| Length: | 47:59 |
|---|---|
| Cuts: | "Hand Of God" |
| "Fire" | |
| "Sleeping" | |
| "Father Of Lights" | |
| "Angels' Wings" | |
| "Baby Hates Clowns" | |
| "Every Heartbeat Is A Prayer" | |
| "Lonely House" | |
| "Little Rose" | |
| "Everything You Know (Is Incorrect)" | |
| Hidden Track: "Keeper Of The Bear" |
In a world where the term "artist" is used to describe any person who has the ability to steadily strike the bottom of a pot with a spoon, it's refreshing to experience a product that is more in keeping with the true meaning of the term. Randy Stonehill's Thirst is a collection of tunes that are varied in almost every aspect, musically and lyrically. Fans of Randy Stonehill's comedic "Uncle Rand" persona should enjoy "Baby Hates Clowns," "Everything You Know (Is Incorrect)," and "Keeper Of The Bear" (a hidden CD track that follows the last listed tune). "Lonely House" and "Sleeping" are at the other extreme. The former is a song about the struggles of married couples to communicate with one another. Although it offers little in the way of solution to such a circumstance, it's a lyric with which most married people can empathize. "Sleeping" relates the plight of those in need who go unnoticed by those who should be helping them. Other tunes of regard include "Hand of God," a romping Celtic tune, with a fiddle on the breaks and the worshipful "Fire."
The lyrics in "Every Heartbeat Is A Prayer" are the highlight of Stonehill's songwriting for Thirst. Consider:
I've danced just like a dervish to the symphony of liars
But Your voice of love rose above that desolation choir.
or:
. . . I have stumbled down many a dark and crooked mile
Where seduction and destruction have dogged me all the while
And the very things that I've embraced to medicate my pain
Turned out to be imposters and poison in my veins.
or:
From the day that we are born until the day they close our eyes
We are aching for belonging
Even when stripped of their musical packaging, these phrases penetrate both with a substantial message and creative aesthetic value. Appropriately, the artwork for Thirst is of an artistic bent with a quality similar to the recent self titled release by Sixpence None The Richer. Christian painter Jimmy Abegg created the illustration for the cover of Thirst and assisted with the overall design of the artwork.
Entertainment purposes are met on Thirst, but possibilities for impact exist on many other plateaus. Empathy, challenge, worship, despair, and tongue-in-cheek sarcasm are all presented with fervor and creativity. Stonehill has effectively communicated his Christian perspective on life while achieving artistry at every level of the process.