This is one interesting song that Ives omitted from his self-published comprehensive collection of his songs, 114 Songs (1922). The purpose of 114 Songs was to place before the public a broad survey of music in a single genre that Ives had written over a 30-year span of development. As this song was used as the basis for a large portion of Ives' Piano Trio, Kw 7, he may have felt that the song was superfluous.

The poem is by an unknown author. The poem is about the impermanence of the vain structures and deeds of man, whereas only worthy thoughts persist eternally.

The All-Enduring is one of Ives' longest songs at about six minutes. It is through-composed and has a variety of musical moods and textures, as well as exhibiting the growing independence of musical thought that was already leading the 22-year-old composer towards his future radicalism.

It is almost certain that the first version of this song was for chorus and orchestra. Later in his career Ives went through his manuscripts and wrote marginal notes on them relating to their composition or early performances and wrote the following regarding this song; "for Yale Glee Club & orchestra but they wouldn't sing it—T.G.S: N.G." The letters at the end means that T.G. Shepard, the Glee Club conductor, said "No Good."

There is also a note indicating that Ives' main supporter in those years, Dr. John Griggs of Center Church in New Haven, CT (the choir director of the church, who employed Ives as organist), did sing the song as a solo work in June 1896.

Ives' manuscript is for piano and voice solo, and was probably prepared for Griggs' performance. It retains indications of its origin in notations concerning instruments throughout the piano part. (For instance, at the beginning of the eight-bar instrumental introduction it is marked "strings.")

The harmonic language of the song is in keeping with that of the more advanced composers of the day—that is, it is post-Wagnerian. (There is even a rising figure that is quite similar to the famous Tristan motive.) There are touches that are more indicative of Ives' own developing musical personality, such as a sudden appearance of raggy rhythms in four sixteenths to the beat against flowing triplet eighths.

Ives' piano score rises to a very loud conclusion, with tremolandos in both hands, and effect that is both hard to sing against and unconvincing on the piano. Therefore the piano score strongly invites orchestration. On the other hand, the song is somewhat over-ambitious for the stage of development Ives had reached by this point.

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