For anyone interested in hearing the song i’ve written for Reagan, you can download it by clicking on the following link. theonlything.mp3 (to save this file on your computer, right-click [ctrl-click for mac users] on the link and click “save file as” or “save link as”)

Here are the finial lyrics (i changed a few small things).

The Only Thing

It’s a summer night in August and I’m restless like the men
Who leave their wives and children on a ship before the wind
This storm is no nor’easter that would throw me o’er the side
My gale is just the longing of a father for his child

This house was an oasis since the day I signed my name
Now it’s empty like the station where we’re waiting for your train
Our lives were never barren until we knew you were alive
Now we’re hollow like a drum that we can’t play ‘till you arrive

(chorus)
We can almost, almost hear you laughing in our dreams
We can almost, almost feel the rhythm as you breath
We can almost, almost see the tears that you will cry
And the only thing that’s missing in this room is you tonight

On the floor there is a carpet like a garden green and white
And walls like purple mountains touch a ceiling like the sky
Sherlock Holmes and Dr. Seuss are waiting for your ears
And the night-light in the corner will keep away your fears

Your mom should be your hero she takes your beating like a champ
When you hear a note of music and begin to dance your dance
But she wouldn’t live without you and she loves you with her life
There’s a picture of her on the wall and i hope you have her eyes

And now for something completely different. I’m listening to Andrew Peterson’s The Far Country for the first time, and I’m going to blog about it in real time. Sweet huh? Warning: Total spoilerage ahead. If you want to hear the album fresh, go to Andrew’s web site and buy it, listen to it, and then come back here for my strong opinions and excellent commentary.

If you’re still reading, you know the consequences.

Andrew kicks off the CD with the title track “The Far Country.” Co-written with Ben Shive (I’ll discuss Ben a few songs from now), it rocks. Literally. It’s about time Andrew had a good rocker. The best lines of the song:

I can see the strip malls and the phone calls
The flaming sword of Eden
In the fast cash and the news flash
And the horn blast of war

Track two: “Lay Me Down.” I heard this song live a few weeks ago and it’s a tremendously touching song about death and heaven (the theme of this album, by the way). More of an acoustic-pop feel than acoustic-rock, this one moves along at a great pace with beautiful clarity and purpose (upon listening to it the second time I realized that its reminds me a lot of old Toad the Wet Sprocket). The song is full of great lines. But, the best lines are in the chorus and second verse:

When you lay me down to die
I’ll miss my boys, I’ll miss my girls
Lay me down and let me say goodbye to this world
You can lay me anywhere, but just remember this;
When you lay me down to die, you lay me down to live.

and…

We are not alone
We are more than flesh and bone
What is seen will pass away
What is not is going home

Next is “The Queen of Iowa.” In the acoustic manner that we’ve come to love from Andrew (this song reminds me a lot of the album “Clear to Venus”), he paints the picture of a visit with a dying woman. Sounds morbid, but it’s not. This is only the third song on the album and I’m already longing to be free of this world and on to the next (anyone who knows me knows that’s a profound statement–I have a huge attachment to this old and tired world). Won’t be able to say much more without weeping. The best lines:

I could see my illusions scatter
Every time she drew a breath
I could see the heart of the matter
The heart is a matter of life and death
I’ll never be the same

This one’s taking me back to my childhood. Wonderful poetry describes the life of a little boy and it’s parallel to our spiritual journey in the song “Little Boy Heart Alive.” I’m reminded that we are children at heart because we’ve all been children. Following God with the heart of a little boy is the ultimate adventure. Strong Narnian themes here too. The best lines? Here’s my pick:

Take a ride on the mighty lion
Take a hold of the golden mane
This is the love of Jesus
So good but it’s not tame

This album definitely has a much different feel than any previous. The next tune, “The Havens Gray,” (yes it references LotR as well as ‘the shadowland’) was written by Ben Shive (Andrew is credited as a musical co-writer). It’s a great song. Ben, who also produced the album, has been working with Andrew for the last three years, joining Andrew after Gabe Scott started touring with Bebo Norman. I met Ben recently at the AP concert we attended, and he’s an amazing musician and a great guy in person. Apparently, he’s an amazing songwriter as well. The best lines are in the chorus:

When I sail from Havens Gray
Caught up in the wind and blown away
I will close my eyes on the shadowlands
And say goodbye to all my friends
The parting is the price
It is the price that I must pay
To sail beyond the arms of the Havens Gray

The next song “Mystery of Mercy” was co-written with Randall Goodgame. Combine two of the best lyricists in the world and this is what you get. An amazing song, with a new sound, that inspires me to re-examine the fantastic mercy God has given to me. The best words:

My God, my God
Why hast Thou accepted me
When all my love was vinegar to a thirsty king

Track seven: “Mountains on the Ocean Floor,” discusses the fact that even though we don’t feel like we can change or fix who we are, God is doing a work in our lives that we can’t see, but that God can–like ‘mountains on the ocean floor.’ The best line:

I wish that I was half the man I wish that I could be.

Wow.

“All Shall Be Well.” This one reminds me a lot of “Pillar of Fire” from Andrew’s last album, Love and Thunder. It also has a quality that reminds me of the song “Walk” from Andrew’s first indy album of the same title. It’s a song about hope, summed up in it’s last line:

But listen now it’s a mighty cloud
Of witnesses around you–they say
“Hold on, just hold on
Hold on to the end
And all shall be well”

The next song “For the Love of God” seems to be written to a younger friend who’s finally found his bride. It’s a song about what true love really is. Lines:

Now, love is not a feeling in your chest
It’s bending down to wash another’s feet
It is faithful when the sun is in the west
And in the east

It can hurt you as it holds you
In it’s overwhelming flood
Till only the unshakable is left…

One “More.” Co-written with Pierce Pettis (I’ve never heard any of his music, but Andrew says he’s amazing), this is the perfect closing song for an album about heaven and the longing for it. It’s a beautiful acoustic song that speaks of the hope that we have. Favorite lines:

This is not the end here at the grave
This is just a hole that someone made
Every hole is made to fill
And every heart can feel it still

And

Anything resounds when it rings true
Ringing all the bells inside of you
Like a golden sky on a summer eve
Your heart is tugging at your sleeve
And you cannot say why
There must be more

My final words. The album is amazing. At this point, I can’t say that it’s my favorite AP album musically (I’m very partial to Love and Thunder), but we’ll leave the jury out on that one–I’m sure I’ll be listening to this one for weeks on end. The production is amazing, especially for an independent album. Ben Shive did a great job behind the board and the musicianship on the album is great. Lyrically, as you’ve seen if you read my review this far, the record is incredible. I consider Andrew one of the top songwriters in music right now (I’d say the best…he says he can think of 50 that are better). At any rate it’s an incredible inspiration to me and my pursuit of lyricism.

There is no question here; there should be a copy of this album in every Christian home in this country–right next to the C.S. Lewis books. What a statement it would make to the world if we would just band together and support great art with our dollars. It’s sad that great artists like Andrew have to struggle to survive financially because we don’t support the music in the numbers that we should. If we can make the Passion the number one movie of all time, why can’t we do the same with an excellent album like this. My point, GO BUY THIS ALBUM RIGHT NOW. Better yet, order it from Andrew’s web site. At any rate, support good art. Good art starts with Andrew Peterson.

Does anyone else find it funny that the word ‘blog’ isn’t recognized by the spell check on the blogger post page?