Revisiting Jason Upton’s music

There was a period when Jason Upton’s music would make it into worship sets (lists of music) I would put together for church use. He always had a rawness in his poetic expression that I liked:

“Let the fire fall, let the wind blow, let your glory come down”

“Come up here, come up now, my beloved”

“To you, I give my life, not just the parts I want to.”

But like many songs we sing in church, overuse can lead to putting it away for a while. Unfortunately for Jason Upton, he’s not part of any big music labels (at least that I’m aware of) so he did not reemerge in my circles. But at the church I’ve been attending, the worship/music team has been attempting to seek out more independent artists in an effort to disentangle from groups that seem to support troublesome causes… so that leaves some of the bigger groups like Bethel, Hillsong, Elevation, out.

And while I think those groups write good music for congregational use, this direction set by my church has challenged me to look at musicians and artists that often get overlooked because they’re not part of the worship music industrial complex. It’s led me to revisit Jason Upton and his newly released album: Mothers & Fathers | Sisters & Sons.

There are two songs that stick out to me that I think are just poetically and beautifully written. The first is the track that shares the name of the album. Here are the first two verses:

Grandfathers, grandmothers who patiently pray
And bury their treasure In the children they raise
A voice of protection, a faithful embrace
The older the journey, the wiser the praise

The wanderer, the cynic, the stumbler, the stray
Who keep asking questions and finding new ways
To fall into mystery, to transform the pain
The deeper the wonder, the higher the praise

I wish more songs would have such beautiful lyrics that paint pictures and tell stories. The song practically invites the listener to find themselves in the lyrics and the expansive mystery of God.

The second track I was drawn to is a bit darker and uncomfortably prophetic (as all prophetic voices should be); it’s called Blood On Our Hands (Lord, Forgive Us). Here are the first two verses and chorus:

For our silence on injustice
How we’ve turned a blinded eye
Being siloed from the suffering
Insulated from their cries
Lord, forgive us
Lord, heal us
Lord, help us to do better

How we’ve ridiculed the voices
Prophesying in Your name
Then commodified their memory
Once we’ve chased them to the grave
Lord, forgive us
Lord, heal us
Lord, help us to do better

Father, forgive us
For all that we have done
We’ve got blood on our hands
The blood of daughters and sons
We’ve buried all our prophets
And crucified the Lord
Took all You gave for granted
Keep asking You for more
Lord, forgive us
Lord, heal us
Lord, help us to do better

Will these songs be used in the church? I’m not sure. I’m often on the fence with songs that are more narrative in nature for church use. But I do hope self-professed people of faith will listen, even if it is not used for corporate worship.