Holy God, We Praise Thy Name

That hymn is probably the most popular (traditional) English hymn for NO as well as EF, especially at the conclusion of Mass.

That certainly was true 50-60 years ago, but I doubt that it is today. The NPM survey from a few years ago ranked it no. 6.

http://www.catholicnews.com/data/stories/cns/0600465.htm

Keep in mind, however, that Noel asked about "most popular hymns" while CHG responded with a comment about "the most popular (traditional) English hymn."

With all respect Fr Ron, the NPM survey is somewhat irrelevant in that it is an online poll asking which liturgical song most fostered and nourished the respondent's life. The OP asked for the most popular hymns (not "songs") sung before and after EF Mass. The assertion about the NO Mass is based upon my own experience over the past 30 years in the NO "traditional" (as opposed to "contemporary") Masses.

Ben probably drinks Pepsi, too.

That NMP poll is seriously flawed - it should have been titled:

What songs became popular when RENEWAL took over many parishes and were featured by presenters as part of their witness to new people being inducted.

Then it would have been 100% accurate.

It will produce many interesting off-topic comments to brighten our days.

The most popular entrance hymns in the Sundays after Pentecost:

Come down, O love divine
Worship the Lord in the beauty of holiness
Where charity and love prevail (Windsor Old)
All creatures of our God and King
Maker of earth to Thee alone
My song is love unknown (our pastor's favorite!)
Rejoice the Lord is King
Only begotten, Word of God eternal
Christ the fair glory of the holy angels
Ye holy angels bright

Here in England it is the Tradition to sing the relevant Marian Anthem at the end of Sung Mass (EF), so we have just started singing the Alma... again.

We usually sing the simple tone but on Feasts of Our Lady we sing the Solemn tone, we were at one time discouraged from singing the solemn, but now my children ( 9yr old girl and 4 boys 7, 6, 4, 2,) can sing the solemn tones with gusto! no one can complain they can't sing them. We have also trained the local Homeschool group (50 children!) to sing both tones of all the anthems...

We also occasionally sing polyphonic settings!

So no time for an English Hymn...

At our EF high masses, we normally do not sing a recessional hymn. After the last gospel, the clergy, servers and congregation sing the seasonal Marian antiphon while standing facing the altar. Then the organ plays a recessional to accompany the procession of the clergy and servers out of the church, witnessed by the congregation. (In Advent and Lent, this procession takes place in silence.)

We don't sing a hymn during the procession into the church at the beginning of Mass, having organ or silence instead.

At low Mass, we normally do not have music other than the seasonal Marian antiphon after the last gospel. On special days, the organ is used to add greater solemnity.

Continuing on with this subject this morning, if Noel doesn't mind the diversion, about the phenomenon of established EF music paradigms. Because EF musicians have had to, in some sense, re-invent the wheel after the EF fell into disuse after Vatican II, it's quite fascinating to see what has evolved at different venues and in different regions.

You don't really see a one-size-fits-all approach as you tend to see in the OF. There aren't any standard hymnals, for one thing, and the music team have to rely mostly on their own instincts, research and creativity to design a program.

The factors that come into play are obviously the musicians' background and capabilities, the preference of the pastor, etc., but I think to some degree also, the nature of the congregation, and maybe even the architecture and setting of the church or chapel itself have their influence.

Julie,
The video to which you refer, The Most Beautiful Thing This Side of Heaven, is very well done indeed. The hymn to which you refer, though, is actually Father Caswall's "O Jesus Christ, Remember" sung to the Aurelia melody of the more-popular "The Church's One Foundation," which you referenced. It appears in the Westminster Hymnal and several others.

Last year I was asked by the music director of a large urban parish if I could come up with a list of what I thought were the most popular English Catholic hymns prior to Vatican II. He wanted this information for a hymnal he is preparing that includes both traditional and contemporary hymns for his parish. I gladly complied and came up with the list of the “top 20” below. (I also have another list of the top 75…LOL). At the start of this discussion, Noel asked for Mass hymns sung in English, so it is necessary to note that many of the hymns on this list were sung at extra-liturgical services, rather than at Mass (i.e., novenas, May devotions, Sacred Heart devotions, Holy Hours, Stations of the Cross, Benediction, and so forth). Chiefly, though, the hymns were sung by Catholic parochial school students in their classrooms. The list is not meant to be a compilation or a judgment of good/bad hymns or appropriate/inappropriate hymns but merely a list of what was popular prior to about 1965.

Although subjective, and definitely not scientific, the list is based on several factors:

1. An examination of at least fifty pre-Vatican II hymnals but chiefly The Catholic Chapel Hymnal, published originally by McLaughlin & Reilly in 1944 with revised editions in 1954 and 1958. Consisting of about 100 hymns, this publication is the result of a survey conducted by M&R of Catholic Chaplains in World War II asking for “titles of hymns best known to servicemen as indicated by spontaneous congregational participation during chapel services.”
2. An examination of the two books authored by J. Vincent Higginson and published by the Hymn Society of America: History of American Catholic Hymnals, Survey and Background (1982) and Handbook for American Catholic Hymnals (1976). Higginson, who often wrote with the pseudonym, Cyr de Brant, was an outstanding researcher. He served as editor of the Catholic Choirmaster and was a Fellow of the Hymn Society of America.
3. Conversations and correspondence with Vincent Higginson in the 1980s.
4. Discussions over a period of many years with organists in the pre-Vatican II church (most of whom are now deceased) who were “in the know” about this type of music.

Holy God We Praise Thy Name
O Lord, I Am Not Worthy
Jesus, My Lord, My God, My All
Mother Dear, O Pray for Me
Mother Dearest, Mother Fairest
Bring Flowers of the Fairest
To Jesus, Heart All Burning
O Sacred Heart! O Love Divine!
Soul of My Savior
Faith of Our Fathers
Come Holy Ghost
Mother at Your Feet is Kneeling
Heart of Jesus, Hear!
On This Day, O Beautiful Mother
Mother of Christ
Good Night, Sweet Jesus
‘Tis the Month of Our Mother
Immaculate Mary
Dear Guardian of Mary
O God of Loveliness

CBWIII has one.