Moody made plans to visit the British Isles in 1873 for a series of missions.
He did not initially intend to take Sankey as his musical associate, preferring the services of the more experienced gospel singers Philip Phillips or Philip Bliss.
Neither was available, so Sankey was taken.
The tour got off to a slow start; barely 50 people attended the first rally, held in York, and this congregation was unused to the kind of gospel songs – "human hymns" – that Sankey introduced.
Gradually, however, the British public was won over, halls were filled, and Sankey's "singing the gospel" became a popular feature of the services.
 To familiarise the congregations  with the words of new hymns by Bliss, Fanny Crosby and others, Sankey published a short collection of the favorite numbers, under the title Sacred Songs and Solos.
The collection was much expanded in later editions, eventually comprising 1,200 pieces.
While in Scotland, Sankey composed his first gospel song, a setting of Horatius Bonar's hymn "Yet There is Room".
 The tour extended over two years, with meetings in most of the main British cities.
When it reached London, congregations included many of the most prominent in the land, including Queen Victoria, the Princess of Wales, and the statesman William Ewart Gladstone.

Moody and Sankey returned home in the summer of 1875, to considerable acclaim after their successful British tour, and quickly established themselves as the leading revivalists of their times.
Beginning with a rally in Moody's home town of Northfield, Massachusetts, revival meetings were held during the following years in towns and cities the length and breadth of the United States, with excursions over the borders into Canada and Mexico.
Meetings in the southern states were subject to racial segregation.
Concerning a meeting in Meridian, Mississippi, Sankey noted: "we have one side of the [tabernacle] for blacks.
D.L. has them sing alone, sometimes just to show the white people how to sing".
Moody made plans to visit the British Isles in 1873 for a series of missions. He did not initially intend to take Sankey as his musical associate, preferring the services of the more experienced gospel singers Philip Phillips or Philip Bliss. Neither was available, so Sankey was taken. The tour got off to a slow start; barely 50 people attended the first rally, held in York, and this congregation was unused to the kind of gospel songs – "human hymns" – that Sankey introduced. Gradually, however, the British public was won over, halls were filled, and Sankey's "singing the gospel" became a popular feature of the services.  To familiarise the congregations  with the words of new hymns by Bliss, Fanny Crosby and others, Sankey published a short collection of the favorite numbers, under the title Sacred Songs and Solos. The collection was much expanded in later editions, eventually comprising 1,200 pieces. While in Scotland, Sankey composed his first gospel song, a setting of Horatius Bonar's hymn "Yet There is Room".  The tour extended over two years, with meetings in most of the main British cities. When it reached London, congregations included many of the most prominent in the land, including Queen Victoria, the Princess of Wales, and the statesman William Ewart Gladstone.
Moody and Sankey returned home in the summer of 1875, to considerable acclaim after their successful British tour, and quickly established themselves as the leading revivalists of their times. Beginning with a rally in Moody's home town of Northfield, Massachusetts, revival meetings were held during the following years in towns and cities the length and breadth of the United States, with excursions over the borders into Canada and Mexico. Meetings in the southern states were subject to racial segregation. Concerning a meeting in Meridian, Mississippi, Sankey noted: "we have one side of the [tabernacle] for blacks. D.L. has them sing alone, sometimes just to show the white people how to sing".
Ira D. Sankey