This week I decided to look into the deeper meaning behind a selection of 6 songs. For me, I sometimes find songs more meaningful when I know the real story behind the lyrics, for every song, there's a story that goes with it. Of course, there are so many more songs I could've looked at, so maybe I'll do another post like this in the future... but for now I give you songs by The Classic Crime, Ed Sheeran, Needtobreathe, Arrows and Sound, Paper Route, and Skillet.
The Beginning (A Simple Seed) – The Classic Crime
This song was written about missing home and the struggle of being on tour away from your loved ones or the one that you love. It’s all about the band members being able to live in the moment while on the road on tour, not giving home life 50% and road life 50%, but giving 100% to their present moment.
This song was written about missing home and the struggle of being on tour away from your loved ones or the one that you love. It’s all about the band members being able to live in the moment while on the road on tour, not giving home life 50% and road life 50%, but giving 100% to their present moment.
Small Bump – Ed Sheeran
I feel like the meaning behind this song may be a lot more well known than the others I’ve written about in this blog, but I thought I’d chuck it in away. Ed Sheeran wrote this song about his close friend who had a miscarriage after 4 months. However, he wrote the song from the perspective of the friend, as a parent of the unborn baby.
I feel like the meaning behind this song may be a lot more well known than the others I’ve written about in this blog, but I thought I’d chuck it in away. Ed Sheeran wrote this song about his close friend who had a miscarriage after 4 months. However, he wrote the song from the perspective of the friend, as a parent of the unborn baby.
Haley – NEEDTOBREATHE
Haley was written by Bo Rinehart about the girl he was dating (who he later wifed). The song is basically all about trouble in the relationship, being on again, off again. Bo really liked this girl, and he was ready to commit, but ‘Haley’ needed to decide if she was in or out. He didn’t want to be lead on and wanted to know if he should just move on or actually put his whole heart into their relationship.
Haley was written by Bo Rinehart about the girl he was dating (who he later wifed). The song is basically all about trouble in the relationship, being on again, off again. Bo really liked this girl, and he was ready to commit, but ‘Haley’ needed to decide if she was in or out. He didn’t want to be lead on and wanted to know if he should just move on or actually put his whole heart into their relationship.
Arrows and Sound
I didn’t want to choose a specific song from this band; I wanted to focus more on the fact of the band’s origins and intentionality. The band is made up of Philip Zach (Ex-Remedy Drive band member) and Riley Friesen (Composer and Producer for some of Family Force 5’s albums). After leaving Remedy Drive Phillip Zach needed to have vocal surgery and in order for it to be successful he had to be completely silent for 3 months. During these 3 months he learnt to be an observer of the world; he learnt that being quiet was like being invisible, and so he learnt how to speak without saying anything. Phillip learnt that he didn’t need to sing to make music that moved people. So Arrows and Sounds’ album has a huge focus on the sounds rather than the lyrics to guide the listener experience. Their self-titled album does have lyrics, but they aren’t the main focus, however they also have an instrumental version of the album as well. I can’t decide which version I like better, they’re both pretty incredible. Have a listen for yourself.
I didn’t want to choose a specific song from this band; I wanted to focus more on the fact of the band’s origins and intentionality. The band is made up of Philip Zach (Ex-Remedy Drive band member) and Riley Friesen (Composer and Producer for some of Family Force 5’s albums). After leaving Remedy Drive Phillip Zach needed to have vocal surgery and in order for it to be successful he had to be completely silent for 3 months. During these 3 months he learnt to be an observer of the world; he learnt that being quiet was like being invisible, and so he learnt how to speak without saying anything. Phillip learnt that he didn’t need to sing to make music that moved people. So Arrows and Sounds’ album has a huge focus on the sounds rather than the lyrics to guide the listener experience. Their self-titled album does have lyrics, but they aren’t the main focus, however they also have an instrumental version of the album as well. I can’t decide which version I like better, they’re both pretty incredible. Have a listen for yourself.
No Sudden Revelations – Paper Route
I found this song really interesting because it was written about how people feel after they are baptised. JT Daly wrote the song after seeing many people being baptised and seeing the look on peoples' faces after they come out of the water. He wrote the song with a longing to feel, hear and see what those people experienced. The two lyricists of the band JT Daly and Andy Smith wrote the entire album struggling with and yearning for the love of God. In this album Paper Route tried to recreate the sensation of those moments when you feel God’s presence. In this song they even wanted the music to reflect baptism so that it portrayed a feeling as if you were being baptised, being submerged in the water and feeling God’s presence. The whole album is worth a listen.
I found this song really interesting because it was written about how people feel after they are baptised. JT Daly wrote the song after seeing many people being baptised and seeing the look on peoples' faces after they come out of the water. He wrote the song with a longing to feel, hear and see what those people experienced. The two lyricists of the band JT Daly and Andy Smith wrote the entire album struggling with and yearning for the love of God. In this album Paper Route tried to recreate the sensation of those moments when you feel God’s presence. In this song they even wanted the music to reflect baptism so that it portrayed a feeling as if you were being baptised, being submerged in the water and feeling God’s presence. The whole album is worth a listen.
Lucy - Skillet
The story behind the song ‘Lucy’ is pretty intense. John Copper initially didn’t want to explain the real story behind the song, but then at a concert in 2010 he said “..this week is the very first time that I’ve ever told what this song is about, because, uh, it’s very special to me, but I feel like it’s time to talk about it a little bit, so.. listen up while I tell you a story about a young girl and a young guy who found themselves in a hard situation. They didn’t know what to do when they found out that she was pregnant; they were young, they didn’t have any money, they were scared, they didn’t want to tell anybody, they didn’t know what to do, and the only option that they could see was to terminate the pregnancy. So that’s what they decided to do… they went to a clinic, they had the procedure done, and at first they felt relieved that all their problems had gone away. But then something happened that they did not expect… and that’s over the next few weeks, which turned into a few months, they began to feel an intense sadness… and a pain and an agony and a guilt that wouldn’t go away. They didn’t know what to do, so they finally went to see a counsellor; they said look — tell us what to do, we just don’t know, and the counsellor made a suggestion. The counsellor said here’s what you need to do — stop acting like you had a procedure, and act like you had a death in the family. So the couple went home and they made three decisions; number one, they decided to have a funeral service for the baby; number two, they bought a tiny little headstone; and they last decision to make was what to name the baby. After a couple weeks they finally decided they would call her… Lucy.”
The story behind the song ‘Lucy’ is pretty intense. John Copper initially didn’t want to explain the real story behind the song, but then at a concert in 2010 he said “..this week is the very first time that I’ve ever told what this song is about, because, uh, it’s very special to me, but I feel like it’s time to talk about it a little bit, so.. listen up while I tell you a story about a young girl and a young guy who found themselves in a hard situation. They didn’t know what to do when they found out that she was pregnant; they were young, they didn’t have any money, they were scared, they didn’t want to tell anybody, they didn’t know what to do, and the only option that they could see was to terminate the pregnancy. So that’s what they decided to do… they went to a clinic, they had the procedure done, and at first they felt relieved that all their problems had gone away. But then something happened that they did not expect… and that’s over the next few weeks, which turned into a few months, they began to feel an intense sadness… and a pain and an agony and a guilt that wouldn’t go away. They didn’t know what to do, so they finally went to see a counsellor; they said look — tell us what to do, we just don’t know, and the counsellor made a suggestion. The counsellor said here’s what you need to do — stop acting like you had a procedure, and act like you had a death in the family. So the couple went home and they made three decisions; number one, they decided to have a funeral service for the baby; number two, they bought a tiny little headstone; and they last decision to make was what to name the baby. After a couple weeks they finally decided they would call her… Lucy.”