Music Liners -- "I Dreamed a Dream" by Glee Cast

Unless you are a connoisseur of Broadway shows, you probably never heard of the song "I Dreamed a Dream" until Susan Boyle's epic performance on Britain's Got Talent last year. This was precisely the case with me who, like many others, was mesmerized by Ms. Boyle's stunning rendition of the song originally from "Les Miserables". She ultimately did not win the competition, but brought attention to an awesome song.

To give some background, the Broadway show "Les Miserables" is based on a French novel of the same name by Victor Hugo. The story centered around the lives of ordinary Frenchmen living through the early 19th century France, from roughly 1815 to the beginning of the Paris Uprising of 1932. The ex-convict Jean Valijean is the protagonist who seeks redemption for his past deeds. In relation to the song, "I Dreamed a Dream" is sung by the poverty-stricken single mother Fantine about the hopelessness of her situation. She eventually dies and leaves her daughter at the mercy of a cruel couple.

"I Dreamed a Dream" is, as its title suggests, a song about the harsh realities of life. The theme of disappointment is revoked throughout, as the character of Fantine experiences the cruelty of abandonment, deceit, and being used by others. Overall, it is not an uplifting piece of music at all. But I appreciate the song for the counter balance it creates against the typical pop-ish and upbeat songs I listen to. Sometimes you realize that life is not all rosy as you had believed or imagined.

I like Glee's cover of the song, namely because it is sung from the perspective of one female to another. In the television show, the character played by (the talented) Leah Michelle performs it as a duet with her long-lost mother (played by Idina Menzel). Even though I was mesmerized by the rawness of Susan Boyle's performance, I liked this duet more for general listening purposes. The main thing is the word change in the line "And I still dream he would come to me..." to she.

To go through our standard practice of these posts, the lines from this song I really like are:

"Then I was young and unafraid, when dreams were made, used, and wasted."

"And still I dream she would come to me, that we would live the years together."

"But there are dreams that cannot be, and there storms we cannot weather."

All the above are pretty self-explanatory, since they capture the destruction of naive-ness and youthful optimism. When you are young or lack the experience, our notions of certain things can be the complete opposite of reality. You probably had dreams when you were younger about becoming an astronaut or something grand, right? But has that worked out? (If not, I sincerely hope you are content with the outcome.) Experience is a "no-frills" teacher who does not hesitate to subject us to pain if the need arises. What we also learn through the process is to be afraid at certain things, such as death of our loved ones.

Personally, I associate the song with Mandy and the realization that we may not be together as I had hoped and dreamed of. Until yesterday, I hardly ever given up the hope that she would respond positively to my advances and that we may become something. But the beach trip triggered a series of events that culminated in finding out that...I have no chance. So now, it truly is a dream that cannot be.

Music Liners -- "Blessings" by Laura Story

Unless the station is out of range, my car radio is fixed on WGTS 91.9. I really like the station because, true to its motto, it is "family friendly" and streams contemporary Christian music all the time. As much as I like Hillsong United music, sometimes one needs a bit of variety and the WGTS provides that for me. When I want to listen to new music, the radio station is the best means of doing so. (I suppose Pandora would be good too, but I tend to prefer my own music collection when sitting at my desk.)

One of the songs I recently heard is "Blessings" by Laura Story. I think it is a remarkable song, because it speaks candidly about how we are toward God and what blessings could be. I'd say she attempts to debunk the false notion that difficulties in life are not the work of God. In my (humble) opinion, she does this very well. The song is even better by the fact that the only instrument used is a piano -- no drums, no guitar, just a piano and Story's soothing voice.

As the title of the song suggests, the subject of the song is on blessings and what they really entail. Laura Story delves into this topic by focusing on our typical behavior in relation to God: we tend to pray first for the safety for ourselves and our loved ones, "comfort for family", for "health" and for "prosperity". Not to say these prayers are wrong, but focusing too much on them displaces what should be the gospel of Jesus Christ -- that we are to love others and God, more than we love ourselves. It is with this premise that she introduces the woes that arise when hardships come our way. When we feel betrayed, lose our health and career, oftentimes our reaction is the feeling of being abandoned by God. But, as Story communicates in the story, nothing could be farther from the truth.

Have you ever gone through a difficult situation and realized afterward how beneficial it was? To the point of being thankful for the lessons you learned through the experience? Well, that is precisely what Laura Story is telling us through her song. That sometimes our greatest disappointments could be blessings given in disguise. Sometimes (or oftentimes) things do not work out the way we envisioned, but it doesn't mean that God has forsaken us. Not at all. Maybe there are better outcomes that requires us to grow, mature first. If everything always worked out the way we wanted, how would we know what grace and thanksgiving are?

There are a few lines from Story's song I really like:

"We cry in anger when we cannot feel you near, we doubt your goodness, we doubt your love..."

"What if your blessings come from raindrops, what if healing comes through tears"

"What if my greatest disappointments, or the achings of this life, is the revealing of greater things this world cannot satisfy"

When reading Story's lyrics, one immediately realizes that most of the verses are written in question form. This is for the effect -- as aforementioned-- to challenge readers about their preconceptions of what blessings are. The first verse quoted speaks of our typical reaction to hardships or difficulties. I know that personally, I behaved in this manner when disappointments came my way (e.g. turned down from jobs, Mandy). The feeling is very much akin to being abandoned, or wanting to throw up my arms in despair. Yet, in full agreement with the second verse, sometimes this is just how God operates -- of how His blessings work.

Yes, disappointments and failures are stinging and sometimes even be debilitating, but we should not regard them as the ultimate ends. Instead, they serve as the means to an end -- an end that is not revealed to us until much later. Story voices this in verse 3. This is similar to a biblical passage previously blogged about: that we are to "trust steadily, hope unswervingly, and love extravagantly". We must believe that God is the one in control and no one else. With this in mind, our attitude is to trust in His plan for our lives and hope for the very best. Because if God is not the one in control, then who is?

Music Liners -- "If I Let You Go" by Westlife

For all those hopeless romantics (or hopeful romantics) out there, this is perhaps one of the most fitting songs to describe your state of mind. I know so because it was one of my favorites. It is also the perfect song to capture the "limerence" condition blogged about before.

Westlife is an Irish boyband formed in the late 1990s, when boybands (e.g. N-Sync, Backstreet Boys), girlbands (e.g. Spice Girls, Atomic Kitten) and mixed gender bands (e.g. S-Club 7, Hear'Say, Steps) were all the rage. Although I lived in a remote corner of Europe at the time, it was difficult not to get caught up in the pop culture. I remember one of my friends back then, a somewhat feminine guy, being addicted to the Spice Girls. As revealed previously, I remain very much a fan of pop music and of various pop artists. But this appears to be a fading fad in a music industry increasingly dominated by modern rock, techno, and rap.

But back to the subject, Westlife consists of four guys (originally five) who have continued to flourish in their music performance. The band represents an outlier because they remain successful and together -- when all the aforementioned bands have long parted ways. They are recognized for being of the best selling music acts over the past decade, and having fourteen of their singles hitting the numero uno spot at the UK music chart. But I digress a bit: this isn't a post to describe the band, but to discuss of their songs. You can read to your heart's content on the band here (link to Wikipedia).

After hearing the song, I think you'd be inclined to agree with first paragraph of this blog post. Is the song "cheesy"? Absolutely yes! Is it "vaguely pathetic"? I would also admit that it is indeed. However, neither cheesiness nor pathetic-ness can take away the straightforward message of the song: you don't want to let go that special someone you found.

The song, as its title suggests, is about someone unwilling to let go of their special other; this person is seemingly stuck in a limbo state of being unable to move on, yet at the same time, unable to letting go too. In other words, the narrator is madly in love with this other person but is kept from professing his affections -- mainly triggered by the fear of losing this other person. It's incredibly effusive of a song, but the truthfulness of the message is difficult to ignore. I think for those who have loved and lost, the lyrics reflect on our experiences very well. Even more for those who have loved but were unable to express their love.

Although the entire lyrics of the song are very to the point, I will single a couple of verses for discussion:

"There's no one like you, to speak to my heart, it's such a shame we're worlds apart"

"If I let you go, I would never know, what my life would be, holding you close to me"

Verse 1 is a bit depressing, as it comes in the second part of the song, when the narrator has seemingly come to terms of his predicament (read: limbo state). It's a bittersweet moment, when you realize just how impossible the hope and dream you've nourished isn't what you thought it would be. Perhaps you realize that despite physical proximity, you and your interest are actually "worlds apart". What do you do then? Do you deal with and decide it may be time move on?

Verse 2 listed is the first line of the song's chorus. The chorus brings the listener back to the idea of becoming unwilling to let go, because in doing so one would never know the other future. This verse captivates our attention because it addresses our fear of regret -- of lost opportunities that could have radically shaped our lives. Letting go of your interest means you'd miss out on the warmth of possibly "holding [this other person] close to [you]". One can never underestimate the value we assign to this type of warmth.

In all, I like the song because it is straightforward and simply an emotional song. I used to listen to it more, whenever I thought about Mandy. Nowadays, I am trying not to listen...

Music Liners -- "Christ is Risen" by Matt Maher

Aside from music by Hillsong United and a few other songs, my favorite Christian song in recent memory has to be "Christ is Risen" by Matt Maher. It is an incredibly powerful song due in part to the simplicity of its message -- that Christ is alive and has overcome death! In a time where some contemporary Christian music has strayed from central themes from the bible, Maher's song speaks the unadulterated, unchanged truth.

The first time I heard this song was during my church's Easter Sunday worship/celebration. (Methinks "celebration" is the more appropriate term, since that is the significance of the resurrection anyway.) I remember when first singing the chorus...amazing.

As noted above, I really really like the chorus of this song. In particular, it is the lyrics in the form of rhetorical questions that capture my liking for this song. Maher poses two rhetorical questions revolving around the resurrection:

1. "Oh Death, where is your sting?"
2. "Oh Hell, where is your victory?"

These two questions are special because they mock (arguably) the two things we fear the most in our lives, death and evil. I especially like the fact that Maher belittles these two fears, by contrasting them with what Christ has done on the cross. In other words, Christ had overcome death and opened the doors for us to be reunited with our God -- therefore we should no longer fear neither death nor hell. It reminds us of the resurrection power and what it implies for our lives.

The song also calls all believers to "come awake, come awake, come rise up from the grave." The "grave" described is not a burial ground, but serves as a metaphor for the slumber we are prone to fall into. We drift from our responsibilities as Christians -- to the extent of calling ourselves Christians but having nothing to show for it. Maher reminds us that as we are alive in Christ, we should act like it. We should not be slumbering like the young man who falls from the window during Apostle Paul's sermon (Acts 20:7-12).

Finally, along the same lines of the previous paragraph, the last part of the chorus is a reminder for all the churches out there to "come and stand in the light". What is implied (at least from my perspective) is for churches everywhere to shake off any rust and preach the message of the cross once more. Churches, like individuals, can drift off due a number of factors.

Music Liners -- "Just the Way You Are" by Bruno Mars

If it looks like I am a big fan of pop music, then it's true. I often tell people that normally people grow into different phrases of music taste: pop music when younger, then rock in the middle-age, while classical in the old age. But I seem to be stuck in the pop music phrase, which I am quite proud of it.

One of the songs I really like is Bruno Mars' "Just the Way You Are". The main reason is that the lyrics are simple yet straightforward and very much genuine. A separate reason is that I first heard music when I had (and still am?) fallen for Mandy. Therefore, the song made spoke to me powerfully as Mandy embodied everything the lyrics said.

As anyone who heard the song can attest, it is a "cheesy" song. It resolves around the author/singer, singing to his love interest about how he loves her just the way she is. He is seemingly mesmerized by her everything --and wouldn't change her for the world. This message about being loved "just the way you are" is an universal one that everyone craves to her. We all want to be liked, loved, and feel a sense of togetherness with another. From the perspective of any female listener, hearing these words can be gratifying and heartfully appreciated. I'd say that a male listener would feel something similar; although, to be fair, females care more about their looks than guys.

Anyway, I think two lines from this song are just fantastic:

"...when you smile, the whole world stops and stares for a while..."

"...you are amazing, just the way you are."

I already discussed the second line's implications. It's a powerful straight-shot to the heart.

The first line requires a little more perspective in understanding -- and it helps if you've ever fallen for someone. A smile is a very beautiful sight to behold: it communicates a sense of joy/happiness that transcends any barriers in age, gender, race, or condition. When you see someone smiling, you know they are happy (unless a fake smile, of course). Yet this joy/happiness is exponentially magnified when you have a romantic interest in the person smiling. In these instances, as Bruno Mars serenades, you want to do nothing but just stare at the smile and...behold its sheer beauty.

From a personal perspective, I like this line because Mandy's smile has that effect on me. I have never seen a more beautiful smile than hers. When she does smile (a rare sight nowadays, for me at least), I sometimes have the urge to shut up and just stare. It probably makes a very stupid sight but, hey, these are the times you just don't care about the opinion of others. Her smile is probably more beautiful by the fact that she smiles with her eyes (e.g. slightly squint)!

Music Liners -- "Firework" by Katy Perry

[Preface: I am not a Katy Perry fan. Her music tends to be too fast-paced and "pop-ish" for my liking. But really do like this song.]

"Fireworks" is well-known for its music video. In the official music video, Katy Perry sings through four or five different scenarios of individuals overcoming their fears and showing their truth inside. These sequence are memorable because CGI-applied fireworks emit from the chest area of each said individual.

As for the song itself, it is incredibly upbeat and uplifting to hear. I read it is a less serious version of Christina Aguilera's "Beautiful" and I fully agree: there are no vague connotations, just a straightforward self-esteem enhancing song. It should be heard by anyone who is feeling down for whatever reason.

The specific lyrics I like are:

"If you only knew what the future holds, after a hurricane comes a rainbow. Maybe you're reason all the doors are closed, so you could open one that leads you to the perfect road."

The first line reflects on the fact that most difficulties are temporal and short-term. Most challenges that come our way can feel overwhelming at the time of happening; in other words, we exaggerate their affects and future implications. In reality, these challenges are negligible in the grand scheme of things (if you are a Christian, suffering is somewhat necessary to realize our dependence and need for God). But the problem is that we forget this while faced with the problem/challenge. Perry's line brings a reminder that after every hurricane -- a powerful and often destructive natural phenomenon-- comes an elegant rainbow. The rainbow represents the calm and beauty that follows destructive occurrences like hurricanes.

As for the second line, it speaks of the closed-doors we may encounter in life. Examples range from rejection from a significant other to the inability to get a job. We are often faced with such closed door analogies in life -- which can be very damaging to our self-esteem and confidence in our own abilities. But perhaps the reason for these closed doors is so we can eventually open the correct one that "leads you to the perfect road". The key is to keep trying and not give up; keep trying your hand at the different doors in front of you. It's far better to have doors to try than none at all.

Music Liners -- "Freedom is Here" by Hillsong

My affinity for music is largely in part due to the lyrics contained for specific songs. For this reason, I often hesitate when asked about my favorite music genre or a favorite artist; as there is no pattern for my music tastes. I am inclined to really like the song "Friday I'm in Love" from the punk-Gothic band The Cure to contemporary pop hits like Katy Perry's "Fireworks". Similarly, I like music in a variety of languages. If I seem to possess an overwhelming number of songs by a single artist, then nine times out of ten, it is mere coincidence.

Revelation of my music tastes aside, I thought it would be fun to blog about music lyrics that I really like. I will be adding an explanation for the reasons I like the song in discussion. This will likely become part of a series -- due to the sheer number of songs I like.

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First song I like is a Christian worship song from the famed band Hillsong United. The title of the song is "Freedom is Here" which, as its title implies focuses on celebrating the freedom we can experience from God's love for us. [Hillsong is one of my favorite worship bands, so you will likely be seeing quite a few posts about their songs.]

The specific lyrics from this song I like is:

"...I will not fear, I will not hide your love. All of my life, I cannot deny your love".

These two lines are incredibly powerful --and true-- in my opinion. Part one of the first line ("I will not fear") emphasizes the feeling that derives from our awe of God. He is our God and Savior, but also our Creator who was able to speak our world into being. The love He has for us can seem frightening in this manner; especially as the love is greater than deeper than we can fathom. Part of the first line conveys a common reaction we have to this love we experience -- we can be prone to hide it or, worse, not share it with those around us. Sometimes the world feels so big and the number of Christians so small. I know at times I try to hide the fact that I am a Christian, simply because it is tempting to just conform to the environment/culture surrounding me. But this should not happen. Neither you nor I should ever hide the love God has shared with us, because it is the essence of our identity -- not our jobs, cars, houses, or other possessions.

The second line arguably speaks even truer than the first. The message conveyed in very straightforward: God's love for us is beyond time and is not something we can deny it. Even when we feel unworthy or having sinned, we can feel that God is far away because He is ashamed of us. Yet the truth is, our God is a merciful and loving God -- slow to anger and abounding in grace. As long as we acknowledge our sins and mistakes, He is willing to welcome us back and forgive those sins/mistakes. And this is for all our lives. His love is not to be denied.