Amazing Grace cover art

Amazing Grace

A Cultural History of the Beloved Hymn

Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Amazing Grace

By: James Walvin
Narrated by: Steven Crossley
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £12.99

Buy Now for £12.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

A fascinating journey through the history of one of the transatlantic world’s most popular hymns

Sung in moments of personal isolation or on state occasions watched by millions, “Amazing Grace” has become an unparalleled anthem for humankind. How did a simple Christian hymn, written in a remote English vicarage in 1772, come to hold such sway in all corners of the modern world? With this short, engaging cultural history, James Walvin offers an explanation.

The greatest paradox is that the author of “Amazing Grace,” John Newton, was a former Liverpool slave captain. Walvin follows the song across the Atlantic to track how it became part of the cause for abolition and galvanized decades of movements and trends in American history and popular culture. By the end of the twentieth century, “Amazing Grace” was performed in Soweto and Vanuatu, by political dissidents in China, and by Kikuyu women in Kenya. No other song has acquired such global resonance as “Amazing Grace.” Behold a compelling story of music and social change.

©2023 James Walvin (P)2023 Recorded Books
History & Criticism Music Africa Caribbean

Listeners also enjoyed...

Sing Me Back Home: Southern Roots and Country Music cover art
Time Come cover art
The War on Music cover art
Prophet Singer: The Voice and Vision of Woody Guthrie cover art
Otis Redding cover art
Bob Marley: The Life and Legacy of Reggae's Global Icon cover art
Just Around Midnight cover art
Well of Souls cover art
Slave Religion cover art
Country Music cover art
Move On Up cover art
Musical Revolutions cover art
A Pure Solar World cover art
Citizen Cash cover art
Shout, Sister, Shout! cover art
The Black Church cover art
No reviews yet