The Outlaw - Larry Norman

This attractive piece is in the finger picking folk style with a brief instrumental break on electric guitar. It is a song about Jesus Christ and his message. The title is well chosen, especially for its time (1972) when there was a lot of interest in outlaws and other western heroes and anti-heroes (eg Alias Smith and Jones). The title the Politician, Poet, Sorcerer or Son of God would have much less impact. The first four verses cleverly give alternative understandings of Jesus that are ultimately rejected yet contain seeds of truth. This is especially true of the opening verse describing him as an outlaw who "roamed across the land with a band of unschooled ruffians and few old [poetic licence here] fishermen". It continues "No one knew just where he came from, or exactly what he'd done, but they said it must be something bad that kept him on the run". Even in the other verses we have references to his popularity, miracles, parables, opposition to corruption, fearlessness, unfair crucifixion and message of new birth. Few short songs include so many Bible allusions. So, even before the final verse a lot of ground has been covered. That final verse speaks of him as '"the Son of God, a man above all men" who came to be servant "and to set us free from sin" which is what Norman himself believed. The argument "that's who I believe he is 'cause that's what I believe" is circular, unhelpful and guaranteed to convince no-one. The dispensationalist emphasis on the Second Coming is also unwelcome to some of us but accounts perhaps for the song's fitting yet ultimately egregiously abrupt ending.

My Brother Jake - Free

My favourite popular song of all time is a 1971 single by the British band Free called "My brother Jake". It reached number 4 in most charts. I'm not really sure how I came to hear it first or why I like it so much. It's not because of any fond memories or conscious identification with the words at all. It certainly has an excellent delivery from Paul Rogers on vocals, excellent piano and guitar work, judicious use of mellotrons, etc, yet nothing that makes it an obviously great song. Perhaps the key is the way it builds - often a very important element in popular song. Each time you hear it you start off liking it, if you are anything like me, and then you are carried along by the song so that by the end of it, you feel something of an emotional high, which is one of the most obvious things that popular songs have to offer. The repeated "Jake, Jake, Jake, don't you wait, wait, wait" is especially effective. I usually sing along and often get the words wrong, which doesn't matter too much. Pertinently, many of us find our head is often "in a daze" I guess and sometimes perhaps your head is "down, it's a scrapin' the ground" and perhaps subliminally the idea of your candle burning as "the wheels of time are turning" towards an infinite eternity gets to you and I think of "changin' my ways" and how one might "give a whole lotta people some ... soul". Some songs are easier to analyse than others.