You probably don’t remember me, but to this day I remember you. Well, I remember a few things about you. Your name’s Matt and you decided to spend a week with me and a bunch of other young nerds at Space Camp in Cape Canaveral, Florida back in the summer of 1995.

This won’t help you much, but I had just finished 5th grade and I knew without a shadow of a doubt that I was going to be an astronaut when I grew up. I was part of the Young Astronauts club in elementary school, I was an expert model rocket builder, and I had even watched Flight of the Navigator. I was positive that if there wasn’t an age restriction I would’ve gone up in the next shuttle launch. No joke.

Truth is, I never became an astronaut and I will probably never man a space flight. But I did learn about something even better than space travel and why people don’t throw up in one of these — the world of Dave Matthews Band. I remember those afternoons spent listening to your copy of Under The Table And Dreaming on my Discman and being blown away by it. That album marked a huge shift in my appreciation of music and musicians.

You’re probably wondering why I’m writing this to you some 15 years later. Well, here’s the deal. I married an amazing woman and it turns out that she really enjoys DMB
too. We are going to our first ever DMB concert tonight and I wanted to express to you my gratitude for sharing DMB with me. Know that there was one little kid who was grateful for the time you spent with them that week and that it is one of the most memorable parts of his childhood.

Sincerely,
Allan

P.S. – Thanks Mom & Dad for making Space Camp a reality for your young astronaut!

How To Play

• Chord chart
• Instructional video

Go check them out. Refreshing, worshipful, and engaging.

Highlights of the album Beautiful Things are definitely Dry Bones, Beautiful Things and The Earth is Yours.

Warning: This song will get stuck in your head.

I feel like I may be a little late to the John Mark McMillan fan pool, but better late than never. First caught wind of this singer/songwriter after learning about David Crowder‘s cover of his song “How He Loves” but never spent the money on buying his album, The Medicine. After 6 months, I finally caved and it’s been in pretty heavy rotation ever since. Definitely a worthwhile purchase and welcomed addition to the music library. His raw and honest lyrics are a welcomed change from some of the cliched stuff floating around these days. I really enjoy the recent music video version of “Skeleton Bones” (seen above). It has an incredible intimacy and warmth to it. Props to the Calnin Brothers for doing such a great job capturing a memorable moment in the studio.

Fee‘s new album, Hope Rising, drops on October 6^th but they’ve already released “Glory To God Forever” as their first single off the record. The song was written by Steve Fee and Vicky Beeching.

I first saw/heard this song earlier this year on their blog while they were in the studio. I instantly connected with it and have been playing it ever since.

Lyrics

Verse 1

Before the world was made
before you spoke it to be

You were the King of Kings
yeah you were, yeah you were

And now you’re reigning still
enthroned above all things
Angels and saints cry out
we join them as we sing

Chorus

Glory to God, Glory to God
Glory to God, Forever

Verse 2

Creator God you gave
me breath so I could praise
Your great and matchless name
all my days, all my days

So let my whole life be
a blazing offering
A life that shouts and sings
the greatness of the King

Bridge

Take my life and let it be
All for you and for your glory
Take my life and let it be yours

Audio

• iTunes
• Amazon

How To Play

Fee has a chord/lyric chart posted on their site here. It’s pretty straightforward. The song is in “B”, but sounds best played capo 4 in “G” like the chord chart says. Biggest things to watch for are tempo (82bpm) and the beat changes between the verses, chorus, and bridge. You gotta keep the verse and bridge straight and syncopate the chorus.

Congregations pick up on the chorus and bridge pretty quickly, verses take a little getting used to. The melody is simple yet captivating and the theology of the song is rich and accurate. It’s a great congregational song. It’s like being in the throne room with the angels when people are singing this one out – simply beautiful and humbling.

Let me know if you have any questions. Hope you enjoy worshipping the Lord with this one!

Every couple of years, I eagerly look forward to the release and consequent purchase of an album from none other than the creative powerhouse known as the David Crowder* Band. This past Tuesday marked one of those fateful days that I embrace with anticipation and worry. Anticipation to hear the new music, but worried that they might not live up to the hype and expectations I have. It never seems to fail though, DC*B always pushes the envelope a little bit farther and crafts a new masterpiece that marks a new era in worship music. Few albums in my collection receive the title of masterpiece, but Church Music provides a seamless listening experience that has such a deep current of truth and theme (lyrically and musically) that it can only be revered as a true masterpiece.

Get the album and take some time to do the following (in no specific order):

1. show your ears some new sonic goodness
2. let your heart and mind soak in the rich lyrics
3. challenge your thoughts on what church music is and can be
4. revel in God’s glory and love

You can get it at iTunes, Amazon (cheapest as of today), the DC*B store, and just about anywhere else music is sold.

Check out TheJointReview.com for a thorough review.

Sound off in the comments with your favorite song(s) and what you like most about the album!

He is jealous for me,
Loves like a hurricane, I am a tree,
Bending beneath the weight of his wind and mercy.
When all of a sudden,
I am unaware of these afflictions eclipsed by glory,
And I realize just how beautiful You are,
And how great Your affections are for me.

And oh, how He loves us so,
Oh how He loves us,
How He loves us so.

Yeah, He loves us,
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves.
Yeah, He loves us.

We are His portion and He is our prize,
Drawn to redemption by the grace in His eyes,
If grace is an ocean, we’re all sinking.
So Heaven meets earth like a sloppy wet kiss,
And my heart turns violently inside of my chest,
I don’t have time to maintain these regrets,
When I think about, the way…

He loves us,
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves us,
Oh, how He loves.
Yeah, He loves us.

Audio

Check out the David Crowder Band version – early release from their upcoming album.

How To Play

Grab the chords and lyrics here.

I’ve been playing it capo 5 in “G” to give it that nice ringing, pedal tone sound. Ends up sounding more like DC*B’s version of it than the original. Capo 5 also makes it easy to transition into a couple others I do capo 5 (Everything Glorious, Everlasting God, and All Because of Jesus.

The original uses “sloppy wet kiss” in verse 2, and from what I can tell, Crowder changed it to “unforeseen kiss.” I’ll change it up and use “lover’s sweet kiss.” (We ended up reverting to Crowder’s choice for the lyrics.) Sloppy wet kisses in congregation singing just sounds a little odd but is definitely some powerful imagery for God’s love. Kudos to John Mark for writing such a moving song.

Update: Check out John Mark’s blog post about changing the lyrics to How He Loves