TUNES

Okay, worship folks...let's do a little survey. Many of us have been ramping up to Easter - saying things like, "After Easter, I'll get to that." or "We gotta' work out that song after Easter!"

Now that a lot of you are recovering from Holy Week worship, I've got a question for ya!

What are some songs/videos/other art you're planning on bringing to worship in the near future?

THE TENS...("Blessed Be Your Name")

The Tens is a blog series where I look at songs that have consistently stayed in CCLI's Top 10 List over the past five years. In each post, we discuss what makes these songs great and why they're important to churches.

For this post, we'll be looking at Matt Redmans beloved tune, "Blessed Be Your Name."

WHERE I HEARD IT FIRST:
I actually don't remember where I heard this one first, but I think it might have been on the radio. I know a band called Tree63 did a cover version and I think that may have been my first experience with the tune.

WHY IT'S SUCCESSFUL:
This one seems pretty easy...I mean, a song built around the idea of giving God honor even when our lives are difficult? Of course, people are going to respond to that! Here are a couple of things that I think work for this song.

• Poetry. Matt and his wife wrote fantastic lyrics here. They've written a lyric that is broad enough to fit any situation, yet poetic enough to be personal. Even when we're experience joy...we still understand what a powerful message this song carries.
  
  
• Honesty. This lyric still dwells in the hypothetical. We're singing these things "in faith" many times...almost reminding ourselves that we're supposed to be blessing God during trial. And then we hit that amazing line..."though there's pain in the offering." You know, that song probably would have done good enough without that line, but I'm so glad it's in there. Because suddenly it becomes real to us. We sing that and realize that we're not singing some feel-good campfire song. We're singing about real-life.
  
  
• Simplicity. This is an easy song to follow. The verses are pretty wordy, but the tune is just paced so well. This is really a great example of a song that invites on a journey. I don't this a tune you can easily just sing one part of...you gotta' go all in, right?
  

3 TAKES:
I typically respond to worship songs in three ways: as a worship leader, as a songwriter and as a worshiper. Of course, those three things are constantly overlapping, but they each individually shape how I think about a given song.

• Worship Leader - We read a lot about "laments." Lately, I've seen a lot of worship leaders talking about the need for the more confessional nature in worship. We all face desperate times - times when we feel far removed from God's care - and I agree with those that posit the need for songs that let us express as much. However, this can often be one of the many things that works theoretically but that poses so much trouble in its application. Laments are hard to pull off, folks. They're hard to place in a set, hard to maintain an energy level when playing, and hard to write. (Believe me on that one!) As a worship leader, I love this tune because it's so balanced. Yes, it's a song of hope and dependence, but it's also a song of honesty. I know that almost anytime I play this tune, somebody's going to connect with it. And usually, it's a lot of "somebodies."
  
  
• Songwriter - Most any songwriter is probably going to have a weird response to a four-minute song that is essentially the same four chords over and over again. And this tune isn't that different...I'm still amazed that it works so well. Personally, I think the pre-chorus is the key in keeping this song alive. I think the melody of the "every blessing" section is so great - not only is it a pretty cool melodic twist, but the lead-up to the chorus is fantastic songwriting.
  
  
• Worshiper - When this song is played by a good band with a great arrangement, it's fantastic. When it's not, well...it's not. This is that old standard thing so many of us face. How do you turn off your "musician mode" in worship? How do you stop listening to the tempo and watch for transitions and participate fully in the worship experience? Each of us have our own ways of making that happen, but I'll be honest, this song is often a hard one for me to sing along with. This has nothing to do with Matt's songwriting, but rather a very strong tendency for bands to rely on a crowd's excitement rather than to build energy into the tune using their skills. Personally, I'm always gonna' favor a big, ethereal version of this song. Of course, it works simplified, but I think big, rocking versions of this tune are so great for congregational worship.
  

So, what about you?
Thoughts on "Blessed Be Your Name"?
Got thoughts on why it's such a success?
COMMENT BELOW!

THE TENS..."How Great Is Our God."

The Tens is a blog series where I look at songs that have consistently stayed in CCLI's Top 10 List over the past five years. In each post, we discuss what makes these songs great and why they're important to churches.

For this post, we'll be looking at Chris Tomlin's "How Great Is Our God," a song that's quickly risen to the top of CCLI most popular songs. For each of these posts, we'll be following this template.

WHERE I HEARD IT FIRST:
Many of us typically hear new worship songs in our churches, then go out and find the album with the tune. In the past, Chris has often introduced new songs in a live version via the Passion organization, then placed full-studio versions on his individual releases. I don't think "How Great Is Our God" had appeared anywhere before, though. If I'm remembering correctly, I think it was the first or second radio release, but I heard it first on the record.

WHY IT'S SUCCESSFUL:
I think there are a few reasons why the church has latched onto this song. A couple of those reasons are consistent with most anything that Chris releases.

• First off, I think the song is emotive. Chris has done a fantastic job on the melody here. It's almost impossible to sing this song without becoming a bit excited by the overall "feel" of the way this melody works.
  
  
• Secondly, it's singable. Think about it - slow tempo, a chorus that easy to remember and a dash of the unique ("sing with me...")
  
  
• Third, it's a tune that hangs on that chorus. That's why the acapella choir part at the end of the studio version (and in live settings, too) is so cool...because it's the crux of this piece. The chorus is simple, but smart, songwriting.
  
  
• Fourth, it's about God. We hear people complaining all the time about how there are so many "me" songs in worship. And that's true - there are a lot of those out there. Personally, I don't think those are all bad, but I do think that Christ-followers are prone to engage more fully and passionately with songs that are about God and not ourselves.
  

3 TAKES:
I typically respond to worship songs in three ways: as a worship leader, as a songwriter and as a worshiper. Of course, those three things are constantly overlapping, but they each individually shape how I think about a given song.

• Worship Leader - Like it or not, "How Great Is Our God" has all the qualities of the old standby. It's one of those tunes that's crossed denominational, regional and age lines. You can throw this one into a set and be guaranteed that folks are going to know it. The danger with songs like that is that you can kill them quickly. My worship leader "take" on this tune is that it has to be placed just right in the set. I've got to really be watchful and aware of when I utilize this guy. Placed correctly and wisely in an order of worship, it can be a powerful tool to make sure our focus is on God alone. Placed wrongly, or used too much, and this song feels about an hour long.
  
  
• Songwriter - As a songwriter, I marvel at this song. Personally, I've never really liked the verses that much. They're easy to sing and remember, which is good for worship songwriting, but I've always felt that the great chorus overcomes whatever shortcomings might happen in the verses. I think the bridge is fantastic...maybe one of the best worship bridges written in a long time. ("Bridges" tend to be the most difficult part of songwriting.) Tomlin and crew did a great job on this one...the strengths are so abundantly strong that the weaknesses don't even matter. I still think the song is too high. This might seem like a worship leader concern, but as a worship writer, I work really hard at being sensitive to congregational comfort when it comes to range. Sometimes, those can't be totally avoided, but the songwriter in me think the song would have done just as well a step or two lower.
  
  
• Worshiper - I like this tune. It's got tons of stuff I dig...percussion, cool acoustic work during the verses, really great texture. Personally, I never felt it was the most awesome-song-ever, but I completely understand its appeal. This is one of those that's run its course for me.
  

So, what about you?
Thoughts on "How Great Is Our God?"
Got thoughts on why it's such a success?
COMMENT BELOW!

WHO MADE YOU?

David's recent post about influential records got me thinking about all the people in my life who have shaped who I am, what I think, how I behave, etc.

After thinking on that for awhile, I started to think about people who have influenced me in my chosen field of ministry/career of worship leading. These are people who helped in some of my formative stages. Their support and encouragement shaped by thoughts and theories and put me on the path to realizing my full, God-given potential.

Mitch Powell - Mitch was my first youth minister. As I came into youth group at my church, the current guy was leaving, so I had no idea what to expect. Mitch was loud and funny and sincere and he was the first guy to ask me to lead worship. (My first time was singing Carman's "God's Got Army" with one of those Youth Worship Split-Track CDs. Ugghh.) Mitch was always ready with an encouraging word.

Tim Stacy - Coming up in a pretty conservative church in the 80's, (Who didn't, right?) I had almost no exposure to the modern praise and worship movement. Thanks to Christian radio (Yeah, I said it) and a man named Tim Stacy, I became a fan and researcher of all things worship. Tim took me in when I was a passionate young man in danger of becoming bitter and angry at my church's lack of "progress." (Oh, the drama!) Tim put good music in my hands and encouraged me that God was taking care of his church, even if I didn't believe it.

Ralph Rose - Ralph was the first guy to ever walk up to me and say, "You can make a record." Ralph is the reason I got hooked on playing gigs and recording music. His faith in me was unshakable - and a little bit unfounded. He thought I was better than everybody. He was wrong, but it's nice to have a guy like that in your corner.

Lance Burch - Lance is responsible for one of the most exciting times in my worship-leading life. He begged Kristen and me to lead worship for his youth group for months before we agreed. I'm so glad we finally wised up. My time as Lance's worship leader ended up being worship boot camp. I tested songs, learned about observing a crowd and formed some pretty important theories about what worship is supposed to be.

They are others, but these guys loom pretty large in my past. They are markers in the journey of my ministry - testaments to God's faithfulness to put good, Godly people in the lives of punk kids to shape those kids to be something useful and good.

You don't have to be a musician to have influences; everybody's got 'em. So, in your field of expertise.

WHO SHAPED YOU?

Too Transparent?

Everybody makes mistakes, and those of us who lead worship are no different.

And one of the most common mistakes we make is a mistake of transparency.

Listen up...the "authenticity" movement didn't start a few years ago, okay? Since mankind began expressing his adoration of God through art, there have countless people who have sloughed off pretense and carried themselves in honest, abrasive honesty for all the world to see.

And for some reason, worship leaders just can't seem to get over this authenticity thing.

What's the mistake, you say?

LEADING THE WORSHIP YOU NEED.

I've done it and I've seen it done more times than I care to share. Leading the worship you need is simply this - rather than approach our service to the congregation as a truly pastoral position, we foolishly project our own personal spiritual needs onto the crowd and try to lead them to a place that, in all honesty, we're trying to get to.

I see college students do it when they kick off worship service with minor key introduction and soft-whisper like prayers that teeter on the brink of sobbing.

I see old worship leaders do it when they work the whole set to an emotional climax by picking songs that do more musically than they do lyrically.

I've done it...there have been days when I've been planning a songlist and I am fired up and excited and I feel like a rock star and I picked songs that were way too much for my crowd. Guess what? It didn't go well.

There have been times where I've called a change to the team right before we go on because there is some need inside of me that I'm trying to fill with that spontaneous act.

And sadly, too many times where I've distinctly felt God's leading to take the service in a different direction, I've ignored it; because I was enjoying worship just fine. I didn't need anything different, so I didn't take us there.

Look, there's a place for brokeness and emotion and spontaneity - but we've got to realize that our job is almost always that of a waiter who serves a meal to a customer. It's our job to bring out what the chef has prepared...not to sit at the table with the patrons and make sure we get to eat with them and make all the menu choices.

We've got to nourish our faith so that we come to our service as instrument of God's work - not a manipulator who's so weak in his or her spiritual diet that the crowd is forced to spectate as their leader gets a fix onstage.

Anybody seen this?
Anybody done this?

THE WHY...

I think that we've come a long way.
I think that worship leaders, and specifically young worship leaders, have got a lot going for them.

We have better, quicker access to music resources (downloads, charts, tutorials, etc.,) and in many cases, those same resources are extremely affordable or even free.

We have a much better relationship with the worship industry. (Don't, okay? I know you want to get loud about the 'worship industry' phrase, but don't.) Now, more than ever, record labels seem to be making a concentrated effort to empower those who are gifted in the arts to skillfully serve the church universal.

We've got more opportunities to participate in worship. While everybody likes to talk a ton about the seeker-sensitive vs. emergent, or traditional vs. contemporary, or contemplative vs. celebratory, etc., it also means that there are a lot more "gigs" out there than before.

But I think we're struggling, too. I think in all of this quest for excellence, most of us worship leaders are still leading with some faulty philosophies of worship.

Lately, I've been thinking a lot about "the why." I'm not talking about the reason for worship or the reason I work in a church.

Actually, I'm talking about our tendencies as worship leaders (typically ego-centric, insecure little kids hiding behind guitars, keyboards and microphone stands) to blindly and randomly throw junk into our setlists without asking "why?"

I'll get practical here. My friend Justin Romack is one of the best drummers I know. I love to play with him. He's also my good friend...one of my best friends, in fact. Justin is also a very talented programmer, and the more he gigs, the more he's asked to provide loops, samples and synths for worship.

Personally, I love loops. I love hearing them, and as a musician, I love using them onstage.

But I've noticed that when I use loops in worship, they usually have very little or no effect. In fact, the crowds I play typically don't even act like they're aware that a loop is even going. They don't clap along like they do on all those Passion and United and Integrity albums and they certainly don't mention anything to me after we play like, "Man, that loop was so cool" or "what was that drum thing y'all did?"

You see, I've got to start asking the "why." I've got to start deciding if I'm using loops (or any other musical element) because I dig them as a musician or because that element is going to enhance worship for my crowd.

I'm not saying that loops are bad or that they don't work. I am saying that I'm so quick to throw them in a set without even thinking whether or not my people are going to like it or be blessed by it or if it might aid the overall push of the song.

I'm using loops as one example of course, but I think this "why" issue is something I'm going to have to really spend some time on. It's quite a tightrope we walk as musicians - balancing the desire to be excellent and to stretch ourselves musically against the needs of our specific people. Guys and gals who don't serve in the local church don't have to deal with this. But you and I do.

I'm not slamming worship leaders who travel, because I believe that those folks are serving the church in unique and visible way. But we've got to stop emulating and start pastoring. We've to be willing to play a tune way more boring that we'd like if that's what the song needs. We've got to be comfortable with doing a cover differently than the CD version. We've got to ask ourselves...I've got to ask myself...."Why am I doing this thing at this place?"

For those of you who've worked with loops, do they work? Are they impacting your people? I'd love to hear some success stories about the programming factor in a live worship setting. What other trends are now popping up in worship music that might need a little "why" work?