The Psalms through Three Thousand Years: Prayerbook of a Cloud of Witnesses by William L. Holladay
This is a book I consider essential to anyone interested in the use of psalms in worship.
Amazon blurb:
Until now, no book has conveniently combined treatment of the origins of the Psalms with attention to their Jewish and Christian use through history. William L. Holladay offers an illuminating and informative overview of the Psalmschanted, sung, and recited by so great a cloud of witnesses (Hebrews 12:1) through the past three thousand years.
The broad scope and usefulness of the book are indicated by its major parts:
The Psalms Take Shape-A Reconstruction
The Psalter through History
Current Theological Issues
Orthodox Bishop Alfeyev: "To be a theologian means to have experience of a personal encounter with God through prayer and worship."; Orthodox proverb: "We know where the Church is, we do not know where it is not."