About The Song
“We Thank Thee” is the title track of Jim Reeves’ 1962 gospel album of the same name, released by RCA Victor and produced by Chet Atkins. Reeves wrote the song himself. The album was recorded in Nashville and issued in both mono and stereo formats, placing it within the sequence of polished Nashville Sound projects that defined his work in the early 1960s.
The lyric is a simple expression of gratitude for everyday elements of the natural world—new mornings, sunshine, rivers, birds, trees, fields, and open pastures. Reeves sings of thanking the Lord for these ordinary gifts and for the ability to see them. Delivered in his familiar warm, measured baritone, the song maintains the restrained, intimate quality that characterized much of his sacred material.
The full album mixes the original title track with established gospel standards. Selections include “I’ll Fly Away,” “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” “This World Is Not My Home,” “Have Thine Own Way, Lord,” and “Where We’ll Never Grow Old.” Other tracks feature material by writers such as Cindy Walker. The collection reflects Reeves’ interest in sacred songs alongside his better-known country and crossover recordings.
Reeves had already demonstrated an affinity for gospel material on earlier releases. *We Thank Thee* continued that side of his catalogue and helped establish several of these songs in the repertoire of country artists who performed inspirational music. The album itself did not chart strongly in the United States at the time of release, consistent with the limited commercial tracking of pure gospel projects during that period.
After Reeves’ death in a plane crash in July 1964, interest in his recordings increased. The album entered the UK Albums Chart in September 1964, peaking at number 17 and spending three weeks on the list. It later received a Silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry. The title track and other selections from the album continued to appear on later compilations of his sacred work.
Within Reeves’ broader body of recordings, “We Thank Thee” stands as a quiet example of the gentle, reflective tone he brought to gospel material. It shares the same controlled delivery and clear phrasing that marked his secular hits, applied here to themes of gratitude and faith rather than romantic or narrative subjects.
Video
Lyric
We thank Thee each morning for a newborn day
Where we may work the fields of new mown hay
We thank Thee for the sunshine
And the air that we breathe
Oh Lord we thank Thee
We thank Thee for the rivers that run all day
We thank Thee for the little birds that sing away
We thank Thee for the trees
And the deep blue sea
Oh Lord we thank Thee
Oh yes we thank Thee Lord
For every flower that blooms
Birds that sing, fish that swim
And the light of the moon
We thank Thee every day
As we kneel and pray
That we were born with eyes
To see these things
We thank Thee for the fields
Where the clovers grow
We thank Thee for the pastures
Where the cattle may roam
We thank Thee for Thy love so pure and free
Oh Lord we thank Thee
Oh yes we thank Thee Lord
For every flower that blooms
Birds that sing, fish that swim
And the light of the moon
We thank Thee every day
As we kneel and pray
That we were born with eyes
To see these things, yea
We thank Thee for the fields
Where the clovers grow
We thank Thee for the pastures
Where the cattle may roam
We thank Thee for Thy love so pure and so free
Oh Lord we thank Thee