RockOm

By Trevor Harden, trevor@RockOm.net

"For we are gathered here to celebrate and explore the music of Winter,
the season of frosts and long dark nights."

So writes Sting in the liner notes to his latest recording, If on a Winter's Night..., a concept album centered on the darkest and most contemplative of the four seasons. What began as a suggestion to create a Christmas album has evolved into a collection of pensive songs - both original and borrowed - that survey that most spiritually reflective time of year.

Sting continues,

"Like all early creatures we seem pre-wired to recognize and respond to the polar archetypes of light and dark, of heat and cold as they are encoded in the rhythm of the days and nights and the perpetual cycle of the seasons."

And while most of Sting's popular work - if not lyrically, at least in tone - has rested more in the realm of light, If on a Winter's Night... plunges into the darkness and stays there for 50 frigid minutes, never budging from its stoic, frosty soundscape.

To get a sense of this album, one has only to look at the cover art: Sting walks alone in a snowy woods, accompanied only by his icy-whiskered companion named Compass. There is a silence that whispers from within the photo, only presumably broken by the sound of crunching snow collapsing beneath rubber soles. And this picture, in its simplicity, sums up the album perfectly, as if the audio from these 15 tracks had coalesced into a single image.  Both Sting and his marketing team have done a fantastic job "setting the stage" for this album, carrying out the concept and vision to its fullest potential: Pictures in the album's liner book include a heavily bearded and deep-eyed Sting, blustery landscapes, sweaters and coats, candle-lit living rooms and musicians in wistful meditation. Wintry words spill out from the pages of Sting's personal commentary such as mentions of "hot mugs of tea," scarves, ghosts and coal fires... he's certainly attempting to paint a picture. And he has, quite successfully.

PARALLEL STORIES

You could go so far as to say that a Winter-themed album that ignores the reality of Christmas would be in error, as the two have become so intertwined in Western culture. As the large portion of Sting's borrowed material stems from British and Scottish sources, it's no surprise that the album begins with a song singing the praises of Mary, the mother of Jesus. In fact the story of the "God-child come to earth" makes repeat appearances on If on a Winter's Night..., appearing also in the recordings of the 15th century German carol "Lo How a Rose E'er Blooming," the touching fable-song "Cherry Tree Carol," and beyond. Despite Sting's self-professed agnosticism, he shares that "the sacred symbolism of the church's art still exerts a powerful influence over [him]."

Don't for a minute believe this is a Christian-centric album, however. Alongside hymns singing the praises of "the root of Jesse" are hints of something more ancient, medieval, folksy, ritualistic, natural and even pagan. In his own words, Sting says that it was "important to draw parallels between the Christian story and the older traditions of the winter solstice."

Spiritually and metaphorically, Winter's Night draws you inward through sonic themes related to winter such as reflectiveness, introspection and stillness. In order to fully "get" this album and its overtly subtle tone, one almost needs to understand Sting's motivation:

"...there is something of the Winter that is primal, mysterious and utterly irreplaceable ... as if we somehow need the darkness of the winter months to replenish our inner spirits as much as we need the light, energy and warmth of summer."

He goes further, acknowledging that Resurrection and light are just around the bend as Winter soon makes way for Spring. In truth they are two sides of the same coin:

"We are reminded that there is light and life at the centre of the darkness that is Winter - or conversely that, no matter how comfortable we feel in the cradle, there is darkness and danger all around us."

THE SONGS

Those longing to hear a new offering supported by Sting's Fender P-bass, electric guitars, synthesizers and a trap set need look elsewhere for herein we experience the folk-inspired sounds of harp, classical guitar, Melodeon, cello, Northumbrian Pipes, and fiddle. Fans of the Sting who penned Brand New Day, Mercury Falling, Ten Summoner's Tales and the majority of the Police's material will have to be remarkably open to other styles of music in order to include this alongside their favorite of his albums. This is not because this latest release is less than his previous offerings, not at all, but rather that it is so extraordinarily different from them. If On a Winter's Night... was released on the Deutsche Grammophon label which is both appropriate and telling, for this collection of songs belongs more suitably alongside your classical CDs (or even his own 2006 album Songs from the Labyrinth) than it does next to your Peter Gabriel or Paul Simon discs.

Sting begins with "Gabriel's Message," singing "Most highly favored lady, Gloria!" over the gentle instrumentation of a nylon-stringed guitar, muted horns and tight vocal harmonies.  From there the album slowly and intentionally bubbles forward like a frozen-over brook, presenting classical and folk pieces including a Celtic begging song, a folk tune from Sting's home of Newcastle, a number from Henry Purcell's King Arthur, a reference to Schubert's Winterreise and more; as well as two original pieces, the beautiful "Lullaby for an Anxious Child" and a new arrangement of the previously recorded "Hounds of Winter."

CONCLUSION

If on a Winter's Night... is almost "application music," or music for the purpose of introspection, mood setting, or direct listening. It most likely shouldn't be considered for enlivening your holiday party with yuletide cheer and may not even be - if I may be so bold - for entertainment. Like most music with depth, it requires a certain conscious presence to fully appreciate and experience, coming to grips with it over time like slowly warming beneath a freshly applied sweater.

There's a mystery in the dark of winter that is both unsettling and strangely comforting, as if everything remains unanswered and yet is perfect as it is; If on a Winter's Night... resides in that mystery. It isn't music for everyone, nor will there be any signature Sting hit singles emerging from it, and yet for those brave enough to look within and meditate on what lies in the heart of darkness, it is a welcome companion to the bleak seasons, both in nature and in the soul.

"If I have a spirituality at all, it's about music. I play and I listen to music as if it really matters to my soul, to my eternal being." [Sting]

A concert review of Buddy Guy's 2/10/09 performance on Hilton Head Island, SC
By Trevor Harden, trevor@RockOm.net

At RockOm, we're often asked (and ask ourselves) what makes one musical artist more "spiritual" than another. After all, is there any place where spirit is not?

And yet, while listening to a musician's performance, do we not all feel it when the moment crosses from ordinary to special? From unconscious to conscious? From mediocrity to mastery? Is this not the introduction of a deeper level of spirituality?

On Wednesday night, RockOm's Tom Crenshaw and myself were privileged to experience such a magical and soul-touching event - the Buddy Guy and B.B. King concert on Hilton Head Island, SC. Coming off Sunday night's incredible performance at the Grammys (playing to millions of people on a national platform) the blues legends stripped away the fanfare for a small club-like performance to around 1,000 eager fans at HHI's Shoreline Ballroom. And while B.B.'s portion of the evening was both enjoyable and meaningful in its own way, the remainder of this review will focus on Mr. Buddy Guy.

What words would you use to describe something of high spiritual value? Loving, uplifting, touching, inspiring, selfless - perhaps? Buddy's performance was all of these. Decked in all white and backed by four other outstanding players, Buddy ripped out song after song laden with flawless guitar work, amazingly broad dynamics and his signature gritty, yet sweet, vocal delivery.

Like a true entertainer, Buddy interacted with his crowd by inviting folks to sing along (and then making them roar with laughter by shouting "Don't fuck it up!") and even coming out into the audience for 5-minutes of "in the crowd" performance.  He peppered his show with one-liners such as:

"I know you don't hear this kind of blues music on the radio much anymore, but if you call me, I'll do it."

and

"...so funky you can smell it!"

It was very evident that Buddy was there to bring the room together in a spirit of brotherly community.

In one of my favorite moments of the night, Mr. Guy asked the audience what they wanted to hear, saying, "I'm here for you tonight, not me.  I could stay home and do this if I wanted to." I honestly feel like he meant this - that his music is a kind of service or blessing to the audience.  While he surely enjoys the praise and acclaim, he obviously doesn't need to be performing any more (at least financially, one would assume).  He seems to have a gut-deep desire to "bless people's socks off" (as we often say in the church) in order to uplift spirits and bring joy into people's lives.

And while virtually none of the content of Buddy's lyrics or verbal exchanges would be classified as classically spiritual (in the sense that we often think of spirituality in terms of otherworldliness or "purity"), it seemed to speak to those traditions that celebrate earthiness and humanity - those that find God in the grit.  Through songs about lust and loss, passion and sadness, Buddy shared a rich understanding of human emotion, inspiring the listeners to celebrate their own humanity.  Not to mention that despite the rowdiness of the rest of the evening, Buddy also played the title track from his new album, "Skin Deep" - a quiet, inspiring piece about seeing the real worth in people - which RockOm wrote about last week.

Buddy Guy is a true performer whose level of mastery - like any of life's true masters - speaks to humanity's potential and begins to hint at divinity.  The world is honored to be blessed by a musician who goes beyond settling to be a simple "entertainer," to an artist who consistently and confidently chooses to be a boon to those who come and see him.

Links:
Buddy Guy's Legends
Buddy Guy homepage (including Tour information)
"Skin Deep" on Amazon.com

Photography by Tom Crenshaw, tom@RockOm.net

Many thanks to Isabelle Libmann at Buddy Guy's Legends in Chicago

If you are a fan of old time folk or the music of John Mellencamp, his new album Life, Death, Love, and Freedom is a must. Mellencamp unapologetically combines religion and politics with a grit that rhymes with the [Bible's] gospels.

In his song "Troubled Land," he makes allusions to Paul's thorn in the side [2 Cor. 12:7-10] and the road to Emmaus story [Luke 2413-35]. Over and over again he repeats, "Bring peace to this troubled land."

Many of the songs are wisdom literature: telling us how life is, brooding over death and life, hope and despair. Some are apocalyptic and eschatological. In the song, "Without a Shot" he talks about the house that may very well fall without a shot. Here are some of the lyrics:

So we think that forgiveness
Is a God given right
And equality for all
Is just a waste of our time
With our nickel-plated Jesus
Chained around our necks
Handing out verses of scripture
Like we wrote it down ourselves

Respect that we once had
Went up the water spout
Tried to keep it secret
But the secret was found out
Got to thinking high and mighty
Like everything was a lock
Some now say this house
Can be taken without a shot

So the hole gets dug deeper
With every wedding bell
And we sell each other down the road
‘Til there’s nothing left to sell
And slowly but surely
We disappear without a trace
We point our fingers at each other
Say what the hell happened to this place

Without a shot

Whether the house is the House of Windsor, Tudor, Bush, Clinton, or even Obama, I think Mellencamp points to the symptoms of living in Empire. Empire is not sustainable. I believe the arc of God (Jefferson said "moral universe", Dr. King said "history") is long, but it bends toward justice. When the universe is created, sustained, and inspired by justice, Empire is not sustainable. And Mellencamp, as any good prophet, puts before us the signs of the times.

The final song on the CD is one that moves from despair to hope: "A Brand New Song." In this transitional time for me and for my family, I hope the meaning of that song becomes real. In that song he sounds almost as if he is trying to impersonate Bob Dylan, and just maybe, he is very close.

[By Rev. Mike Mulberry - a Spiritual Director and ordained pastor in the United Church of Christ who blogs at flatandfertile.blogspot.com . If you are interested in Rev. Mike's Spiritual Direction services, click here .]