The new songs are like those from a bad Disney movie (that would be any recent Disney movie).
How would you rate the Watchtower approved songs?
by Vanderhoven7 23 Replies latest watchtower bible
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WTWizard
The smut they call "music" are effectively cult chants. This is fairly common in cults--and they dissuade people from listening to outside music (or for that matter, anything that comes from without). In the jokehovian witless cult, you will lose "privileges(??)" if you are caught listening to rap or heavy metal, and they have criteria that make other songs "bad". I have seen older rags from the 1970s and early '80s bashing funk, disco, and plain rock music as evil.
This is quite common in cults to restrict what you are allowed to listen to. But, as bad as the jokehovians are, I have heard of other cults that are even worse. Take a small cult called "the children of God". I have seen videos on that cult, and it is, believe it or not, even worse than the jokehovians in many aspects. They have a fast rule that one may not listen to "systemite" music, which leaves them only their own cult chants to listen to. And they cannot watch TV or movies (the jokehovians allow up to PG-13). They also do not take drugs of any kind (including aspirin for a headache) or even vitamins. Nor are they allowed to read anything not provided by the cult--so much for learning that foreign language).
Which doesn't make the jokehovian cult any better. Only that one can end up jumping out of the frying pan and into the fire if one is too hasty to join another religion.
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blondie
When I was a jw, I played piano, organ at the KH and circuit assemblies. I was even in the WT orchestra. The music is more and more "simplified" by the WTS and not for the good. Jws tend to be poor singers because the only place they sing is at conventions and the KH. The piano was replaced with recordings, and the way singing works is the piano keeps a pace to accommodate the singers abilities. Not enough qualified piano players evidently. Songs were better in the beginning, the WTS even took songs used by other christian religions and added new "appropriate" lyrics. I expect a deeper descent into mediocrity.
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Journeyman
The music is more and more "simplified" by the WTS and not for the good. [...] Songs were better in the beginning[...]. I expect a deeper descent into mediocrity.
I completely agree. The decline in quality is noticeable in the songs for meetings, and the additional "original" songs are almost entirely banal, corny and/or childish. Some are quite blatantly "Disneyfied", with awful animations and twee lyrics to accompany them.
Along with the JW
TelevangelismBroadcasting channel, it's a clear example of how the org has completely become what it once railed against. In the past, "Christian pop/rock" of the past was mocked (often quite rightly), but now the concept has been adopted wholesale. Witnesses who died before 2014 would be turning in their graves!It's interesting how often the org bangs on about their "rich spiritual heritage", yet songs not currently on the "approved" playlist are never replayed, and anyone at a "gathering" bringing out an old CD or ripped media of Kingdom Melodies from before the new grey songbook was released would probably be looked at as if they were an apostate!
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Gorb
From house to house, from door to door was Karl Klein’s masterpiece:
G.
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Earnest
Gorb : From house to house, from door to door was Karl Klein’s masterpiece
An early version of "From House to House" was composed by Harold King while he was in solitary confinement in China. See, for example, his July, 1963 article How I Kept Strong in Faith in a Chinese Communist Prison.
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KerryKing
They'll probably soon use AI to create their art and music, more Bethelites on the streets.
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NotFormer
"They'll probably soon use AI to create their art and music, more Bethelites on the streets."
Is the "music ministry" large enough to justify permanent Bethelites anyway? Once a new songbook and the accompanying recordings are done, wouldn't the Bethelites involved be assigned back to their regular duties? Does anyone know how the songbook system works?
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Earnest
As a matter of interest, the song From House to House composed by Harold King has the following lyrics which have been slightly amended in Song 103 (2009) / Song 83 (2016) :
From house to house, from door to door,
Jehovah's truths are spread;
From house to house, from door to door,
Jehovah's "sheep" are fed.
This "good news" of God's Kingdom royal,
As Jesus Christ foretold,
Is carried now from house to house
By Christians, young and old.
From house to house, from door to door,
Salvation now proclaim.
It comes upon all those who call
Upon Jehovah's Name.
But how can one call on a name
of one he does not know?
From house to house, from door to door,
That sacred Name must go.
From house to house, from door to door,
Christ Jesus led the way;
On mountain side and seashore wide
He taught and preached each day.
He then sent forth disciples true
To teach and preach as he.
From house to house, from door to door,
The truth spread rapidly.
From house to house, from door to door,
And not from pulpits high,
The faithful twelve spread forth the news:
"God's Kingdom now is nigh."
Wrote Paul, who worked among them all:
"I worked not secretly;
From house to house, from door to door,
I taught you publicly."
Of course, it's not at every door
We find a hearing ear;
At times there's but a scolding tongue,
And those who will not hear.
'Twas just the case in Jesus' day -
Not all would hear his word.
"My sheep will hear my voice", he said,
"So we are not deterred."
Then let us go from house to house
To spread the Kingdom news;
And, whether "sheep" or whether "goats",
We'll let the people choose.
At least we'll name Jehovah's Name;
His glorious truth declare.
From house to house, from door to door,
We'll find his "sheep" are there!
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road to nowhere
H to H was the worst arrangement ever. Life of a pioneer has the worst lyrics.
And I may yet be proved wrong