Category Archives: Music
Here I flex my extremely limited expertise in the field of music, particularly songwriting.
Pop culture or anti-culture?
Here’s a quotation from Future Men by Douglas Wilson that has stood out to me and made me think (emphasis his):
Pop culture is a disposable culture for those who agree to consume it. But because cultures are meant to be handed down to subsequent generations, because cultures are meant to be preserved, a consumable culture is really an anti-culture. [...]
The central sin of pop culture is therefore a sin of omission. It displaces true culture, it does not itself adequately perform the functions of a culture, and sinners in a fallen world need to have the functions of a culture performed. Pop culture is a culture which does not enculturate, a culture which does not discipline. It is therefore an oxymoronic culture. In a biblical culture, a man expects his great-grandchildren to read what he has read, sing what he has sung, listen to what he has listened to. In an evanescent culture, like the one that surrounds us, a man expects to have all his “cultural” experiences buried with him. In the year 2525, do you think anyone will have heard of that dumb song? (From the chapter “Contempt for the Cool”)
I never thought of pop culture as an anti-culture before, but it makes sense. The ever-changing face of pop culture demands a generation gap, isolating younger people from the wisdom, guidance, and friendship of their elders. In this sense, pop culture destroys true culture, and it is inherently unbiblical.
This is something that annoys me about “praise and worship” music — it’s all about singing the latest songs (very pop-culture–ish). How many P&W songs from 20 years ago do you sing? I remember Marty once remarking on how the college group used to have hymn-sings at his house…now most students no longer know those hymns. They only know songs that they’ll forget in a few years and their kids wouldn’t like anyway. I wonder how much the musical heritage of the church has been damaged by this concern with fashion.
So…
What do you think? Is Wilson right or is he wrong? Is there more nuance here than he’s letting on? Am I just too lazy to learn new songs? Can I just keep rhyming on and on? And how should we respond to this?
Even His Son
Here’s one for Easter…
Darker than coal is the vein of my soul
I bury beneath the weight of sin,
For the judgment is near, and my sentence I fear
And lose every hope of heaven.Fear not the sword; you are loved by the Lord.
Come, look upon Calvary again!
Were the thorns on your head or on Jesus’ instead?
Come, find all your sins forgiven.Come, see how your Father has loved you.
Know that His mercy is true.
Grace He has shown;
He has called you His own.
Even His Son He’s given!Morning is here, and I breathe the free air
And savor the melody of spring.
When the stone rolled away, there began a new day:
His life is the dawn of living.Come, see how your Father has loved you.
Know that His mercy is true.
Grace He has shown;
He has called you His own.
Even His Son He’s giving!
“What then shall we say to these things? If God is for us, who can be against us? He who did not spare his own Son but gave him up for us all, how will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Romans 8:31-32)
Oh, How the Wood of the Cross
For Good Friday, here’s a short song I wrote a while back. Recently, I’ve been experimenting with the chords…seems like an appropriate time to share it.
Oh, How the Wood of the Cross
Oh, how the wood of the cross,
Splintered and jagged,
Tearing the flesh of a Savior—
Oh, how the wood of the cross,
Dead and hardened,
Soaked in the blood of a Savior—
Looks like my heart.O savage cross, your design for a sinner
Reels with the pain and the horror of love!
Well might the sky and the sunlight grow dimmer
Where I was lifted above!
Soda Pop Music
It’s time for a song, kids!
I was inspired to write this ditty by a “Worst Analogies Ever Written in a High School Essay” contest by the Washington Post. The signature line is from that contest.
Soda Pop Music
Verse 1
So your situation’s dire
’Cause your faith is going flat,
And your comfort turns desire
For its sugar into fat.
You can go to church on Sunday
To refill your 8-oz. cup,
But our God wants more than one day,
So live all 7 Up.
You have read it in His Holy Book
That God can change your self,
So take your store-brand outlook
And roll it off the shelf.
For life is but a vapor,
And so fleeting is its span;
It’s like the period after “Dr”
On the Dr Pepper can.Verse 2
So your life is now in danger
And its flavor’s at its worst
’Cause you’ve made our God a stranger
And you won’t Obey Your Thirst.
For a greedy Doubting Thomas
Changed the Classic for the New
When you swapped the gospel promise
For a diet cola brew.
Yet His blessing’s not a maybe
If you turn your life about,
And You’ve Got the Right One, Baby,
When you pour your service out.
For life is but a vapor,
And so fleeting is its span;
It’s like the period after “Dr”
On the Dr Pepper can.Verse 3
So your joy will overflow,
And it will bubble to the brink
When you lose the world you know
For a refreshing fountain drink.
Your spirit will awaken
When you pour the liquid down;
You will never be forsaken
’Til you take the Royal Crown.
For the gospel—every letter—
Is Mount Zion’s revenue,
And The World will not Taste Better
Once you drink that Mountain Dew.
For life is but a vapor,
And so fleeting is its span;
It’s like the period after “Dr”
On the Dr Pepper can.
I wonder if I can enter it in a “Worst Songs Ever Written by a Church Employee” contest. Though who knows, if I brand it as Christian music, I can make it immune from criticism…after all, someone might get saved through this song!
Leave All the Rest / Seek Ye First
One of my hobbies is songwriting…I’ve been doing it for the past few years and have written over 40 songs, most of them pretty lame. Anyway, while I was on the theme of faith in God today, it reminded me of one I wrote about two months ago using “Seek Ye First” as the chorus:
You are so worried about your life—
How you can get the things that you want.
First are His kingdom and His righteousness;
Leave all the rest behind;
Leave your desires behind.Why do you waver in trusting the Lord?
When has He failed to give what you need?
He is your Father, He loves you and knows
How He will show His grace
So you can see His face.Seek ye first the kingdom of God
And His righteousness,
And all these things shall be added unto you.
Allelu, alleluia.As we grow older, we see every day
The wisdom of God in all of our pain.
We leave our wisdom, our sorrows behind
So we can find His grace,
Seek Him in all our ways.Ask, and it shall be given unto you;
Seek, and ye shall find;
Knock, and the door shall be opened unto you.
Allelu, alleluia.
Yeah, it sounds better when put to music. Not a lot better, mind you.
