Day 6: I SO wish I could play you guys a clip of the song we recorded yesterday. It is my favorite song on the record so far. Unexpectedly, it evolved into a sweeping, moving composition – I had a hard time getting through it just singing those powerful words on a scratch vocal.
The scripture is from Isaiah 40, and I wrote it for a young friend of mine in Singapore.
Do you not know?
Have you not heard?
The Lord is the everlasting God,
the Creator of the ends of the earth.
He will not grow tired or weary,
and his understanding no one can fathom.
29 He gives strength to the weary
and increases the power of the weak.
30 Even youths grow tired and weary,
and young men stumble and fall;
31 but those who hope in the Lord
will renew their strength.
They will soar on wings like eagles;
they will run and not grow weary,
they will walk and not be faint.
I can’t wait to play it for my friend Jeremy and his family, and I can’t wait to play it for you guys. Ben arranged beautiful string parts, and together we figured out a really extraordinary vocal harmony arrangement. If you are a Kickstarter supporter, you’ll hear a rough version soon enough. Otherwise, I guess you’ll have to wait till the CD comes out.
“Do You Not Know” was the only song that we got to on Day 6. It’s also the day Ben and I found out that we were nominated for a Dove Award for Sing the Bible Volume 1. So it was really an astoundingly great day.
Day 7: This was a day of two halves. The first half of the day was a total riot. The song for 2 Corinthians 9:6-7 is officially hilarious.
If you have the Slugs & Bugs & Lullabies CD, do you remember the “Yo ho ho!” vocal parts in the song Dreams? Well, we were inspired by those old pirate voices and we set the stage in colonial America. We were also inspired a bit by the great Randy Newman. Here’s the passage:
2 Corinthians 9:6-7
Whoever sows sparingly will also reap sparingly, and whoever sows generously will also reap generously. Each of you should give whatever you have decided to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.
The second half of the day, we stalled for most of the afternoon trying to find the arrangement for the song we’re calling Stars. Here’s the passage:
Philippians 2:14-16
Do everything without grumbling or arguing, so that you may become blameless and pure, “children of God without fault in a warped and crooked generation.” Then you will shine among them like stars in the sky as you hold firmly to the word of life.
We tried and failed at three different stylistic approaches, and then at about 4:00 pm, Ben suggested we try a baritone sax on the intro melody line. We had tried acoustic guitar, an aggressive bass tone, a marimba and a piano, but none of them had worked. Praise God in Heaven, the baritone sax was perfect. We found our footing on that tune, and ended the day on a high note (ironic pun indented).
See you tomorrow!
Slugs and Bugs 