Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing

"Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing" is a Christian hymn written by the pastor and hymnodist Robert Robinson, who penned the words in the year 1758 at the age of 22. Tunes In the United States, the hymn is usually set to an American folk tune known as "Nettleton", which first appears in Wyeth's Repository of Sacred Music, Part Second (1813), possibly collected by Elkanah Kelsey Dare, who was the musical editor (John Wyeth himself was a printer). The tune appears on page 112 in F major for two voices (tenor and bass), with a revival chorus (Hallelujah, Hallelujah, we are on our journey home); the facing page has another musical setting ("Concert") in A minor without any chorus. Asahel Nettleton also published music, so some attribute his namesake tune directly to him. In the United Kingdom, the hymn is also often set to the tune "Normandy" by C Bost. The "Nettleton" tune is used extensively in partial or full quotation by the American composer Charles Ives, in such works as the First String Quartet and the piano quintet and song "The Innate". The "Nettleton" tune is also quoted at the end of "My Trundle Bed" by Tullius C. O'Kane. In the shape note tradition, most tunebooks have one or more tunes other than "Nettleton" that use Robinson's lyrics, in part, or in whole, often adding a camp meeting-style revival chorus between each verse. Because most singers have the lyrics memorized, it can be sung at remarkably fast tempos without stumbling over the words. For example, the tune "Warrenton," which first appeared in the 1838 edition of William Walker's Southern Harmony, is sung in 4/4 time or 2/2 cut time; to fit the text to this melody, the second half of each verse is omitted and replaced with a chorus of "I am bound for the kingdom, will you come to glory with me? / Hallelujah, praise the Lord!" Recordings Mosquito Fleet- arrangement, instrumentation and vocals by Mosquito Fleet- Swings & Cloves EP in 2001. Catholic artist Audrey Assad recorded a version of this hymn on her "Good to Me" EP in 2013. Nancy Bryan sings a version of this hymn on her album Neon Angel from 2000. Christian artist Fernando Ortega recorded a version on his album Hymns & Meditations in 1994 It has been covered by the David Crowder Band on their 1999 album All I Can Say. Christian rock band Jars of Clay and veteran Christian artist Scott Wesley Brown have also covered the song.