"Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling"

      William Lamartine Thompson was a noted American composer, best known for his hymns, born on November 7, 1847 in East Liverpool, Ohio, died New York City on September 20, 1909. Thompson began composing in his teens and in addition to hymns, wrote the popular songs “My Home on the Old Ohio” and “Gathering Shells from the Sea.”

      Both a lyricist and composer, Thompson ensured he would always remember words or melodies that came to him at odd times. He said, “No matter where I am, at home or hotel, at the store or traveling, if an idea or theme comes to me that I deem worthy of a song, I jot it down in verse. In this way I never lose it.”

      He is best known as the writer and composer of the classic Christian hymn, “Softly and Tenderly, Jesus Is Calling.” It is thought to have been translated into more languages than any other hymn. It has been featured in the films The Trip to Bountiful, Junebug, and A Prairie Home Companion, in the Anne Tyler novel The Accidental Tourist, and the television series True Blood.

      The composer graduated from Mount Union College in Alliance, Ohio in 1870. In 1873, he attended the New England Conservatory of Music and later continued his musical studies in Germany.

      Rebuffed in an early attempt to sell his songs to a commercial publisher, he eventually opened the W. L. Thompson Music Company in East Liverpool. By the 1880s, it was one of the most prominent and successful such businesses in the United States. Thousands of music teachers and musicians ordered sheet music, instruments and other supplies from Thompson’s store. Thompson later founded a music and publishing company in Chicago.

      Thompson married Elizabeth Johnson. They had a son, William Leland Thompson (born 1895), who was known by his middle name. The couple built a large hilltop mansion on Park Boulevard in East Liverpool, Ohio and to this day, it still stands and known locally as “the Softly and Tenderly House.” (hotel)

      Because he took a strong interest in local history, Thompson paid for a large stone and tablet to mark the spot where Confederate Gen. John Hunt Morgan and his raiders were captured near Lisbon, Ohio.

      At the age of 62, Thompson fell ill during a tour of Europe, and his family cut short their travels to return home. He died a few weeks later in New York City on September 20, 1909.

Sara Groves sings the version of one of my favorite hymns,

 "Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling"

More Links to “Softly and Tenderly Jesus Is Calling”

• “Softy and Tenderly” on the Dulcimer
• Rosemary Clooney sings “Softy and Tenderly”
• Johnny Cash sings “Softy And Tenderly”