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Mansion over the Hilltop

Rating:
4.3 / 5

Words & Music: Ira Stamphill

I'm satisfied with just a cottage below
A little silver and a little gold
But in that city where the ransomed will shine
I want a gold one that's silver lined

I’ve got a mansion just over the hilltop
In that bright land where we'll never grow old
And some day yonder we will never more wander
But walk on streets that are purest gold

Don't think me poor or deserted or lonely
I'm not discouraged I’m heaven bound
I'm but a pilgrim in search of the city
I want a mansion, a harp and a crown

I’ve got a mansion just over the hilltop
In that bright land where we'll never grow old
And some day yonder we will never more wander
But walk on streets that are purest gold

Recordingdate: 1960/10/30, first released on: His Hand in Mine (album)

Musicians

Musicians who contributed to the first recording of Mansion over the Hilltop:

(guitar)
(guitar)
(guitar)
(bass)
(drums)
(drums)
(piano)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(vocals)
(sax)

Availability

Find available albums with Mansion over the Hilltop.

dgirl wrote on September 14, 2009
One of the prettiest of the gospel songs. Well performed.
sugartummy wrote on April 07, 2013
Beautiful gospel, but the author seems to want too much, and the wrong things for that matter. No love, but gold and a crown. Strange.
Gorse wrote on July 11, 2013
Elvis at his peak on these gospel sessions, with each and every recording full of soul, deep feeling and commitment. Smooth as silk and yet another 5 star experience.
ElvisSacramento wrote on August 22, 2013
This is such a beautiful gospel song and Elvis easily has the very best rendition of it. No one will ever be able to sing gospel songs better or as well as Elvis sang them.
Cruiser621 wrote on November 04, 2017
5 stars. Anything from the 1960 album "His Hand in Mind" is 5-stars as far as I'm concerned; one of his best gospel albums.
Miknik7077 wrote on December 25, 2020
Not one of my favorites. Sung well just a bit boring to me. I think his gospel got better as he got older.
Milky White Way wrote on September 29, 2021
Yes Sugartummy made a point I too have noticed. The song is all about material gain in heaven and not eternity with God. But I still love anything from that session. His voice is silk and lined with pearls! 5 stars
TheMemphisFan wrote on September 29, 2021
~ sugartummy and Milky White Way, for a better understanding of the meaning & the purpose of this song, here is the story behind it ------ In the 1940s, a young Christian businessman stood one evening in an evangelistic church service in Texas, and told how he had learned a valuable lesson from a small child. The gentleman stated that his once-thriving business, for a number of months, had been in a steady decline. It looked as if it would completely fail. Since the situation seemed beyond his ability to understand or control, he found himself slipping into despondency, discouragement and feelings of despair. He related how one day, for a period of diversion and relaxation, he decided to get into his car and drive out into the countryside. He traveled for miles, out beyond the busy streets and residential areas. He stopped his car on a lonely road and continued on foot. Soon, he found himself on a deserted, out-of-the-way trail, where eventually he came upon a dilapidated cottage. It was in great disrepair with some of the windows replaced with cardboard. Out front was a young girl playing with a doll. Although the stuffing in the doll was protruding in several places, the child seemed to be content and happy. He approached the front yard - keeping his distance for fear of frightening the child - and asked, “Little girl, would you tell me how you can be happy living in such a house? It is broken down, and the windows are out in several places. The doll you have in your hand is broken with the stuffing coming out. How can you be happy?” The little girl looked up with a smiling face and a gesturing hand and said, “Mister, my daddy just came into a lot of money, and he is building us a brand new mansion just over that hilltop.” The young businessman testified that those words pierced his heart. He realized, for the first time, that though his earthly business was faltering, the heavenly father had greater things in store for him. It was as though he heard God saying, “Son, don’t you know that I have a mansion prepared for you just beyond those clouds?” The young businessman concluded his story by telling how he went back home with a new determination to live for God and let the heavenly father take care of the business. Ira F. Stanphill, the famed songwriter, was in the audience that evening. He was so moved with the story, he went home still thinking about what he had heard. He rose early the next morning, went to his piano, and wrote the song, “Mansion Over the Hilltop.” I’m satisfied with just a cottage below, A little silver and a little gold. But in the city where the ransomed will shine, I want a gold one that’s silver lined. I got a mansion just over the hilltop, In the bright land where we’ll never grow old. And some day yonder, we will never more wander, But walk on streets that are purest gold. ~ "In my Father’s house are many mansions: if it were not so, I would have told you.” ~ John 14:2
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