Coleman’s Songs for Men

This hymn book or song book, Coleman’s Songs for Men, is not like the hymnals that Robert H. Coleman published, nor is it like the paperback songbook, Reapers. It is, however, a specialty songbook as it is designed for men.

B.B. McKinney was working as musical editor for Robert Coleman when this little book was published in 1932 as we can see from the title page and the Foreword page. However, this was one of those publications that was reissued by Broadman Press after the Sunday School Board of the Southern Baptist Convention purchased the publisher, Robert H. Coleman.

In fact, I gather from the quality of the two copies that I have that this edition was available until fairly recently. This seems to be born out in the 1981 dissertation of Dr. Terry C. Terry, B.B. McKinney: A Shaping Force in Southern Protestant Music, as he indicates that this volume was available from the Sunday School Board at the time he wrote the paper.

Coleman’s Songs for Men contains 196 selections. And, the short index at the back shows that many of them were intended to be used as “Solos, Duets, and Specials.” As a songbook for men, I also note that not all of the songs are hymns or songs for worship. Among the selections are “Old Folks at Home,” “My Old Kentucky Home,” and “Carry Me Back to Old Virginny.”

With this little volume being available so long, it’s possible that some of my readers have used this songbook. If you have experience with Coleman’s Songs for Men, please share in the Comments below.

Blessings,
Richard

Here are additional posts in the Robert H. Coleman Series:
Robert H. Coleman, Publisher of Hymnals
The Modern Hymnal
The American Hymnal
Reapers
The Popular Hymnal

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