Neal Morse — My Favorite Musician
Have you ever fallen in love with a new song only to grow tired of it after a few weeks? Me too. Music experts estimate that the heart-capturing ability of even the best song wears off by the 50th hearing of it.
I like many kinds of music—as the 3000+ songs on my iPod testify—but my favorite genre is progressive rock, also known simply as prog. Here are key features of prog.
- Prog rock is often a musical stew, featuring elements of many musical genres.
- Some Prog songs are suites, a number of musical movements woven together and lasting 10 to 25 minutes.
- Prog rock music is complex, with many layers of voices and instruments.
- Often Prog CDs are concept albums, a collection of songs on one central theme or story.
- Prog rock music often builds to a climax that overwhelms you with its power and beauty.
- Due to its length and complexity, prog rock rarely is played on commercial radio.
Some people detest progressive rock for all the reasons listed above. Others, like myself, love it for all the same reasons. While I admire many prog artists, my favorite is Neal Morse, because Neal doesn’t just write suites. He writes symphonies!
I learned this when I heard “The Great Nothing,” on the album V by Spock’s Beard, Neal’s former band. Like Beethoven’s 5th Symphony, this 27-minute piece features a brief musical theme that is returned to repeatedly. The theme of “The Great Nothing” occurs about 25 times and is played in 18 distinct ways, with different instruments, tempos, keys, genres, and improvisations. The soaring guitar climax, featuring the theme with wild abandon, is phenomenal.
When Spock’s Beard had risen to the top of the progressive rock scene in the 1990s, Neal left the group. He had become a follower of Jesus Christ and wanted to express his faith in his music. All of Neal’s prog rock Christian albums feature good songs, but here are my favorites:
- Testimony is Neal’s biography in music, telling the story of his conversion.
- Testimony 2, also biographical, tells of the healing of his daughter and the decision to leave the security of Spock’s Beard and trust God in the next chapter of his career.
- One narrates the fall of Adam and God’s resolve to bring us back into unity with Him.
- ? (aka Question Mark) explores the theme of the Temple of God in the Bible. It features three musical themes, all of which soar at the conclusion.
- Sola Scriptura melds the story of Martin Luther, the Book of Revelation, and the present need for God’s people to be faithful to God and His Word.
Even though the mystique of most music wears off by fifty hearings, for me, the Lord has touched my spirit more profoundly and more consistently through Neal Morse’s works than any other music I have ever heard. The musical theme of Sola Scriptura fed my spirit for two years. “God’s Theme”, which appears on both Testimony CDs, still ushers me into the presence of God whenever I hear it.
How about Neal’s lyrics. Here are some examples.
1. Sola Scriptura describes the conversion of Martin Luther:
Sometimes comes a moment when there is no escape
A man by candlelight reads: “The just shall live by faith”
And a rushing ray of light comes and hits him at the core
I will write my words upon the door
History is hinged on him playing of the role
The dawn was coming after the dark night of the soul
The simple act has changed our world forever more
I will write my words upon the door
I will write my words upon the door
And at the conclusion of Sola Scriptura:
God can change the world with just one willing soul
Who will stand up for the truth and give him starring role
So come into the fullness and open up the door
Maybe it is you he’s looking for
Maybe it is you he’s looking for…
2. Cradle to the Grave portrays the alienation between God and man after the Fall.
3. Chance of a Lifetime describes our human hesitancy to trust in Christ.
4. Freak explores: “Whatever you did for one of the least of my brothers, you did for me”.
Intrigued? You can listen to Neal Morse at YouTube.com and nealmorse.com. And check out all Neal Morse’s lyrics at http://lyrics.wikia.com/Neal_Morse.
One caveat: prog rock can take time to internalize. For example, I didn’t like Sola Scriptura at all the first few times I heard it. Now it holds my personal record for the most hearings, most tears shed, and most Christ-centered hope generated.