“It’s Sunday! You should be in church!”
— Andy Powell, November 10, 2024
We went to a rock ‘n roll concert Sunday night. The British progressive rock band Wishbone Ash. They were outstanding.
Wishbone Ash had a number of hits in 1970s. I remember their 1972 album titled Argus. We’ve seen a number of musicians the last couple years making “50th Anniversary Tours.” It’s therapeutic in a way.
(One of my favorite writers on Substack is Ted Gioia who recently wrote an intriguing piece about the resurgence of live music.)
Wishbone Ash guitarist and vocalist Andy Powell (center in my photo above) at age 74 is the sole remaining original member of band on tour now throughout the US — they are super musicians — see them if you’re able.
“It’s Sunday! You should be in church!” That’s how Powell kicked off the concert. A fan yelled back: “We are! The church of rock ‘n roll!”
But I was struck by Powell’s vigorous counsel. Think about it: a rock ‘n roller, at his own concert, telling the crowd they should instead be in church. Of course, it was a bit tongue-in-cheek, but his tone captured me. There was a seriousness about it — he was sending a message. I thought about this later and did a bit of research.
For me, it’s always been melody and not lyrics that had the upper hand, that captured my ear and my imagination, with little regard for the words — especially progressive rock with its focus on instrumentation and fusion of styles. There are many songs in many genres that I recognize but don’t know the lyrics, or misunderstand them.
As for Wishbone Ash, it didn’t take much digging on my part to discover plenty of their songs have lyrical religious undertones. I found that Powell, in an interview, stated that “Throw Down the Sword” from Argus, is “a Christian song,” essentially about “turning the other cheek.” Here are the lyrics…
Throw down the sword,
The fight is done and over,
Neither lost, neither won.
To cast away the fury of the battle
And turn my weary eyes for home.
There were times when I stood at death's own door
Only hoping for an answer.
Throw down the sword,
And leave the glory
A story time can never change.
To walk the road, the load I have to carry
A journey's end, a wounded soul.
There were times when I stood at death's own door
Only searching for an answer.
And another example, “The King Will Come” …
In the fire, the king will come
Thunder rolls, piper and drum
Evil sons, overrun
Count their sins, judgment comes
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone in his hand
Poison pen, revelation
Just a sign in the sand?
The checkerboard of nights and days
Man will die, man be saved
The sky will fall, the earth will pray
When judgment comes to claim its day
See the word of the prophet
On a stone of his hand
Poison pen, revelation
Just a sign in the sand?
I now appreciate Andy Powell’s music even more — and his opening comment on Sunday makes a bit more sense to me.
And I wonder if the fan who yelled back that he was in church — “the church of rock ‘ roll” — did so because, unlike me, he not only knew the lyrics, but took them to heart.
Long live rock ‘n roll … but I’m still going to Mass on Sundays.
