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Steve Mason's lift up my eyes (from soul lift)
a review by Jiggity Jars
Song lift up my eyes by Steve Mason from soul lift - soundtrack for the soul (released 8/14/2001 on FlickerRecords)
soul lift – soundtrack for the soul is a collection of modern worship music that has gained critical acclaim and was nominated for a dove award. One of the radio singles from this album is from Jars of Clay’s own Steve Mason, making his solo debut with the song “lift up my eyes” written and producted by Rick Altizer. This is the first solo release from any member of Jars of Clay, and definitely doesn’t disappoint. “lift up my eyes” is a beautiful and mysterious song, exuding a worshipful and meditative spirit.
There are several different versions of this song on the radio single, including the “radio cut,” the “alternate cut,” the “alternate cut with spoken word,” and the “album cut.” The “album cut” is the most interesting arrangement of the four.
The album version of the song starts out with the sound of backwards loops, easing us into a dense soundscape of flute, mandolin, strings, keyboard patches, acoustic and electric guitar, and spoken word, all driven by a rhythmic bass part and a drum machine. Steve’s quirkiness shows through in the British voice exhorting the listener: “if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.”
The verses express a simple, but sincere prayer asking God to “turn my eyes away from worthless things.” The chorus is an outpouring of admiration for God, as Steve sings “I will lift up my eyes to gaze upon your glory. I will raise my hands and cry ‘holy is the lamb.’” The lyrics are delivered maturely, in a lower register than we’re used to hearing Steve sing. The chorus features some of the Beatlesque harmonies we’re used to hearing from Steve.
The overall sound of the song is reminiscent of Jars of Clay’s first album: different acoustic guitar parts in the left and right channel, backed with a drum machine beat. But we also hear the more recent influence of Steve’s love of electric guitar in the ambient electric parts throughout the song.
The radio cut is a somewhat stripped down version of the album cut, with a shorter intro, and no flute or spoken word part. The radio version does give us a relaxing ambient piano part featuring some technically excellent playing. The drum machines are subdued in this version, and it is a more relaxed take on the song.
The alternate cut is exactly the same as the radio cut, with the flute added back in from the album version. The alternate cut with spoken word is exactly the same as the alternate cut, with the spoken word added back in from the album version. The alternate cut with spoken word is probably the second best take on the song, giving us the best of the radio version with most of the elements of the album version.
The song “lift up my eyes” is a fantastic first solo effort from Steve Mason of Jars of Clay, and it fits nicely in the soul lift album with all of the other eclectic offerings. Hopefully Steve has a few more solo tracks up his sleeve, especially if they’re anything like this one. If you don’t already have the “Soul Lift” project, I would suggest picking it up, even if only for this one track performed by Steve. Listen to this song, and reflect on the greatness of God and of His Word that the song is built around.
Song lift up my eyes by Steve Mason from soul lift - soundtrack for the soul (released 8/14/2001 on FlickerRecords)
soul lift – soundtrack for the soul is a collection of modern worship music that has gained critical acclaim and was nominated for a dove award. One of the radio singles from this album is from Jars of Clay’s own Steve Mason, making his solo debut with the song “lift up my eyes” written and producted by Rick Altizer. This is the first solo release from any member of Jars of Clay, and definitely doesn’t disappoint. “lift up my eyes” is a beautiful and mysterious song, exuding a worshipful and meditative spirit.
There are several different versions of this song on the radio single, including the “radio cut,” the “alternate cut,” the “alternate cut with spoken word,” and the “album cut.” The “album cut” is the most interesting arrangement of the four.
The album version of the song starts out with the sound of backwards loops, easing us into a dense soundscape of flute, mandolin, strings, keyboard patches, acoustic and electric guitar, and spoken word, all driven by a rhythmic bass part and a drum machine. Steve’s quirkiness shows through in the British voice exhorting the listener: “if anything is excellent or praiseworthy, think about such things.”
The verses express a simple, but sincere prayer asking God to “turn my eyes away from worthless things.” The chorus is an outpouring of admiration for God, as Steve sings “I will lift up my eyes to gaze upon your glory. I will raise my hands and cry ‘holy is the lamb.’” The lyrics are delivered maturely, in a lower register than we’re used to hearing Steve sing. The chorus features some of the Beatlesque harmonies we’re used to hearing from Steve.
The overall sound of the song is reminiscent of Jars of Clay’s first album: different acoustic guitar parts in the left and right channel, backed with a drum machine beat. But we also hear the more recent influence of Steve’s love of electric guitar in the ambient electric parts throughout the song.
The radio cut is a somewhat stripped down version of the album cut, with a shorter intro, and no flute or spoken word part. The radio version does give us a relaxing ambient piano part featuring some technically excellent playing. The drum machines are subdued in this version, and it is a more relaxed take on the song.
The alternate cut is exactly the same as the radio cut, with the flute added back in from the album version. The alternate cut with spoken word is exactly the same as the alternate cut, with the spoken word added back in from the album version. The alternate cut with spoken word is probably the second best take on the song, giving us the best of the radio version with most of the elements of the album version.
The song “lift up my eyes” is a fantastic first solo effort from Steve Mason of Jars of Clay, and it fits nicely in the soul lift album with all of the other eclectic offerings. Hopefully Steve has a few more solo tracks up his sleeve, especially if they’re anything like this one. If you don’t already have the “Soul Lift” project, I would suggest picking it up, even if only for this one track performed by Steve. Listen to this song, and reflect on the greatness of God and of His Word that the song is built around.
