Learning the 144 Secular Hymns

♪♪♪ SING ALONG ♪♪♪ as a piano plays the chords and melody (from the SOLO Edition of the Secular Hymnal). Singing along to a simple, chorded melody like this is an ideal way to develop your harmonizing skills!

Lyrics:

"Bad" is not a name for a woman
"Bad" is not a name for a man
"Bad" is not a name for a people
"Bad" is not a name for a land

"Bad is just a name for that which causes pain
Not for any victim it claims

"Bad" is not a name for a husband
"Bad" is not a name for a wife
"Bad" is not a name for a person
Caught in the machin'ry of life

"Bad is just a name for that which causes pain
Not for any victim it claims

"Bad" is not a name for the hungry
"Bad" is not a name for the poor
"Bad" is not a name for the lonely
Who don't want to live anymore

"Bad is just a name for that which causes pain
Not for any victim it claims

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Here's the same hymn in 4-part harmony (from the SATB Edition of the Secular Hymnal). If you and your choir prefer to print out your own score of this hymn, click here to access a beautiful PDF file.

To research the history of this hymn tune: http://www.hymnary.org/hymnal/SH2014

Out of respect for our diverse society, please work to keep our public school and community choirs "secular" (comfortable and welcoming to both religious and nonreligious singers). For more information, please visit the secular choirs webpage.

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(Page last updated: January 16, 2016 )