Servant Song (Brother let me be Your Servant )

This folk-style hymn / worship song was written by English-born, New Zealand raised teacher and song-writer, Richard Gillard.

Written in 1976/7, it was first published by Scripture in Song - Songs of Praise, Volume II in 1978. It has subsequently been picked up by mainstream liturgical publishers and is included in hymnals like Hymns Old and New (England) and Gather III (USA), as well as being covered by artists as diverse as Jim and Gloria Gaither, and David Haas. Arguably it is one of the most successful hymns ever written by a New Zealander.

The original opening line was "Brother let me be your servant", but common use today in many places shows it as "Brother, sister let me serve you". Similarly the 2nd line of the 2nd verse was originally "We are brothers on the road", but is often sung as "We are family on the the road", "We are travelers on the road" or "We're together on the road" in England and Ireland.

With meter 8.7.8.7 D, the tune it is set to is simply called THE SERVANT SONG.

Note: it is a totally different work to Servant Song by Sr Donna Marie McGargle.

Downloads

Several different choral arrangements are available.

Examples

Small choir with professional backing:

Soloist and choir, with bill / keyboard accompaniment:

The author, accompanying himself on guitar>

Lyrics

The lyrics are copyright so cannot be included. However you can find them here.

There are five unique verses, each with four lines. The first verses is repeated at the end, making six stanzas in total. A rough outline is:

1 Brother, sister let me serve you ...

2 We are pilgrims on a journey ...

3 I will hold the Christ-light for you ...

4 I will weep when you are weeping ...

5 When we sing to God in heaven ...