Free MP3 "581" song about Ishpeming, MI

As I look forward to returning to my homeland of Michigan's Upper Peninsula later this month to play a concert in Marquette (that's on Saturday, October 23rd, 2010, 7PM at Messiah Lutheran Church), I thought I'd post a U.P.-related song for the free MP3 of the month.

Visit my AUDIO PAGE to download the free MP3 of "581."

This is a brand new recording of which I'm very proud - the definitive version of "581." It's one of my very earliest songs, written way back in 1993. A primitive early form appeared on my now-out-of-print 1994 album Wherever and I played the song in concert frequently back in the 1990s.

There's even a YouTube clip online of me and my band performing it in Chicago back in 1999. See it here.

This new recording of the song was completed and mixed this Summer and I'm thrilled with the results. Drummer Lowell Michelson (who also played on the 1994 version) re-recorded the rhythm tracks with me in my basement studio in Minneapolis in 2005. Over the years I gradually added more instruments: guitars, bass, and my 1939 Hammond A organ (an instrument that originated in the sanctuary of First Lutheran Church in Iron River, MI). I recorded the vocals last Summer in Ishpeming while I was in town visiting my parents. At the time, my Dad had taken possession of his childhood home, the house where my Grandparents lived for decades. The house was sitting empty and in disrepair, so I brought over my laptop and microphone, went upstairs to a bare unfurnished bedroom and sang the vocal tracks. It was an amazing experience for me...I wondered how my Grandparents would have felt if they knew back in 1940, as they lived in that house, that their future grandson would use that building as a studio 70 years later!

For those of you Yoopers who read this, I thought I would give some lyrical analysis of the song, pointing out some of the rather obscure local references.

581

words and music by Jonathan Rundman

you wanna get to where the pavement ends

when I was growing up, the pavement on 581 turned to gravel out near Perch Lake...I think they've extended the pavement since then...

you wanna watch it as the acres fall

this is a reference to all the logging going on out South of Ishpeming...it was amazing to me how much the landscape would change after the loggers came through

you wanna cross the south branch on the narrow bridge

this refers to the Escanaba River which crosses 581...my family had a camp there for a while in the 1980s

find a passage to the reservoir

as a high schooler I learned that you could access the Greenwood Reservoir by taking the back roads via 581

you take 581

some kind of trouble waiting back in town

you need the county road to take you far away

you take the S-curves to the Wayside

the S-curves are just Southbound beyond the Stoneville Road/581 intersection

and The Wayside was a small roadside tavern...I think it's closed now.

don't stop 'til you leave Faith behind

and this refers to Faith Lutheran Church, at the intersection of 581 and the Beagle Club road

on 581

are you farther than you've ever been before

I've gone pretty far down 581 during my life, but have never driven its entire length. This past Summer I was driving the Felch Road from Escanaba to Crystal Falls and I saw the end of 581! It was amazing to see where it ends...but I have yet to drive its entirety.

can you feel the Project closing in?

this refers to the Navy's extra-low-frequency communication system called Project ELF that was installed out on 581 back in the late '80s. I remember the locals were worried that it would make all the wildlife radioactive.

you pass the clear-cut and the airfield

This refers to more logging, and of course the private airport near Perch Lake. I flew out of there a couple times with some teenaged friends who got their pilot's licenses.

don't you wanna just fly away?

fly away

on 581

Quotes out of context in press coverage...oh no!

I had a rather squeamish awakening today, due to some press coverage I just received. Later in October (Saturday the 23rd and Sunday the 24th) I'll be performing at two Lutheran congregations in Marquette, MI, right near my hometown of Ishpeming.

The new issue of the Upper Peninsula arts magazine, Marquette Monthly, included an article about me in promotion of the upcoming concert. Of course, I'm very happy to have media coverage in my home region...and, as they say, any press is good press. However, there's one quote in the Marquette Monthly piece that's really taken out of context, so I feel the need to try to do some damage control using this blog.

You can read the Marquette Monthly article by CLICKING HERE. In general, the information is correct (except for the reference to my 2000 album as Theology, rather than its real title Sound Theology). My concern, however, is with the article's only quote from me personally, which is as follows:

“When I was in high school I attended several church camps, retreats and regional Lutheran youth gatherings. During these events, I’d get caught up in the powerful and emotional music, worship and fellowship—often resulting in a spiritual euphoria.”

This is indeed a quote from me, from an essay I wrote in the November 2005 issue of The Lutheran magazine. The article is no longer posted online, but you can still view it in Google's cache...it requires a bit of skilled searching. I've posted the entire text below so you can read it in its entirety. Here's the problem...used alone, that quote is way out of context.

Read alone, those two sentences sound to me like a positive endorsement of ultra-emotional religiosity in pursuit of spiritual euphoria. If you were to continue to read a few sentences later, however, you'd find this very important sentence:

"Upon returning home to my normal day-to-day schedule and community, I sometimes experienced a sense of disappointment in my faith life."

My essay that is being quoted is actually written about the dangers and disappointments of a faith-life driven by spiritual euphoria! Read the entire essay below for the intended context of that opening quote.

So, I'm hoping that the readers of Marquette Monthly don't come away with the idea that I'm some kind of emotionally manipulating holy roller. It's funny, of all the quotes and interviews I've given posted on the internet, is sure is funny that THAT one bit from the 2005 Lutheran magazine essay would be the one the writer chose. Oh well. Now I know a bit about how President Obama must feel every time he says or writes something in public. It sure is easy to pull a sentence or two out of a whole, and deliver a totally new message with it.

I love you with all of my mind:

FROM THE NOVEMBER 2005 ISSUE OF THE LUTHERAN MAGAZINE

When I was in high school I attended several church camps, retreats and regional Lutheran youth gatherings. During these events I’d get caught up in the powerful and emotional music, worship and fellowship—often resulting in a spiritual euphoria. Upon returning home to my normal day-to-day schedule and community, I sometimes experienced a sense of disappointment in my faith life. What had happened to that intimate connection between God and me that was so obvious at the youth event? I learned that basing my faith only on “heart” and “soul” wasn’t enough to sustain me through my daily life.

This Sunday’s Gospel text (Matthew 22:34-46) calls us to wholistic faith. As I observe contemporary Christian culture in America (especially the youth culture), it seems that heart and soul take precedent over mind.

I’m struck whenever I channel-surf onto that late-night infomercial for a “Songs of Praise and Worship” CD where the cameras pan over a sports arena filled with worshipers, arms raised, eyes closed, singing and swaying in blissed-out emotional ecstasy: certainly we’ve got heart and soul covered.

At the same time, when complex and potentially divisive faith-related issues arise in politics or science, I see many Christians recoil in fear and suspicion. What is it about these intellectual challenges that threaten the faith of so many people?

God gave us our minds for a reason. The intellect is an invaluable tool for building the foundations of faith. I appreciate our Lutheran commitment to learning and education and the freedom that we’re offered to ask questions, to debate, to doubt and to grow. I’m thankful that we don’t ask our parishioners to “check their brains at the door.”

Our congregations provide many different classes and forums each week for people of all ages and stages. Lutheran colleges and universities can be found in every corner of the U.S., encouraging the development of the mind as well as the heart and soul. Our church leaders attend rigorous biblical, pastoral and theological training at a variety of seminaries and graduate schools. I believe God rejoices in our quest to learn more about God and the universe.

Our Lutheran church family has many good role models for people to look to as they explore the intellectual issues of belief and religion. Martin Luther studied law and was a professor and musician, in addition to theologian and pastor. Paul knew his Scriptures inside and out, along with the intricacies of the cultural dynamics in the first century Mediterranean world. And of course, we look to Jesus who at age 12 was ditching his parents to hang out at the temple, discussing theology with his pastors for days at a time.

Thank you, God, for our wonderful and curious minds and for meeting us and engaging us intellectually.

I’ve written a song celebrating a brain-based approach to faith. Here are the lyrics:

I love you with all of my mind
lyrics by Jonathan Rundman, © 2000 Salt Lady Records (ASCAP)

old heart and soul, they’re so overrated
they only do two-thirds of the work that needs done
I wanna love you and love you completely
and use all my senses and beautiful reason

I love you with all of my mind
I love you with all of my mind
I’ve wondered and studied and I’ve come to find
I love you with all of my mind

some people say that I’m too calculating
that I bury my feelings and my heart’s gone cold
but I’ve seen emotion change like the weather
so I don’t just wanna feel, I wanna KNOW

I love you with all of my mind
I love you with all of my mind
I’ve wondered and studied and I’ve come to find
I love you with all of my mind