James Frederick Swift (28 December 1847, Manchester – 9 January 1931, Wallasey) was an English organist and composer. He mostly worked for religious establishments such as St Andrew's Church in Liverpool for 10 years, but he also composed around 200 non-religious songs and ballads under the pseudonym, Godfrey Marks. One of his most famous songs is Sailing, Sailing. It is a possibility that Swift composed this work on seamanship based on his inspiration from Nancy Lee by Michael Maybrick, despite that his daughter, Ruby Gertrude Swift, expressed that his father had never been close to seafaring activities. One of his famous religious songs includes Ernstein.
Notes
- His place of death is sometimes stated as Liscard, Cheshire; currently Merseyside, which also contains Wallasey.
References
- ^ Julian, John, ed. (1892). A Dictionary of Hymnology: Setting Forth the Origin and History of Christian Hymns of All Ages and Nations. New York City: Charles Scribner's Sons. p. 1108.
- "Obituary". Liverpool Echo. 1931-01-09.
.... in regard to the Mr. James Frederick Swift (Godfrey Marks of Sailing fame) died at his residence, Wroxhall, Penkett Road, Wallasey, this morning, ....
- Fuld, James Jeffrey (2000). The Book of World-famous Music: Classical, Popular, and Folk. Mineola, New York: Dover Publications. p. 483. ISBN 978-0486414751.
- ^ Hooper, Wayne; White, Edward E. (1988). Companion to the Seventh-Day Adventist hymnal. Rocky Hill: Review and Herald Publishing Association. p. 614. ISBN 978-0828004251.
- Averill, Patricia (2014). Camp Songs, Folk Songs. Bloomington: Xlibris. p. 426. ISBN 978-1493179121.
- Treblicock, Dorothy (June 1969). ""Perhaps He Accomplished The Dream"" (PDF). The Lookout: Seamen's Church Institute of New York. New York City: Seamen's Church Institute of N. Y.
His daughter said that he had little interest in the sea and sailing, though one wonders how, without it, he could have caught its spirit and that of the sailor's life so vividly in the second verse, for example: "A sailor's life is wild and free; His home is on the rolling sea..."
- "ERNSTEIN". Hymnary.org.