A Place Called Hope

Description

A Place Called Hope is the sophomore full-length studio album by the American singer and songwriter Jason Gray (at that point known as Jason Gay), self-released in 2000. The album was recorded by Nate Sabin and Paul Salveson at Dark Horse Recording in Franklin, Tennessee; and at OrvilleAnne Productions in St. Paul, Minnesota; with Sabin and Jason Gray producing. Mixed by Sabin. Includes “The Things We Hold Back” featuring harmony vocals by Sara Groves, as well as a cover of “Look Over Your Shoulder”, a song written by Mark Heard and recorded on his 1991-album Second Hand. Cover painting by Jimmy Abegg of Vector fame.

The roads of the indie music world are littered with well-intentioned, but less than talented artists who have left behind a legacy of sub-par and downright awful recordings. Every time I pick up such a disc I worry about what I am about to hear. But this new recording from Minnesota’s Jason Gay gives me hope, but in a musical and spiritual sense.

For this album, his second, Gay traveled south to Nashville, put his music in the capable hands of producer Nate Sabin, and ponied up the money necessary to get a first-class recording. And that is exactly what he got in A Place Called Hope. But this is not just the product of good production and money; Gay has the talent as a singer, songwriter, and musician to back it up.

While there are a variety of musical styles throughout the disc, most of it is folk-based pop with a lot of other stuff thrown in. Phil Madeira is on board with a variety of instruments including his famous B3, and a host of other top-notch studio musicians round out the sound. Influences such as Mark Heard and Pierce Pettis are evident throughout, and it is perhaps Pettis whom Gay could be most easily compared to, at least in a vocal sense. Pat Terry even comes to mind at times (does anyone remember him?!). And he tips his hat to Heard in a beautiful cover of «Look Over Your Shoulder».

There are a few moments when Gay rocks out a bit, including «Hide and Seek», in which he talks about the way in which we hide our true selves from the world around us. And then he shifts gears to a more folky, country sound in «The Things We Hold Back», with the all too truelines:

You can’t hold back the dark of night
Lord knows in vain I’ve seen some try
Moses held back the Red Sea Water
Me I hold back more than I oughta
Some hold back in the face of heaven
With a neck too stiff to swallow their pride
Others hold out for the lucky seven
While they watch their life like a river run dry.

«The New Jerusalem» is a sweet gem featuring members of The Sounds of Blackness providing a bit of a tribal African backbeat, and Madeira’s B3 weaving in and out.

Another rocker comes along in «The Prodigal» with the singer’s interesting take on the Biblical story of the prodigal son and the sin of pride:

I decided to send you a postcard from the heart of downtown Babylon
Where all the girls are pretty and the stars are out drinking all night long
Forget those rumors you heard about me living on handouts
I’m doing alright, I’m doing just fine, I wish you were here

Which by the last chorus ends with:

I’m thinking I might like to come home for a visit to see you again
Please leave a light on for me…

«If You Lead Me» is a modern Psalm with the Psalmist looking for hope and comfort during one of the dry periods of life, but still promising to follow if God should choose to lead.

The title cut «A Place Called Hope» features a bit of a gospel sound complete with a few backing gospel vocalists.

In the liner notes, Gay talks about a real place called Hope: a small town in Minnesota. But he points out that too often we are too busy being other places and doing other things, to rest in the Hope that comes from above. This is the focus of the album, and it gets the job done. This is the type of indie CD that might get a label to sit up and take notice. And Gay is a singer/songwriter who certainly has a lot more great music yet to come. [Ken Mueller, The Phantom Tollbooth, 2/17/2001]

> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/all-the-lovely-losers/1560899184)

CD tracklist:

01. Leaving It All Behind – 4:11
02. Look Over Your Shoulder – 3:55
03. Hide & Seek – 4:35
04. A Little More Like Jesus – 3:53
05. Things We Hold Back (feat. Sara Groves) – 3:04
06. The New Jerusalem (feat. Sounds of Blackness) – 5:20
07. The Letter – 4:02
08. The Dance – 4:10
09. The Prodigal – 4:12
10. If You Lead Me – 5:16
11. I Surrender – 4:52
12. A Place Called Hope – 5:45
13. The Weight Of Glory – 3:31
14. Untitled – 1:53

Note: Eight tracks of the album re-released with altered track-listing in 2007 as All the Lovely Losers.