Recently, we sent care packages to our students who went off to college this past year. I made a college mix CD for them using songs for free off artist web sites. I hope this was kosher. If not, I am willing to pay for the individual songs that were copied. Anyway, here are the tracks with notes.
Tracks (with notes)
1. Librarian, by Jonathan Rundman: Rundman played at Rally Day this year in church. This song is about vocation, about our callings. I imagine some of you are pondering what God is calling you to be. God called my wife to be a librarian. So of course, she likes this song. So do I.
2. Something of an End, by My Brightest Diamond: I just love this woman's voice, and the record company she records with, Asthmatic Kitty, is quirky but very original and fun, and many of the artists are secular Christians (kind of like U2).
3. Theologians, by Wilco: This song is humbling. It's the first song I ever heard about theologians by a famous rock musicians, and the first line is, "Theologians don't know nothing about my soul."
4. Prayer of Good Courage, by Kent Gustafson: Kent wrote music for vespers in a kind of bluegrass style, and this is one song from that.
5. Feed Your Sheep a Burning Lamp, by Half-Handed Cloud: This band is just plain weird, and I love it.
6. Levee, by Rachel Kurtz: This singer/songwriter from Minneapolis played at the National Youth Convention this summer, and just has a wonderful sound.
7. Carol of the Bells, by Jonathan Rundman: Another song by Rundman, this one about meeting the love of your life in church choir.
8. My Apology, by Jonathan Rundman
9. Lucy, by Over the Rhine: This Ohio ensemble was recommended to me on my blog by people who listen to music like I do.
10. My Love is a Fever, by Over the Rhine
11. State of Grace, Pierce Pettis: Pierce is a more mainstream Christian musician, but I like his sound. Some of his albums are guitar only.
12. Sister Winter, by Sufjan Stevens: Sufjan has been getting a lot of attention lately, he plans to write one album for each state in the U.S., and has currently covered Michigan and Illinois. He was also on the soundtrack for a movie we really liked, Little Miss Sunshine.
13. Magnificat, by Kent Gustavson: Everybody should have at least one sung version of the Magnificat. This is one from the vespers service I mentioned earlier.
14. Now the Day is Over, by Innocence Mission: Everybody should also have at least one lullaby, and this one is so beautiful. I used to sing it a lot for Samuel to help him go to sleep.
15. Nunc Dimittis, or Canticle for Departure, by Jonathan Rundman: This is a song originally sung by the old man who greets Jesus in the temple, but is also the last song in Rundman's Heartland Liturgy. A good way to end an album.
For Volume II, I suggest Jenny Lewis' "Rise Up With Fist." It's got a great verse on being wary of the hipocrasy of certain religious leaders and refrains with "There but for the grace of God go I."
ReplyDeleteMissed you and Amanda last weekend.
Hi!
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to jot a brief note back to you, based on your blog entry above... Most of the artists above have contact forms on our websites and are easy to reach... I think I speak for most of us that we are struggling as artists to make any significant living with our music... Therefore, every penny counts...
My music is all available online, on itunes and dozens of other sites, as well as on my own website, and can also be purchased from stores and online shops...
The best way to go about this kind of CD 'mix' is to ask the artists if it would be okay beforehand, and then supply all of the needed information about their website and albums on the CD or the booklet, and encourage the students to check out the websites of the performers... Otherwise, this kind of CD production is, indeed, robbery.
Not that half of the civilized world doesn't participate in that kind of bootlegging, but just because something is available as a stream on a website doesn't mean that you can put it on a CD and give it to many people. (Unless it's for the purposes of education, promotion, and with explicit permission)...
I would be happy to chat with you more on this topic, and I wish you and all of the students many blessings! And thank you so much for your ongoing support of independent Christian music.
Yours in Christ,
Kent