I'll Be a Sunbeam Want Me for a Sunbeam". The latter version was covered by Nirvana. The hymn was also referenced in the lyrics of the song "Alibi" by Elvis Costello ("Maybe Jesus wants you for a sunbeam?"). I'll Be a Sunbeam "I'll Be a Sunbeam" (also called "Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam") is a popular children's Christian hymn composed by Nellie Talbot; it is sung to music composed in 1900 by Edwin O. Excell. Due to its age, the hymn has entered the public domain in the United States. Published in Chicago by Excell as hymn number 137 in his "Praises" in
Nellie B. Allen Nellie B. Allen Nellie Beatrice Osborn Allen (1874–1961) was an American landscape architect. She is known for her knot gardens. Nellie Beatrice Osborn was born on October 23, 1874, in Cameron, Missouri, to David and Pauline Osborn, who were originally from Virginia. Her father was a farmer, and she was the fourth of five children, with one brother and three sisters. Nellie married a man named Sidney P. Allen, prior to 1900, who would found the Louisiana Land and Exploration Company. By 1916, she had raised a daughter, divorced her husband, and decided to enter the field of landscape architecture.