Sunday, November 30, 2025

We Three Kings of Orient Are

 We Three Kings

1

We three kings of Orient are;

Bearing gifts we traverse afar,

Field and fountain, 

Moor and mountain,

Following yonder star.

2

Born a King on Bethlehem's plain,

Gold I bring to crown him again,

King forever, 

Ceasing never,

Over us all to reign. 

3

Frankincense to offer have I;

Incense owns a Deity nigh;

Prayer and praising, 

Voices raising,

Worshiping God on high.

4

Myrrh is mine; its bitter perfume

Breathes a life of gathering gloom;

Sorrowing, sighing, 

Bleeding, dying,

Sealed in the stone-cold tomb.

5

Glorious now behold him arise;

King and God and sacrifice:

Alleluia, Alleluia,

Sounds through the earth and skies.

Refrain:

Star of wonder, star of night,

Star with royal beauty bright,

Westward leading, 

Still proceeding,

Guide us to thy perfect light.


JOHN H. HOPKINS

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_39CvxinT7M&list=RD_39CvxinT7M&start_radio=1


Saturday, November 29, 2025

Come, Thou Long Expected Jesus

1

Come, thou long expected Jesus,

born to set thy people free;

from our fears and sins release us,

let us find our rest in thee.

Israel's strength and consolation,

hope of all the earth thou art;

dear desire of every nation,

joy of every longing heart.

2

Born thy people to deliver,

born a child and yet a King,

born to reign in us forever,

now thy gracious kingdom bring.

By thine own eternal spirit

rule in all our hearts alone;

by thine all sufficient merit,

raise us to thy glorious throne.


Charles Wesley

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0dmO8UPlWoo&list=RD0dmO8UPlWoo&start_radio=1


Friday, November 28, 2025

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

I have more than 25 Christmas carols that I want to post here, so I'm starting today instead of waiting until December. (For my non-Catholic friends -- Advent starts this Sunday.)

Hymns for the Family of God page 148

1

O come, O come, Emmanuel

And ransom captive Israel,

That mourns in lonely exile here,

Until the Son of God appear.

2

O come, thou Dayspring, come and cheer

Our spirits by thine advent here;

Disperse the gloomy clouds of night,

And death's dark shadows put to flight.

3

O come, thou Wisdom from on high,

And order all things, far and night;

To us the path of knowledge show,

And cause us in her ways to go.

4

O come, Desire of nations, bind

In one the hearts of all mankind;

Bid thou our sad divisions cease,

And be thyself our Prince of Peace.

REFRAIN

Rejoice! Rejoice! Emmanuel

Shall come to thee, O Israel!


Unknown Author, original text Latin, translated by John M. Neale (1851)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xtpJ4Q_Q-4&list=RD7xtpJ4Q_Q-4&start_radio=1


O Come Emmanuel has its roots in Latin, likely from a sixth-century evening prayer book known as O Antiphons which consisted of seven separate texts, each beginning with the vocative particle “O” followed by an attribute of Jesus.  They were either sung or recited as part of an annual Christmas tradition, leading up to Christmas Eve.  These texts include:

O Sapientia (O Wisdom)

O Adonai (O Lord)

O Radix Jesse (O Root of Jesse)

O Clavis David (O Key of David)

O Oriens (O Dayspring)

O Rex Gentium (O King of the Nations)

O Emmanuel (O God With Us)



This song is rife with scripture references, specifically Old Testament prophecies of the Messiah, and New Testament passages that reference Jesus as the fulfillment of those prophecies.

1

O COME O COME EMMANUEL Is 7:14 Matt 1:23

AND RANSOM CAPTIVE ISRAEL

THAT MOURNS IN LONELY EXILE HERE

UNTIL THE SON OF GOD APPEAR Is 35:10 Matt 1:21

Refrain:

REJOICE REJOICE EMMANUEL

SHALL COME TO THEE O ISRAEL Luke 2:10-12

2

O COME THOU ROD OF JESSE FREE Is 11:1-2 Matt 1:6-16 Luke 3:23-32

THINE OWN FROM SATAN'S TYRANNY Acts 10:38 1 Cor 10:13

FROM DEPTHS OF HELL THY PEOPLE SAVE

AND GIVE THEM VICTORY O'ER THE GRAVE Rom 8:37 1 Cor 15:54-57 Heb 2:14-15

3

O COME THOU DAYSPRING FROM ON HIGH Luke 1:78

AND CHEER US BY THY DRAWING NIGH

DISPERSE THE GLOOMY CLOUDS OF NIGHT

AND DEATH'S DARK SHADOWS PUT TO FLIGHT Is 9:2 John 1:1-8 John 8:12 Eph 5:14

4

O COME THOU KEY OF DAVID COME Rev 8:7

AND OPEN WIDE OUR HEAV'NLY HOME John 14:2

MAKE SAFE THE WAY THAT LEADS ON HIGH

AND CLOSE THE PATH TO MISERY John 14:6 Acts 4:12

5

O COME ADONAI LORD OF MIGHT Genesis 1:1, Deuteronomy 4:39, Deuteronomy 10:14, Joshua 2:11, Nehemiah 9:6, Psalm 29:10, Psalm 45:6, Psalm 50:7-15, Psalm 93:1-2, Psalm 115:3, Psalm 135:6, Isaiah 43:13, Isaiah 45:9-10, Isaiah 46:10, Lamentations 5:19, Daniel 4:35, Romans 9:19-21, Ephesians 1:11, Hebrews 1:8, James 4:15, Revelation 4:11, and Revelation 20:11

WHO TO THY TRIBES ON SINAI'S HEIGHT

IN ANCIENT TIMES DIDST GIVE THE LAW

IN CLOUD AND MAJESTY AND AWE Deut 27:12-13 Ex 19-23

6

O COME THOU WISDOM FROM ON HIGH 1 Cor 1:24

AND ORDER ALL THINGS FAR AND NIGH Jer 51-15

TO US THE PATH OF KNOWLEDGE SHOW

AND CAUSE US IN HER WAYS TO GO Proverbs 3:5-6, Matthew 7:13, and 1 Corinthians 10:13

7

O COME DESIRE OF NATIONS BIND Haggai 2:7

ALL PEOPLES IN ONE HEART AND MIND Rom 14:11 Phil 2:10-11

BID ENVY STRIFE AND QUARRELS CEASE

FILL THE WHOLE WORLD WITH HEAVEN'S PEACE Luke 2:13-14


Thursday, November 27, 2025

Now Thank We All Our God

Now thank we all our God

with heart and hands and voices,

who wondrous things has done,

in whom his world rejoices;

who from our mothers' arms

has blessed us on our way

with countless gifts of love,

and still is ours today.

O may this bounteous God

through all our life be near us,

with ever joyful hearts

and blessed peace to cheer us,

to keep us in his grace,

and guide us when perplexed,

and free us from all ills

of this world in the next.

All praise and thanks to God

the Father now be given,

the Son and Spirit blest,

who reign in highest heaven

the one eternal God,

whom heaven and earth adore;

for thus it was, is now,

and shall be evermore.


Author: Martin Rinkart (1636)

Translator: Catherine Winkworth

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K7gMDXylzW8&list=RDK7gMDXylzW8&start_radio=1



We Gather Together

1

We gather together to ask the Lord's blessings;

He chastens and hastens His will to make known;

The wicked oppressing now cease from distressing;

Sing praises to His name, He forgets not His own.

2

Beside us to guide us, our God with us joining,

Ordaining, maintaining His kingdom divine;

As from the beginning he fight we are winning;

Lord, Thine be all the glory, the vict'ry is Thine.


Adrianus Volerius

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_zTehcLp56g&list=RD_zTehcLp56g&start_radio=1


Sunday, November 23, 2025

For All the Saints

For all the saints who from their labors rest,

Who Thee by faith before the world confessed;

Thy name, O Jesus, be forever blest.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

Thou wast their Rock, their Fortress and their Might;

Thou, Lord, their Captain in the well-fought fight;

Thou, in the darkness drear, their one true Light.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

O blest communion, fellowship divine!

We feebly struggle, they in glory shine;

Yet all are one in Thee, for all are Thine.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

And when the strife is fierce, the warfare long,

Steals on the ear the distant triumph song,

And hearts are brave again, and arms are strong.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

But then there breaks a still more glorious day:

The saints triumphant rise in bright array;

The King of glory passes on His way.

Alleluia, Alleluia!

From earth's wide bounds, from ocean's farthest coast,

Through gates of pearl streams in the countless host,

In praise of Father, Son, and Holy Ghost.

Alleluia, Alleluia!


William Walsham How

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9scqFrX-zc&list=RDL9scqFrX-zc&start_radio=1


Saturday, November 22, 2025

Follow Me

1

I traveled down a lonely road

And no one seemed to care,

The burden on my weary back

Had bowed me to despair,

I oft complained to Jesus

How folks were treating me,

And then I heard Him say so tenderly.

"My feet were also weary, 

Upon the Calvary road;

The cross became so heavy,

I fell beneath the load,

Be faithful, weary pilgrim,

The morning I can see,

Just lift your cross and follow close to me."

2

"I work so hard for Jesus," 

I often boast and say,

"I've sacrificed a lot of things

To walk the narrow way,

I gave up fame and fortune;

I'm worth a lot to Thee,"

And then I hear Him gently say to me,

"I left the throne of glory

And counted it but loss,

My hands were nailed in anger

Upon a cruel cross, 

But now we'll make the journey

With your hand safe in Mine,

So lift your cross and follow close to Me."

3

O, Jesus if I die upon

A foreign field someday,

'Twould be no more than love demands,

No less could I repay,

"No greater love hath mortal man

Than for a friend to die"

These are the words He gently spoke to me,

"If just a cup of water

I place within your hand

Then just a cup of water

Is all that I demand."

But if by death to living

They can Thy glory see,

I'll take my cross and follow close to Thee.


Music & Lyrics: Ira F Stamphill, 1953

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YGGmxhTOPAA&list=RDYGGmxhTOPAA&start_radio=1


Friday, November 21, 2025

Fill My Cup, Lord

(The two images of this song were not taken from the same source. I could not find an image of the whole song on one sheet.)

1

Like the woman at the well

I was seeking

For things that could not satisfy

And then I heard my Savior speaking

"Draw from My well that never shall run dry"

2

There are millions in this world

Who are craving

The pleasures, earthly things of gold

But none can match the wondrous treasure

That I find in Jesus Christ my Lord

3

So my brother if the things this world gives you

Leave hungers that won’t pass away,

My blessed Lord will come and save you

If you kneel to Him and humbly pray—

CHORUS

Fill my cup, Lord

I lift it up, Lord

Come and quench this thirsting of my soul

Bread of Heaven, feed me 'til I want no more

Fill my cup, fill it up and make me whole

Here's my cup, fill it up and make me whole


Richard Blanchard

Usually I prefer to hear a group singing 4-part harmony, rather than a solo. But this is a simple and beautiful rendition with a female duet and simple piano accompaniment.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=geTYETovef4&list=RDgeTYETovef4&start_radio=1

John 4

6 Now Jacob's well was there. Jesus therefore, being wearied with his journey, sat thus on the well: and it was about the sixth hour.7 There cometh a woman of Samaria to draw water: Jesus saith unto her, Give me to drink. 8 (For his disciples were gone away unto the city to buy meat.) 9 Then saith the woman of Samaria unto him, How is it that thou, being a Jew, askest drink of me, which am a woman of Samaria? for the Jews have no dealings with the Samaritans. 10 Jesus answered and said unto her, If thou knewest the gift of God, and who it is that saith to thee, Give me to drink; thou wouldest have asked of him, and he would have given thee living water. 11 The woman saith unto him, Sir, thou hast nothing to draw with, and the well is deep: from whence then hast thou that living water? 12 Art thou greater than our father Jacob, which gave us the well, and drank thereof himself, and his children, and his cattle? 13 Jesus answered and said unto her, Whosoever drinketh of this water shall thirst again: 14 But whosoever drinketh of the water that I shall give him shall never thirst; but the water that I shall give him shall be in him a well of water springing up into everlasting life.


John 6:33-35

For the bread of God is he which cometh down from heaven, and giveth life unto the world. Then said they unto him, Lord, evermore give us this bread. And Jesus said unto them, I am the bread of life: he that cometh to me shall never hunger; and he that believeth on me shall never thirst.


John 6:51

I am the living bread which came down from heaven: if any man eat of this bread, he shall live for ever: and the bread that I will give is my flesh, which I will give for the life of the world.


Thursday, November 20, 2025

Every Cloud Has a Silver Lining

1

Tho' the storm clouds rise about us;

Tho' the arch above is dark;

'Round the cloud or after tempests

There is always heaven's mark:

2

When the haze of ill surrounds us,

When the heart is filled with fear.

And the art of sin confounds us,

There is help for souls sincere.

3

There are nights of tears and sorrow,

There are moments bleak and dim;

Thro' the darkness shines the morrow,

Time will have its silver rim:

CHORUS

Ev'ry cloud has a silver lining!

Ev'ry plight has a brighter hue!

After night a lovely morning!

After storm a calm anew!

Ev'ry cloud has a silver lining!

Ev'ry care has a blessing too!

If we look for the silver lining

When the lamp of God shines thro'!


Vana R. Raye / L. O. Sanderson

This song was written and composed by L.O. Sanderson (Vana R. Raye is a pseudonym). Sanderson is specific to the Church of Christ, so I had a hard time finding this specific song on a video. (There are other songs with the same title.) This is not the best quality video, but it's the only one I could find with this specific song. Ray Walker has recorded a multitude of Church of Christ congregational singing videos. I believe this song is in the Christian Hymns Number Two hymnal, which was edited by... L.O.Sanderson.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgm5On2CYHc&list=RDrgm5On2CYHc&start_radio=1


Wednesday, November 19, 2025

Do You Know My Jesus?

1

Have you a heart that's weary

Tending a load of care?

Are you a soul that's seeking

Rest from the burden you bear?

2

Where is your heart, oh pilgrim,

What does your light reveal;

Who hears your call for comfort

When naught but sorrow you feel?

3

Who knows your disappointments?

Who hears each time you cry?

Who understands your heartaches?

Who dries the tears from your eyes?

CHORUS

Do you know (Do you know) my Jesus?

Do you know (Do you know) my Friend?

Have you heard He loves you?

And that He will abide 'til the end?


William Lakey, Vep Ellis

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qXZ5mN30SQM&list=RDqXZ5mN30SQM&start_radio=1



Tuesday, November 18, 2025

Be With Me, Lord

 Woke up at 4am with this song playing in my head...


1
Be with me, Lord, I cannot live without Thee,
I dare not try to take one step alone,
I cannot bear the loads of life unaided,
I need Thy strength to lean myself upon
2
Be with me, Lord, and then if dangers threaten,
If storms of trial burst above my head,
If lashing seas leap ev'rywhere about me,
They cannot harm, or make my heart afraid.
3
Be with me, Lord! No other gift or blessing
Thou couldst bestow could with this one compare --
A constant sense of Thy abiding presence,
Where'er I am, to feel that Thou art near.
4
Be with me, Lord, when loneliness o'er takes me,
When I must weep amid the fires of pain,
And when shall come the hour of my departure
For worlds unknown, O Lord, be with me then.

Author Thomas O. Chisolm
Composer: L. O. Sanderson


Matthew 28:20
Lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.

Monday, November 17, 2025

Sunday, November 16, 2025

I Need Thee Every Hour

1

I need Thee every hour,

  Most gracious Lord;

No tender voice like Thine

  Can peace afford.

2

I need Thee every hour,

  Stay Thou near by;

Temptations lose their power

  When Thou art nigh.

3

I need Thee every hour,

  In joy or pain;

Come quickly and abide,

  Or life is vain.

4

I need Thee every hour,

  Teach me Thy will;

And Thy rich promises

  In me fulfill.

5

I need Thee every hour,

  Most Holy One;

Oh, make me Thine indeed,

  Thou blessed Son.

CHORUS

  I need Thee, oh, I need Thee;

  Every hour I need Thee;

Oh, bless me now, my Savior!

    I come to Thee.


Lyrics:Annie Sherwood Hawks (1836-1918); 

Chorus by Robert Lowry (1826-1899)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=V8IpwD2Ugds&list=RDV8IpwD2Ugds&start_radio=1


Saturday, November 15, 2025

I Love to Tell the Story

1

I love to tell the story

  Of unseen things above,

Of Jesus and His glory,

  Of Jesus and His love.

I love to tell the story,

  Because I know ’tis true;

It satisfies my longings

  As nothing else can do.

CHORUS

  I love to tell the story,

’Twill be my theme in glory

To tell the old, old story

  of Jesus and His love.

2

I love to tell the story;

  More wonderful it seems

Than all the golden fancies

  Of all my golden dreams,

I love to tell the story,

  It did so much for me;

And that is just the reason

  I tell it now to thee.

3

I love to tell the story;

  ’Tis pleasant to repeat

What seems each time I tell it,

  More wonderfully sweet.

I love to tell the story;

  For some have never heard

The message of salvation

  From God’s own holy Word.

4

I love to tell the story;

  For those who know it best

Seem hungering and thirsting

  To hear it like the rest.

And when, in scenes of glory,

  I sing the new, new song,

’Twill be the old, old story,

  That I have loved so long.


Katherine Hankey (1834-1911)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fYm2VgBWe80&list=RDfYm2VgBWe80&start_radio=1


Friday, November 14, 2025

I Love Thy Kingdom, Lord

I love thy kingdom, Lord,

the house of thine abode,

the church our blest Redeemer saved

with his own precious blood.

I love thy church, O God:

her walls before thee stand,

dear as the apple of thine eye

and graven on thy hand.

For her my tears shall fall,

for her my prayers ascend;

to her my cares and toils be giv'n,

'til toils and cares shall end.

Beyond my highest joy

I prize her heav'nly ways,

her sweet communion, solemn vows,

her hymns of love and praise.

Jesus, thou Friend divine,

our Savior and our King,

thy hand from ev'ry snare and foe

shall great deliv'rance bring.

Sure as thy truth shall last,

to Zion shall be giv'n

the brightest glories earth can yield,

and brighter bliss of heav'n.


Timothy Dwight

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LV78yj44tKs&list=RDLV78yj44tKs&start_radio=1


Thursday, November 13, 2025

I Know That My Redeemer Lives

1

I know that my Redeemer lives

And ever prays for me:

I know eternal life He gives

From sin and sorrow free

2

He wills that I should holy be

In word, in thought, in deed

Then I His holy face may see

When from this earth-life freed

3

I know that unto sinful men

His saving grace is nigh

I know that He will come again

To take me home on high

4

I know that over yonder stands

A place prepared for me

A home, a house not made with hands

Most wonderful to see

CHORUS

I know, I know that my Redeemer lives

I know, I know eternal life He gives

I know (that my), I know (Redeemer lives)

That my Redeemer lives


Author: Charles Wesley

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DeQE13uxtyU&list=RDDeQE13uxtyU&start_radio=1

(The lyrics above were apparently altered from Wesley's original text by Fred A. Fillmore. See the original lyrics below.)

I know that my Redeemer lives,

And ever prays for me;

A token of His love He gives,

A pledge of liberty.

I find Him lifting up my head;

He brings salvation near;

His presence makes me free indeed,

And He will soon appear.

He wills that I should holy be,

What can withstand His will?

The counsel of His grace in me

He surely shall fulfill.

Jesus, I hang upon Thy word;

I steadfastly believe

Thou wilt return and claim me, Lord,

And to Thyself receive.

When God is mine and I am His,

Of paradise possessed,

I taste unutterable bliss

And everlasting rest.


Author: Charles Wesley

These lyrics have been set to a number of tunes. Here is one that is frequently used:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zPoG7vnXk84&list=RDzPoG7vnXk84&start_radio=1

(You have my permission to stop listening to the video when the electric guitar solo begins *ugh*)

And then there's the famous setting from Handel's Messiah:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hqa8rn-hBSk&list=RDhqa8rn-hBSk&start_radio=1



Wednesday, November 12, 2025

I Have Decided to Follow Jesus

I have decided to follow Jesus;

I have decided to follow Jesus;

I have decided to follow Jesus;

no turning back, no turning back.

Though none go with me, I still will follow;

though none go with me, I still will follow;

though none go with me, I still will follow;

no turning back, no turning back.

The world behind me, the cross before me;

the world behind me, the cross before me,

the world behind me, the cross before me;

no turning back, no turning back.


Author (attributed to): Simon Marak

I don't think this song was in any of our hymnals. Mostly we sang this when we would have a "devo" (devotional) when I was in college. It's easy to make up verses as you go -- one improvisational verse I remember was "My cross I'll carry till I see Jesus."

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7XHeCZB5KU&list=RDL7XHeCZB5KU&start_radio=1


Tuesday, November 11, 2025

Armistice Day



Takin' the lazy way out today. I'm just posting links to a couple of songs loosely related to Veterans' Day. The lyrics don't really have anything to do with the holiday, other than the title (and subtitle).

ARMISTICE DAY - Paul Simon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sjiHqEpTkVs&list=RDsjiHqEpTkVs&start_radio=1

HAPPY XMAS (THE WAR IS OVER) - John Lennon

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8gWHlHWIaRQ&list=RD8gWHlHWIaRQ&start_radio=1


Monday, November 10, 2025

Happy Birthday is finally free after 80 years!

Happy Birthday is finally free after 80 years


None of the companies that have collected royalties on the “Happy Birthday” song for the past 80 years held a valid copyright claim to one of the most popular songs in history, a federal judge in Los Angeles ruled on Tuesday.

In a stunning reversal of decades of copyright claims, the judge ruled that Warner/Chappell never had the right to charge for the use of the “Happy Birthday To You” song. Warner had been enforcing a copyright since 1988, when it bought Birch Tree Group, the successor to Clayton F. Summy Co., which claimed the original disputed copyright.

Judge George H. King ruled that a copyright filed by the Summy Co. in 1935 granted only the rights to specific piano arrangements of the music, not the actual song.

“‘Happy Birthday’ is finally free after 80 years,” said Randall Newman, an attorney for the plaintiffs in the suit, which included a group of filmmakers who are producing a documentary about the song. “Finally, the charade is over. It’s unbelievable.”

A spokesman for Warner/Chappell, the publishing arm of Warner Music, said, “We are looking at the court’s lengthy opinion and considering our options.”

The plaintiffs’ attorneys had characterized the years-long legal fight as a David vs. Goliath battle that pitted independent filmmakers against a large corporation collecting profits on a song whose authors had long since died.

Until now, Warner has asked for royalties from anyone who wanted to sing or play “Happy Birthday to You” -- with the lyrics -- as part of a profit-making enterprise. Royalties were most often collected from stage productions, television shows, movies or greeting cards. But even those who wanted to sing the song publicly as part of a business, say a restaurant owner giving out free birthday cake to patrons, technically had to pay to use the song, prompting creative renditions at chain eateries trying to avoid paying royalties.

The fact that the birthday tune can’t be played or sung without permission from Warner has been little more than a surprising piece of trivia for most, but for Warner Music Group, it has meant big business. Two of the filmmaker plaintiffs paid $1,500 and $3,000 for the rights to use the song, their attorneys said. Filmmaker Steve James paid Warner $5,000 to use the song in his 1994 documentary “Hoop Dreams.”

“It was quite expensive for us at that time and with our budget. And we only used it for 9 seconds,” James wrote in an email passed along by his publicist. James said the scene was “essential” to the film and ultimately decided to pay up.

At a March hearing in the case, records show, a Warner/Chappell representative seated in the audience told the judge that the company collects as much as “six figures” for certain single uses of the song. The song brings in about $2 million a year in royalties for Warner, according to some estimates.

The complex saga of the eight-note ditty has spanned more than 120 years, withstanding two world wars and several eras of copyright law. The song has seen the rise and fall of vinyl records, cassette tapes, CDs and now, the era of digital streaming music.

The story began in 1893, with a Kentucky schoolteacher and her older sister. Patty Smith Hill and Mildred J. Hill wrote the song for Patty’s kindergarten students, titling it “Good Morning To All.” The original lyrics Patty wrote were: “Good morning to you / Good morning to you / Good morning, dear children / Good morning to all.”

Patty later said that she had worked with her sister to compose a simple melody to match the words that could be easily sung by young children.

The sisters published the song in a book called “Song Stories for the Kindergarten,” and assigned the copyright to their publisher, Clayton F. Summy Co., in exchange for a cut of the sales.

That was only the beginning of the tangled web of copyright law various attorneys have argued may or may not apply to one of the world’s most famous songs.

Warner and the plaintiffs both agreed that the melody of the familiar song, first written as “Good Morning To All,” had entered the public domain decades ago. But Warner claimed it still owned the rights to the “Happy Birthday” lyrics, leaning on the 1935 copyright claim.

At various turns in the case, attorneys argued over whether the Hill sisters had actually written the song, whether they had “abandoned” their rights to what became the “Happy Birthday” tune and even whether Patty Smith Hill had been accurately quoted in a 1935 Time magazine article about the song.

It is not entirely clear, the judge ruled, that the Hill sisters wrote the lyrics for “Happy Birthday To You.” But either way, they never asserted a copyright claim for the lyrics, even though they sued for the rights to the original melody.

Ultimately, the judge ruled that no evidence existed that the Summy Co. -- the original company to assert a copyright claim -- ever legally obtained the rights to the “Happy Birthday To You” song from whomever wrote it.

Tuesday’s ruling means that the song is now considered a public work and is free for everyone to use without fear of having to pay for it, according to a statement from the plaintiffs’ attorneys.

Jennifer Nelson, one of the filmmaker plaintiffs and owner of Good Morning to You productions, called the decision a “great victory for musicians, artists and people around the world who have waited decades for this.”

Robert Brauneis, a George Washington University law professor who has extensively researched the copyright history of the song, says the ruling does not explicitly place “Happy Birthday To You” in the public domain.

“It does leave open some questions,” Brauneis said Tuesday night. “If [the Hill sisters] didn’t convey the rights to Summy Co., then is there someone else that might still own them?”

With Mildred Hill dead for nearly a century now, Brauneis said, “Figuring out who owned [the rights] at this point would be quite an interesting job.”

The plaintiff’s attorneys have said that they will move to qualify the lawsuit as a class-action in an effort to recoup millions of dollars in licensing fees Warner/Chappell has collected on the tune over the years.

Mark C. Rifkin, one of Nelson’s attorneys, said the plaintiffs will pursue Warner for royalties paid since “at least” 1988, and could also ask the company to repay royalties that have been collected all the way back to 1935. It’s not clear how much money that could entail.

A third of the profits from licensing the song still go to a designated charity of the Hill family, the Association for Childhood Education International, which promotes global education efforts for children and the professional growth of educators. The association’s 2012 nonprofit tax return, the most recent available, indicates it received $754,108 in royalties.

Warner could still appeal King’s decision, but it will have to ask the judge to permit an appeal to go forward. The company has not indicated that it will do so.