The recording begins with a muted piano, drum, and bass, backing lead singer
Dorothy Combs Morrison on the left-hand
stereo channel, then alternates twice with a full-throated chorus that includes a large ensemble, rising to a crescendo with handclaps, and ending with a return to the muted sound as at the beginning. The track is notable for its clear sound given the powerful vocals and the modest equipment used to capture them. It was made at Hawkins' church, the Ephesian
Church of God in Christ in
Berkeley, California.[4]
Origins
The
gospel style arrangement of the hymn "Oh, Happy Day" by
Edwin Hawkins has a long pedigree. It began as a hymn, written in the mid-18th century ("O happy day, that fixed my choice"), by English clergyman
Philip Doddridge (based on
Acts 8:35) set to a 1704 melody by
J. A. Freylinghausen.[5] By the mid-19th century it had been given a new melody by
Edward F. Rimbault, who also added a chorus,[6] and was commonly used for
baptismal or
confirmation ceremonies in the UK and USA. The 20th century saw its adaptation from
3 4 to
4 4 time and this new arrangement by Hawkins, which contains only the repeated Rimbault refrain, with all of the original verses being omitted.
Hawkins rearranged the hymn to give it more of a gospel feel, and devised a piano introduction which he said was influenced by the music of
Sérgio Mendes. When the choir made the recording in 1967, lead singer Dorothy Morrison added some lyrical improvisations influenced by
James Brown, which, she said, "made the song feel even more current".[9]
In live performances and acoustic versions of the
Nick Cave song "
Deanna" (1988), portions of "Oh Happy Day" are included, revealing the inspiration for Cave's song.[12]George Harrison has stated the song was a primary inspiration in the writing of his 1970 international hit single "
My Sweet Lord."[13][14]
The song was also included on the album Let Us Go Into the House of the Lord (1968).[21] It was released as a
7-inch single on Pavilion Records in April 1969,[22] then on the
Buddah Records album It's a Happy Day also in 1969.[23]
Glen Campbell covered it on his 1970 album Oh Happy Day. The single reached No. 45 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100, No. 7 Adult Contemporary,[5] and No. 44 in
Canada.[47]
^P. Doddridge and E. F. Rimbault, "Happy Day", in
Joseph Flintoft Berry and
Charles H. Gabriel (1914), edd., Hymns of the Heart, New York: Methodist Book Concern, Hymn 134.
^"Jesus, Lover of My Soul". The Army and Navy Hymnal/Hymns/Jesus, Lover of My Soul - Wikisource, the free online library. Retrieved 2016-10-02. {{
cite book}}: |website= ignored (
help)