Music moves fast. One week a song is topping the charts on TikTok, and a month later, it's buried in a digital graveyard. But some things just stick. I Love to Tell the Story is one of those weird, wonderful outliers that has survived over a century without losing its punch. It’s not just a song for Sunday mornings in drafty chapels. Honestly, it’s a masterclass in how a simple message can travel from a sickbed in London to the global stage.
People usually assume these old hymns were written by some stoic monk or a professional composer. Not this one. This story starts with an English woman named Katherine Hankey. Back in 1866, she was incredibly sick. We’re talking a serious, bedridden illness that kept her down for a long time. While she was recovering, she didn't just lie there staring at the ceiling; she wrote an epic, 50-stanza poem about the life of Jesus.
Fifty stanzas. That’s a lot of poetry.
The Surprising Origin of I Love to Tell the Story
Katherine Hankey was part of the "Clapham Sect," a group of wealthy, activist Christians in London. They weren't just about singing; they were about doing. They fought against the slave trade and worked on prison reform. Hankey herself spent time teaching Sunday School to the kids of the London elite and organized Bible studies for factory girls. She was a doer.
But when her health broke, she turned to the page. The massive poem she wrote was titled The Old, Old Story. It was actually split into two parts: "The Story Wanted" and "The Story Told."
If you’ve ever sung I Love to Tell the Story, you’re actually singing a chopped-up, rearranged version of the second part of that poem. It’s kinda fascinating how a personal devotional poem written in a sickroom became a global anthem. It didn't happen overnight, though. It needed a melody to make it fly.
About three years after Hankey wrote the words, a musician named William G. Fischer added the tune we know today. He also added the refrain. You know the one: "I love to tell the story, 'twill be my theme in glory..." That part wasn't in Hankey's original poem. Fischer knew that if you want people to remember a song, you need a hook. He gave it one.
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Why the Lyrics Still Resonate With Regular People
There is something deeply human about the opening lines. "I love to tell the story of unseen things above." It captures that basic human instinct to share something we find beautiful.
Most religious music from that era can feel a bit stiff. Stilted. A little too "thee" and "thou" for a modern ear. But this hymn is surprisingly conversational. It uses words like "satisfies" and "wonderful." It feels more like a chat over coffee than a formal lecture.
The psychology of repetition
The song repeats the phrase "the old, old story" over and over. Why? Because there’s comfort in the familiar. In a world that changes every five seconds, there’s a psychological anchor in something that claims to be timeless. Whether or not you're religious, you can probably appreciate the craving for a narrative that doesn't shift under your feet.
Actually, the song acknowledges this. One of the verses says, "For those who know it best seem hungering and thirsting to hear it like the rest." It’s an admission that even if you’ve heard a story a thousand times, there's a specific kind of joy in hearing it again. It's like re-watching your favorite movie or having your grandma tell that one story about the 1970s for the tenth time.
A shift in perspective
A lot of people miss the nuance in the third verse. It talks about the story being "pleasant to repeat." This isn't just about proselytizing or "selling" a religion. It’s about the internal effect on the person telling it. Telling the story makes the teller feel better. It’s an act of self-soothing and community building.
From London Parlors to Billy Graham Stadiums
If Fischer gave it the tune, Dwight L. Moody and his song leader Ira Sankey gave it the platform. Moody was the 19th-century version of a rock star evangelist. He traveled across the UK and the US, and wherever he went, he took these "Gospel Hymns" with him.
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I Love to Tell the Story became a staple of the Moody-Sankey era. It was the "Top 40" hit of the late 1800s. It bridged the gap between the formal, high-church liturgy and the "common man's" faith. It was catchy. It was easy to sing in a group. It didn't require a degree in theology to understand.
Cultural impact beyond the church
You’ve likely heard this song in places you wouldn't expect. It’s been covered by everyone from Alan Jackson and Dolly Parton to Johnny Cash.
- Alan Jackson's version is stripped back, almost acoustic, highlighting the folk-roots of the melody.
- Dolly Parton brings that mountain-gospel energy that makes it feel like it belongs on a porch in the Smokies.
- Johnny Cash gave it that gravelly, weathered authority that makes you believe every word.
When artists of that caliber keep coming back to a piece of music, it’s not just because it’s "in the public domain." It’s because the song has "legs." It works in a country arrangement just as well as it works on a pipe organ.
The Misconceptions People Have About the Song
One big mistake people make is thinking this is a "happy-clappy" song without any weight. If you look at Katherine Hankey's life, she wasn't writing from a place of easy comfort. She was writing from a place of struggle.
She was an invalid at the time. She was facing the potential end of her life.
When she writes about the story "satisfying my longings as nothing else can do," she’s talking about a deep, existential hunger. It’s not a superficial "I’m having a great day" vibe. It’s a "this is the only thing keeping me sane while I’m stuck in this bed" vibe.
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Another misconception? That it’s a purely "American" hymn. While Fischer (the composer) was American, the soul of the song is British. It’s a product of the Victorian era’s obsession with narrative and moral clarity.
Is it still relevant in 2026?
Honestly, we live in a "story" economy now. Everything is a narrative. Brands tell stories. Influencers tell stories. Politicians tell stories.
The song I Love to Tell the Story tap-dances right on that line between personal testimony and communal history. It reminds us that humans are hard-wired for storytelling. We don't just want facts or data points. We want a beginning, a middle, and an end. We want a hero. We want a resolution.
Even for people who aren't religious, the song represents a specific kind of cultural heritage. It’s the sound of history. It’s the sound of a thousand small-town churches and a million bedtime stories.
How to actually engage with the song today
If you're a musician, or just someone who likes history, there are better ways to experience this hymn than just listening to a dusty old recording.
- Check out the original poem. Look up The Old, Old Story by Katherine Hankey. Seeing the 50 stanzas puts the hymn in a totally different light. You realize how much was left on the cutting room floor.
- Compare the versions. Listen to a traditional choir version, then flip over to something like the Charlie Daniels version. Notice how the tempo changes the meaning. A slow tempo makes it a meditation; a fast tempo makes it a celebration.
- Look at the structure. If you're a songwriter, study Fischer's refrain. It’s a perfect example of how to write a "sing-along" chorus that stays in your head for days.
Actionable Insights for Church Leaders or Music Directors
If you're tasked with using this song in a modern setting, don't just default to the "standard" way.
- Try a minor key. Changing the song to a minor key for a verse can highlight the "longing" and "thirsting" aspects of the lyrics. It makes it feel more "Indie-folk" and less "1950s Sunday School."
- Share the backstory. People connect with people. Before playing it, tell the story of Katherine Hankey writing it from her sickbed. It changes the listener's perspective from "here's an old song" to "here's a woman's lifeline."
- Focus on the "Tell." The song is about communication. Use it as a springboard to talk about how we share our own personal stories—not just religious ones, but our histories and struggles.
The enduring power of I Love to Tell the Story isn't about its theological complexity. It’s about the simplicity of its hook and the sincerity of its origin. It’s a reminder that a good story, well told (and sung), never really goes out of style. It just waits for the next person to pick up the melody.