> I also notice that lots of early church hymns and political songs were merely new sets of lyrics put on the same melody over and over again. That's because t

> I also notice that lots of early church hymns and political songs were merely new sets of lyrics put on the same melody over and over again. That's because those songs were meant to be singable by everyone, most of whom had no formal musical training. Tunes were reused because people could start singing the new lyrics right away if they were already familiar with the melody.