I began this series with my Hymns: 1980 Memories post, so this is the 37th in the series 😀. How the years fly by.
But 2017 gave me the opportunity to revisit my youth. Bob Dylan released Trouble No More – a large collection of songs from his Christian phase – 1979 to 1981.
The album includes the Earl’s Court concert that I attended in June 1981 and a good number of additional Christian songs that didn’t get on to his three Christian albums, Slow Train Coming, Saved, and Shot of Love. I have very fond memories of all these. In fact, when Dylan became a Christian, I felt a bit more confident about becoming a Christian. I wasn’t a Dylan fan, but I knew that he wasn’t the gullible sort, and neither was I.
He became more private about his faith in subsequent years. I’d have liked him to have recorded more Christian albums, but maybe he was particularly inspired around 79-80. I didn’t like his 1981 album, Shot of Love as much as the earlier two, though it did contain a few excellent songs, such as Property of Jesus and Every Grain of Sand. He’s performed Every Grain of Sand on his current tour. He’ll be in Killarney (near me) at the end of this month ( November 2025).
A key memory of 2017 was my attempt to familiarize myself with all the hymns in our Mission Praise hymn book by finding them on Spotify. I also introduced many new ones to our fellowship in Tipperary. Up to that time, we rarely sang anything very modern. They must have thought that I was having some mid-life crisis 😀. But now that I’m having more of an old-life crisis, I’m getting into some of the more contemporary songs, while still loving all the old stuff.
One delightful hymn that I discovered in 2017 was Above the Voices. It’s not very old, but it has a traditional style. I remember playing it to the Aston Rowant tune in Tipperary, but it also goes to the Irish tune of Londonderry Air. I actually prefer the Aston Rowant tune. I never heard it except in this organ video and when we sung it in Tipperary Christian Fellowship to that tune. The lyrics are beautiful too. It only goes back as far as 1987, written by Timothy Dudley-Smith, who only passed away last year.
Here are some hymns that were first published in 2017:
And in the UK Charts, Stormzy had a hit with Blinded By Your Grace.
In 2017, I remember reading, Are Miraculous Gifts for Today on Kindle. It’s good to explore different perspectives, even if you pretty much have your mind made up. I enjoy reading these counterpoints books and listening to debates. Maybe they might confuse some people. I just find that listening to other points of view makes me less arrogant than I was in my younger days 😀.
We went to Kerry for our holidays. It’s always a joy to go to Kerry – best place in Ireland. And I remember hearing a BBC documentary about a woman who can’t forget. Seemingly, it’s a disorder. She even remembers being a baby. I was quite fascinated. I’d love to remember everything. You can still listen to the documentary – The Woman Who Remembers Everything.
And I think of 2017 as my Genesis year – not Genesis in the Bible, but Genesis the rock group. My daughter discovered them.
Interestingly, I had their And Then There Were Three album back in 1980, when I was 18. I never listened to it much, but I rediscovered it in 2017. I actually pretty much listened to all their albums on Spotify in the Summer of 2017. Here’s one of my favourites- Snowbound.
Anyway, here are some music, events, and films/TV shows that would have formed the background to 2017. I don’t necessarily endorse all the songs or films. Shape of You was quite popular. I wouldn’t want someone to be in love with my shape – certainly not Ed Sheeran 😀. But even if a beautiful girl was in love with my shape, it wouldn’t be good for my marriage. And, even if I were single, I would worry that if she saw someone else with the same shape, she might be in love with him too😩.
By 2017, I pretty much fell out of love with all pop music, but I do occasionally like to hear Symphony. It’s quite catchy. It brings me back to 2017.
10 Songs of 2017
- Ed Sheeran – Shape of You
- Clean Bandit ft. Zara Larsson – Symphony
- Rag’n’Bone Man – Human
- French Montana ft. Swae Lee – Unforgettable
- Ed Sheeran – Perfect
- The Chainsmokers & Coldplay – Something Just Like This
- Dua Lipa – New Rules
- Camila Cabello ft. Young Thug – Havana
- Rita Ora – Your Song
- You’re the Best Thing – U2
10 Movies or TV Shows of 2017
- Dunkirk
- Star Wars: The Last Jedi
- Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 2
- Beauty and the Beast
- The Greatest Showman
- The Lego Batman Movie
- Coco
- Blade Runner 2049
- Wonder Woman
- Call Me by Your Name
Some News Events from 2017
- Donald Trump inaugurated as U.S. President (Jan 20)
- Manchester Arena bombing during Ariana Grande concert (May 22)
- London Bridge terror attack (June 3)
- An Irish person is among the 40 injured during a terrorist attack in Westminster.
- #MeToo movement gains global momentum (Oct)
- NFL players protest racial injustice by kneeling (Fall)
- Emmanuel Macron elected President of France (May 7)
- Catalonia holds independence referendum (Oct 1)
- Mexico City earthquake kills hundreds (Sept 19)
- California wildfires destroy thousands of homes (Oct)
- Robert Mugabe resigned as President of Zimbabwe after 37 years in power.
- Istanbul nightclub attack kills 39 people.
- North Korea launched a ballistic missile test, escalating global tensions.
- UN reports atrocities against Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar.
- Palm Sunday bombings at Coptic churches kill 45 in Egypt.
- Grenfell tower fire, London – 14 June
- Mosul is liberated from ISIS after a brutal battle.
- US withdraws from the Paris Climate Agreement.
- Las Vegas mass shooting kills 58 at music festival.
Some Famous People Who Passed Away in 2017
- Mary Tyler Moore – Beloved actress from The Mary Tyler Moore Show
- Tom Petty – Iconic singer-songwriter, frontman of Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
- David Cassidy – Teen idol and star of The Partridge Family
- Chuck Berry – Rock and roll pioneer
- Roger Moore – Actor best known for playing James Bond
- John Hurt – Acclaimed English actor (The Elephant Man, Harry Potter)
- Glen Campbell – Country music legend
- Jerry Lewis – Legendary comedian and actor
- Fats Domino – Rock and roll legend
- Liam Cosgrave – Former Irish Prime Minister
- Martin McGuinness – Former Sinn Fein/IRA politician who was a key part of the peace process.
- Tara Palmer-Tomkinson – British socialite
- Eamonn Casey – Controversial Irish Roman Catholic bishop who had been popular in his younger years.
- Dick Warner – Irish broadcaster
- Bruce Forsyth – UK TV star
Hibernia Gospel 