Tracy Lawrence

When country music turns inspirational, the gritty, hard luck stories that form its backbone can become practical guides to living by faith. And while Tracy Lawrence’s 18-year run as a successful country-rock artist is undeniable, boiling over in 1993 with four hit singles launched from the platinum springboard Alibis, his personal journey is speckled with a few less than stellar moments, including divorce and the infamous mugging incident that left him with gunshot wounds. When Lawrence sings about the stuff of life, about paying bills and farmin’ and fishin’ and difficult co-workers, the sentiments sound heartfelt and true. The ten selections on his debut inspirational album, The Rock, collectively convey the message that the Christian’s volatile highway is paved across a bedrock of faith, prayer, and God.

Lawrence recently downsized labels, a move which sometimes results in creative innovations, but this album represents a thematic shift rather than stylistic, with country mash vocal intonations and arrangements that lean towards rock, punctuated now and then with masterful slide guitar and fiddle. This is, overall, a mellow album with moderate tempos, lazy guitar, and very little honky tonk, with the exception of “Jesus Come Talk to Your Children,” a call for revival which has the same rollicking energy of Alibis’ “If The Good Die Young.”

Although these songs work well together, there’s nothing nothing lyrically that grabs the imagination quite as much as Lawrence‘s “Sticks and Stones,” but the stories are uplifting nonetheless. “I’m Done” is about making peace with past mistakes. “I called up somebody who‘d hurt me/And we finally settled that score/I had a right to be bitter/Revenge would‘ve been sweet/But forgiveness is what ended that war“ (“I‘m Done.”) Four tracks make the case for a strong prayer life, including the single, “Up To Him,” and “Dear Lord,” which shows off a super fine filigree of bluegrass strings.

“The Book You Never Read,” and the title track, are less than usual in that they rely on personification for point of view. “Your granddaddy carried me in the World War II/Your grandma swears that I’m the truth/Your parents’ hands were on me when they wed” (“The Book You Never Read.”) “The Rock” starts out with the soft whisper of a church organ then evolves into an acoustic ballad. “I’m a bright shining beacon giving shelter in the storm/Every saint and sinner I greet with open arms/I am the rock/I am stained glass and stone” (“The Rock.”)

It’s the mark of a solid country album when at least one song causes the listener to choke up a little bit. That song is “Somebody Who Would Die For You,” with a piano that marches along solemnly like a funeral dirge while commenting on life’s priorities. When it references the Columbine shooting, well, it’s as gut-wrenching as a Hallmark commercial.

The story behind The Rock has all the makings of a Hallmark Mother’s Day card. Some years ago, Lawrence promised his parents that someday he would make an inspirational CD. The fruit of that promise is a gently paced, mature tribute to the faith that is theologically sound, yet still retains the flavor of his previous albums. Fans will be pleased, perhaps nearly as pleased as his folks.

Tagged as: The Rock, Tracy Lawrence

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