island
During the Holodomor, which, at the initiative of Joseph Stalin, swept the entire territory of the Ukrainian SSR in the winter of 1932-1933, Hain left Ukraine and moved to Eastern Europe. However, already in 1939, at the height of World War II, Hein returned to England with his wife. The couple settled in Somerset. Hein continued his Gospel ministry in England, helping displaced refugees from Poland.
The fourth stanza of the anthem was also written by Stuart Hine after World War II. According to the memoirs of his contemporaries, Hein showed great interest in the fate of the Poles expelled from England. According to some sources, Hine was inspired to write the last verse of the hymn by their desire to return to their homeland. According to other sources, the fourth verse was written by Hine in 1948 after Hine and David Griffiths visited a camp in Sussex where displaced Russians were being held. One of the refugees presented to Hine his proof of the second coming of Jesus Christ. This story inspired Heine to write the fourth stanza of the hymn, which was included in the English text. Michael Island notes:
Once, during a church service, a man told the Hine couple an amazing story about how he was separated from his beloved wife at the very end of the war, and since then he has never seen her. She was a Christian during the years they parted, but he is not. He converted to Christianity in adulthood after the end of the war. His only desire throughout all these years was to find his wife to be together. The man confessed to Heine that he never believed that he would see her again.Now he could only hope that their meeting would take place only in heaven and, thanks to the crucifixion of the Savior, he and his wife would gain eternal life in the heavenly kingdom. These words formed the basis of the fourth and last verse of the hymn “How Great Thou Art”: “When the Lord Himself calls me and a ray of His radiance shines, then my spirit in humility becomes silent, recognizing the greatness of His God. And only one thing he sings to you again: how great you are, how great you are!"
-Michael Island
In Stuart Hine's book, Not You, But God: A Proof of God's Faithfulness, Hine published two previously unknown couplets translated from Russian. In 1953, copyright was reserved for the content of the text. It should also be noted that both verses were not included in the text of collections published in the United States:
O when I see ungrateful man defiling This bounteous earth, God's gifts so good and great; In foolish pride, God's holy Name reviling, And yet, in grace, His wrath and judgment wait. When burdens press, and seem beyond endurance, Bowed down with grief, to Him I lift my face; And then in love He brings me sweet assurance: My child! for thee sufficient is my grace'.
Когда читаю я повествованье О чудных Божиих делах святых, Как Он людей — живое достоянье — И возлюбил, и спас от бед земных, — Когда соблазн мне сердце угнетает, И смертной скорбью дух мой удручён, И Бог в любви ко мне главу склоняет И нежным словом заглушает стон.
In 1948, Hein completed the last verse, and in 1949 completed the complete translation of the anthem into English. In the same year, the Russian magazine Mir and Blagodat published the last four verses of the anthem, included in the original version. Following this publication, "O store Gud" (How Great Thou Art) became known to refugees from fifteen countries around the world, including North and South America. English missionaries who visited the British colonies in Africa and India also played a role in popularizing the anthem.
Hein translated the words of this hymn into many languages of the world. Most of the texts have been published in books on evangelical literature, including such publications as Oriental Melodies and Hymns of Other Lands (1956) and How Great Thou Art: Russian and Oriental Melodies (1958). Stuart Hine passed away on March 14, 1989. A memorial service was held on March 23, 1989 at the House of Prayer located in Essex, UK.
Concert at Gustavus Adolphus College reported that Dr. J. Edwin Orr (1912-1987) (Fuller Theological Seminary, Los Angeles, Pasadena) discovered a previously unknown recording of the anthem How Great Thou Art ". According to him, the recording was made in a small village near Deolali, India. It is found that the hymn is being sung by members of the Naga tribe from Assam near Myanmar. The tribe transcribed the musical harmony on their own, and the Mennonite missionary deciphered the recording. J. Edwin Orr admitted that the discovered recording made a very strong impression on him. According to the official website of Manna Music:
Dr. Orr took part in a theological conference on the topic "Think not about what great things you can do in the name of the Lord, but think about what you can do for Him." At the beginning of the conference, he quoted the words of the anthem, and then sang it in front of the audience. Among the regular participants of the conference were the children of the famous author-songwriter and publisher of Christian music Vernon Tim Spencer, Hal Spencer and his sister Loretta. It was they who became interested in the hymn and turned to Orr with a request to give them the text of the hymn in order to show it to their father.
Vernon Tim Spencer (1908-1974) is also known as a former member of The Sons of the Pioneers, which founded Manna Music with its Manna Records in Burbank, California in 1955. In 1954, following negotiations between Tim Spencer and Stuart Hine, copyright and publishing rights were transferred to Manna Music, which helped spread the popularity of the anthem. Largely due to the efforts of "Manna Music", the anthem became publicly available. The editors of Manna Music have made a number of changes to the text of the anthem.Thus, the words "works" and "almighty" were replaced by the words "universe" (English worlds) and "rolling". According to the sound engineers at Manna Music, "the changes made have increased the popularity of the anthem among Christians around the world."
The anthem "How Great Thou Art" was first introduced to American audiences by Bill Karl in 1958. The recording was included in the musician's self-titled album, released under the Sacred Records label (LP 9018). The song was also featured on Carl's other album, Who Hath Measured the Waters In the Hollow of His Hand (Sacred Records LP 9041), released the same year. However, according to Stuart Hine, the hymn was first introduced to American listeners by a Central African missionary, James Caldwell. Caldwell sang "How Great Thou Art" at the 1951 Stony Brook Bible Conference on Long Island.
“The reason I love How Great Thou Art is because it is one of the few hymns to praise God. What is said in the hymn kind of takes the Christian's gaze away from himself and turns him to God. This is one of my favorite hymns in my evangelistic campaign, and I try to use it as often as possible.
- Billy Graham
The anthem's popularity is largely due to the fact that it is often sung by prominent evangelical singers such as George Beverly Shea. Although the hymn was introduced to American audiences when James Caldwell sang "The Great God" at the Stony Brook Bible Conference held on Long Island in 1951, it did not become widely known until Cliff Burrows and Beverly Shea of the evangelistic Billy Graham's groups did not sing this hymn during the famous London evangelism at the Haringey Arena. The anthem became the hallmark of Billy Graham's evangelistic campaign in the 1950s.Shortly thereafter, the text was given to George Beverly Shea and his friend George Graham, who collaborated in 1954 with the publishing company Pikering and Inglis in London. Burrows also gave a copy of the text to Paul Mickelson (d. 21 October 2001).In 1955, the song was used in an evangelistic campaign in Toronto. The Recording Industry Association of America ranked George Beverly Shea's recording at number 204 on its list of the greatest musical recordings of the 20th century. Michael Island writes:
It all started in 1954, when Billy Graham's team traveled to London to open an evangelistic campaign that was to take place at the Haringey Arena. Graham's team received a booklet for missionaries around the world. The booklet contained the text of the hymn translated by Hein. “At first they ignored him, but fortunately, after a while they turned their attention to him again,” recalls Bad Boberg.Working closely with Hine, Graham's team successfully prepared the song for a new evangelistic campaign. Graham's campaign first performed the anthem in 1955 in Toronto, but it did not become widely known until they performed it at Madison Square Garden in 1957. According to Cliff Burrows (a longtime associate of Billy Graham), they sang this anthem about a hundred times during the campaign, because the audience constantly asked them to.
In 1957, Joseph T. Bailey (1920-1986) translated the hymn for the Christian society Inter-Varsity. The lyrics of the anthem were set to music by Josephine Carradine Dixon. Karl Boberg's great-nephew, Bad Boberg, says this about Bailey's translation:
This translation is the closest to Boberg, but I suspect that Joseph Bailey had Heine's translation handy as he worked. I am sure of this because in his translation, Joseph uses the phrase "How Great Are You, Lord." In addition, Josephine Dixon's music is also very reminiscent of Heine. Bailey only added two of his own verses. "
- Bad Boberg
The eminent British hymnologist Eric Rutley (1917-1982), known for his negative attitude towards the hymn "How Great Thou Art" and its melody, wrote a new text titled "O, Mighty God". The lyrics with the Swedish melody were published in 1982. It was one of the last works of Rutley, shortly before his death. The translation was included in the book "Rejoice in God: An Addendum to the Scriptures" (1985) under number 466.
In the first stanza of the English anthem, named after the first line of the translation of the text into Russian, there are the words “O God, my God”. It should be noted that a hymn with such a title may appear in English hymns, in which the names of the hymns are sometimes given on the first line of their text. In an original poem by Karl Bober, the hymn begins with the words "O Store Gud". Interest in "O Store Gud" was renewed in Sweden shortly after the hymn was translated into English. Swedish gospel singer Eric Hallin attributes this to 1967, when the anthem was performed by American singer Elvis Presley. Hallin noted that the fact that Elvis Presley performed the anthem was the main prerequisite for the revival of "O Store Gud" in Sweden.
In 1995, the United Church of Christ published the New Century Hymnal, which contains an updated translation of Boberg's O store Gud into English. The hymn was called "O Mighty God, When I Survey in Wonder". According to the editors, "This translation and arrangement was created especially for New Century Hymnal to revive the meaning and spirit of Boberg's original anthem."
O mighty God, when I survey in wonder The world that formed when once the word you said, The strands of life all woven close together, The whole creation at your table fed, My soul cries out in songs of praise to you, O mighty God! O mighty God! When your voice speaks in rolls of thunder pealing, Your lightning power bursts in bright surprise; When cooling rain, your gentle love revealing, Reflects your promise, arcing through the skies. The Bible tells the story of your blessing So freely shed upon all human life; Your constant mercy, every care addressing, relieving burdened souls from sin and strife. And when at last, the clouds of doubt dispersing, You will reveal what we but dimly see; With trumpet call, our great rebirth announcing, we shall rejoin you for eternity. Then we will sing your praise forever more, O mighty God! O mighty God!
The words of this hymn have been translated into many languages of the world, including Chinese ("祢 真 偉大"), Japanese, Korean (주 하나님 지으신 모든 세계), Indonesian ("Ajaib Tuhan" meaning "Great God"), Polish language ("Gdy na ten świat"), Romanian ("O, Doamne Mare!"), Spanish ("Cuán grande es Él"), Vietnamese ("Lớn Bấy Duy Ngài"). There are also two versions in Esperanto. The first translation was made in 1966 by William John Downes ("Ho granda Dio, kiam mi rigardas"). In 1985 Leonard Ivor Gentle made a second translation ("Sinjoro Dio, kiam mi miregas").
The translation into Romanian was done by Jean I. Steneci. In Romania, the anthem is known as "O, Doame Mare!" Eight verses with music to them were published in 1927 in the magazine "Cantarile Triumfului".
The Maori version is "Whakaaria mai". The hymn was first performed by the famous "Royal Team Performance" in 1981 on the occasion of Queen Elizabeth II's visit to New Zealand. In 1982, entertainer Howard Morrison (born 1935) recorded the anthem. The song was released as a single. In the music charts of New Zealand, the single spent six months, of which five weeks took 1st place.
När tryckt av synd och skuld jag faller neder, Vid Herrens fot och ber om nåd och frid. Och han min själ på rätta vägen leder, Och frälsar mig från all min synd och strid. When burdens press, and seem beyond endurance, Bowed down with grief, to Him I lift my face; And then in love He brings me sweet assurance: 'My child! for thee sufficient is my grace'. När jag hör dårar i sin dårskaps dimma Förneka Gud och håna hvad han sagt, Men ser likväl, att de hans hjälp förnimma Och uppehållas af hans nåd och makt. O when I see ungrateful man defiling This bounteous earth, God's gifts so good and great; In foolish pride, God's holy Name reviling, And yet, in grace, His wrath and judgment wait. När jag hör åskans röst och stormar brusa Och blixtens klingor springa fram ur skyn, När regnets kalla, friska skurar susa Och löftets båge glänser för min syn.
O Lord my God! When I in awesome wonder Consider all the works Thy hands have made. I see the stars, I hear the rolling thunder, Thy power throughout the universe displayed. Chorus: Then sings my soul, my Saviour God, to Thee; How great Thou art, how great Thou art! When through the woods and forest glades I wander And hear the birds sing sweetly in the trees; When I look down from lofty mountain grandeur And hear the brook and feel the gentle breeze: Chorus And when I think that God, His Son not sparing, Sent Him to die, I scarce can take it in; That on the cross, my burden gladly bearing, He bled and died to take away my sin: Chorus When Christ shall come with shouts of acclamation And take me home, what joy shall fill my heart! Then I shall bow in humble adoration, And there proclaim, my God, how great Thou art! Chorus
In total, more than 1,700 different artists have recorded the anthem "How Great Thou Art". The most famous of them are recordings of such artists as George Beverly Shea, Elvis Presley, Pat Boone, Alan Jackson, Anita Bryant, Carrie Underwood, Dolly Parton, Charlie Daniels from The Blackwood Brothers, Tennessee Ernie Ford (backing vocalist The Jordanaires "), Roy Rogers and Connie Smith (1969 album" Back in Baby's Arms "). The version of the country group The Statler Brothers, from the Holy Bible New Testament album, peaked at # 39 on Hot Country Songs in 1976.
This anthem became the title track of Elvis Presley's second gospel album, How Great Thou Art (RCA LSP / LPM 3758), released in March 1967. It was this album that brought Presley his first Grammy Award (in the Spiritual Album category).
This anthem became the title track of Elvis Presley's second gospel album, How Great Thou Art (RCA LSP / LPM 3758), released in March 1967. It was this album that brought Presley his first Grammy Award (in the Spiritual Album category).The disc took 18th place in the American charts. Later in 1974, Presley received another Grammy award for live performance of the title track from this album (see "Elvis As Recorded Live On Stage In Memphis"). The concert took place on March 20, 1974 at the Mid South Coliseum (Memphis, Tennessee). For Presley, raised in a devout family, church hymns were one of his favorite musical themes.