To mark and celebrate General Election Day 2017 The Mahershalalhashbaz Song has appeared on GNU-TUBE. You’ll find it amongst Bonus Tracks & Remixes. And it has a copy of the music [melody only] with words written underneath the notes so you know how they fit the tune. It was written for the small but amazing Family Service Children’s Choir of the 1990s at Christ Church Clifton. Surprisingly it has not found its way into any of the mainstream hymn books, despite its faithfulness to the Old Testament text. As Mr. Waki Pedia rightly observes: “This [Mahershalalhashbaz] is often counted as the longest name (and word) used in the Bible, though a possible longer name/phrase is found in Isaiah 9:6:”Pele-joez-el-gibbor-abi-ad-sar-shalom”. Maybe this is responsible for its exclusion from worship song compilations and hymn books. Or perhaps it just isn’t anointed enough. However, Mr. W. Pedia’s helpful information may stand you in good stead should you happen to be on Who wants to be a Millionaire? and the longest name in the Bible pops up as the million pound questIon. After all, the question: What is the shortest book in the Old Testament? popped up on the show once, or so I am told.
Length of words was never a deterrent to German Theologians. At University some of us had to read a book [in German] by an eminent Biblical Scholar, Martin Noth. It was titled: Überlieferungsgeschichtliche Studien I. [Don’t count the letters. Just measure it with a ruler – it’s quicker]. And it isn’t the longest word used in German language. However, this year, the longest word to date:
Rindfleischetikettierungsüberwachungsaufgabenübertragungsgesetz, has just been removed from the German language. Google it if you don’t believe me. Some of us worship song writers/compilers seem to have a very limited vocabulary and perhaps a phobia of long words. We could overcome this and get acclimatized by reading German Theologians from the late 19th and early 20th Centuries. Alas, I have recently and thoughtlessly sent all my German Theology books to the Oxfam Shop. This must have made a refreshing change to the thousands of copies of Dan Browne’s The Da Vinci Code that they continue to receive. But if I had been more quick witted I could have sent them to compilers of worship songbooks and hymn books. Mea Culpa! A missed opportunity.
To my even greater surprise, I understand there is a Japanese Pop Group called Maher-shalal-hash-baz. As far as I know they are not into setting biblical texts or stories to music. At first I thought they were probably trying to find an attention-grabbing name, but that has turned out to be a thoughtless and malicious accusation. Again I am grateful to Mr. Piki Wedia for the following information on the band. Mr. Tori Kudo the prime mover in the M-S-H-B Band used to play piano [classical and Jazz] and the Organ in a Protestant Church. He and his wife, Reiki, joined a band called Worst Noise; but when other members of the band dropped out,Tori and Reiki formed a duo simply known as, Noise. Eventually, I know not how, they transmogrified into the Maher-Shalal-Hash-Baz Band. How can we best describe the music of this band? Well Mr Peki Widea reports the following:
“Perhaps the best description comes from his (Tori’s) own sleeve notes to ‘From a Summer to Another Summer’: “Error in performance dominates MSHB cassette which is like our imperfect life.”
Looking back over 3 decades of recordings on the GNU label, I completely and utterly empathize.
Anyway, to my knowledge, no one in the last 2500 years [before April1995] has attempted to write a song based on the Maher-shalal-hash-baz episode recorded in Isaiah 8:1ff. It could be a first. No doubt the moment it’s up on this website someone will write in to say that there have been at least 30 such songs written. I wait with nervous anticipation, hooves all aquiver. I know that some folks have written other songs on obscure Old Testament texts such as Pierce My Ear [Exodus 21:5-7]. I have had to explain to a number of folks that this song is not about assaulting eardrums with unhealthy levels of decibels. It is about the loyalty of a servant to his/her master. It involved a ritual that was practiced around 1000BC and a few centuries either side. This is difficult to explain in the confines of a worship song unless everyone knows their Bible pretty well. I am sure those who use this song do. Fortunately, as far as I know, no one so far has written a worship song based on the Bible text, “It ceased to be with Sarah after the manner of women” [KJAV Genesis 18:11]. I won’t be attempting that one myself, nor the text of 2 Kings 9:8 as in the King James Authorized Version, even though neither of these two texts need cultural knowledge of the Ancient Near East 3000 years ago.
If you haven’t fallen asleep already, a burning question will be on the tip of your tongue: Why celebrate Election Day with The Mahershalalhashbaz Song? It is rather negative in parts; infact, through its entirety. Well, it sets a challenge for whoever is in government after today. One person has observed that civilisation can be measured by how it cares for its most vulnerable members: children, elderly folk, the poor, the dispossessed. This for many folks is the measure of good government too. And certainly that is the measure that is used throughout the Bible by the Almighty. This is precisely what Isaiah is banging on about on behalf of the Lord God with all his Mahershalalhashbaz talk. [Read the opening few chapters of Isaiah]. There is a saying that parents can only be as happy as their saddest child. This principle applies to us as a nation and as a world. In the long term, we can only be as happy as the saddest part of our community.
We have hinted at appropriateness of usage above. In the unlikely event that you use this song, please do so in an appropriate context – and not, for example, during the administration of Holy Communion or a Taize Service. While the material on this website is free to use, its authorship and copyright must be acknowledged. This song is not to be used for electioneering or political campaigning. Any ‘infringers’ will find that the wrath of the otherwise mild-mannered Gnu will descend upon them, and the Gnu himself will Maher-shalal-bash-them. You have been warned. And now I encourage you all, my little Gnudren, to go to the sound tract on the Bonus Tracks & Remixes menu and sing along, and then pray for the newly elected government. Amen.
Padre Gnu
Oppidum Longum Cineres Arboris (LA)
Electionem Generalis Britanniae, June 8 MMXVII