Description
Knowledge & Innocence is the solo debut album by the American singer, songwriter, and producer Terry Scott Taylor of Daniel Amos, The Swirling Eddies and the Lost Dogs fame, released on Shadow Records in 1986, distributed by Lexicon in the US. The album was recorded by Doug Doyle at his 3-D Studios in Costa Mesa, California; with Terry Taylor and Rob Watson producing for Rebel Base Productions. Mixed during June 1985.
The solo album Knowledge & Innocence was a very personal statement of mine… At times it was a very painful album to make, because It was so personal. My wife Debbie had a miscarriage of our first child. I think the cumulative effect of my Grandfather’s death and this incident combined to make me feel I was in the belly of the whale. [Terry Taylor]
“Heart, warming in the afterglow”, the opening lyric from the solo album of Daniel Amos’ guiding light Terry Taylor, wasn’t my first impression listening to Knowledge & Innocence but it was the overall effect. My first thought was that Taylor’s infatuation with John Lennon and the Beatles had finally gone too far; this record is more Beatle-esque than Horrendous Disc, Vox Humana or even Abbey Road. After many listens, my heart is warmed and a bittersweet smile crossed my face. I concluded that it really didn’t matter that the album was derivative; it was so good I didn’t care.
Knowledge & Innocence deals with the paradox of faith, the union of adult reasoning and questioning with childlike belief and acceptance. On side one Taylor plays it straight in five of the finest pop songs to come from his often quirky mind. The first single, «Dancing On Light», sets the light and reflective tone that dominates the whole record. Here the joy and anticipation of God’s presence are celebrated in «Song Of Innocence», a duet with Randy Stonehill; «Picture Of You», and «Ever After». The other side of life, the frailty of human existence, the longing for fulfillment and God’s presence are expressed in «Waiting», «Here He Comes, Second Time» and most succinctly in these lines from «One More Time»: “you took a part of me / a broken heart left here to play / this sad / sweet music / the air that I breath / fills me with longing.” On side two, Taylor’s more bizarre leanings come through on the «Old Time Gospel Camp Meeting Hour», a medly of radio country Gospel favorites («The Old Rugged Cross», «Just A Closer Walk With Thee» and «In The Garden») sung by The Riders Of The Western Skies, which is Taylor’s vocals multitracked to create the quartet effect. We also hear excerpts from Christmas at the Taylor home, Terry’s son Andrew counting to twelve, and a muzak reprise of «Picture Of You».
Perhaps the most emotionally provocative sound is of a baby’s heartbeat recorded at six months in the mother’s womb which leads into «Light Princess», an ode to a daughter who died in miscarriage. Nearly a complete musical ripoff of Psychedelic Furs’ «Heaven», the song evokes the feelings of loss and of comfort in a stirring blend of realism and idealism that is characteristic of Taylor’s best work with DA. The emotional song, expresses faith’s hardest moment – a death not welcomed, but accepted. This one will leave anyone who has feared the loss of a loved one, yet trusted God in difficult times, in tears. Knowledge & Innocence is a very personal statement by Terry Scott Taylor, exploring all that seems to be most important in his life. While I wish he would push himself to make his music stand on it’s own two feet, these well crafted and finely-produced songs offer a rewarding journey into the artist’s important perceptions of life and faith. Daniel Amos fans will hear a softer but still intriguing side of Taylor’s music, and pop listeners will be introduced to one of the more creative minds in Christian rock music. Knowledge & Innocence are a difficult mix, but in this setting a rewarding union. [Brian Quincy Newcomb, Harvest Rock Syndicate, 1986]
If there handn’t been a Beach Boys or Beatles, it’s hard to imagine what Terry Taylor’s music would sound like today. Hank Williams perhaps? Actually, that’s not too far-fetched a theory. Taylor has led Daniel Amos, one of Christian music’s cutting edge bands, through country music (‘Daniel Amos‘ and ‘Shotgun Angel‘), to late-period Beatles (‘Horrendous Disc‘) and beyond to the latest in techno-pop (‘The Alarma Chronicles‘). The musical point of reference for ‘Knowledge and Innocence’ is “Pet Sounds”-vintage Brian Wilson and “Rubber Soul”-era Lennon and McCartney. Taylor has chosen to distance himself from the more esoteric DA sound and has crafted a lovely and intensely personal solo project.
Taylor often speaks with the voice of a man longing for the return of Christ, yet the songs are rooted in the here and now. The influence of William Blake, C.S. Lewis, and other allegorical/fantasy poets permeates Terry’s lyrics. The first time I listened to the album I felt as though I were reading a diary or perhaps had intercepted a valentine intended for Taylor’s family.
There are songs that are striking in their vivid imagery («Dancing on Light», «The Wild Wood», and «Song of Innocence» which features Randy Stonehill). Others such as «One More Time» are drawn directly from family relationships. This song is apparently based on a dream Terry had about his grandfather, to whom he was very close. And one of the lyrics mentions “this sad/sweet music,” words that describe the tone of much of the record.
Other personal notes include a brief soundtrack from Taylor «Home Movies» featuring Terry’s son and grandfather. The sound of a baby’s heartbeat at 6 months precedes the final track, «Light Princess», a song about what surely must be the hardest thing for parents to do – release a child in death to the Lord’s eternal care.
The album is not without its quirky moments. A hint of Terry’s biting humor can be found in «Here He Comes, Second Time», the only track sounding remotely lik DA. The song, about those who wish the Lord’s return delayed while they pursue their own interests, contains a little self-directed pun as well – “We gotta get this record out before the trumpet sounds.” Another oddity is «The Old-Time Gospel Camp Meeting Hour» with its scratchy, low-fi sound made to resemble and old radio broadcast. The host reads the Scripture lesson (again about children), and “The Riders of the Western Skies” (Terry multi-tracked) do a medley of gospel songs. Perhaps this is meant to evoke images of a simpler time – or maybe it holds special memories for Taylor in this LP that focuses on the family.
«Ever After», a sad tale much like The Kinks’ Ray Davies would tell, perhaps summarizes best the album’s many themes. It’s the story of a family so caught up in the business of life that they’ve lost their youthful innocence. The presence of their child, however, offers them hope. The last verse states, “Baby wakes, and in her eyes shines the light from the soul, the kind that mommy used to carry so long ago.” Taylor, through his hauntingly beautiful songs, reminds us of the light and promise offered by another Child. [Bruce A. Brown, CCM, April 1986]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/knowledge-innocence/1189955582)
LP tracklist:
Side One
A1. “Dancing On Light” – 4:54
A2. “(Out Of) The Wild Wood” – 5:43
A3. “Here He Comes, Second Time” – 3:06
A4. “Waiting” – 3:08
A5. “Picture Of You” – 3:56
Side Two
B1. “Song Of Innocence” – 3:48
B2. “The Old Time Gospel Camp Meeting Hour” – 0:37
B3. “The Riders Of The Western Skies (Medley)” – 3:15
B4. “Picture Of “U” (Reprise)” – 1:43
B5. “Ever After” – 3:32
B6. “Home Movies” – 1:17
B7. “One More Time” – 3:41
B8. “Baby’s Heartbeat (6 Months)” – 0:15
B9. “Light Princess” – 3:59
B10. “(Inner Cut) Waiting (Reprise)” – 1:14
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and 12-inch vinyl LP by Shadow Records. Re-issued on CD in 1993 by Stunt Records, distributed by Refuge Records. Also released on cassette by Refuge Records/Pulse Records the same year. Remastered and re-issued on Stunt Records in 2024 as a Limited Edition 2CD featuring both Knowledge & Innocence and A Briefing for the Ascent. (2CD Liner Notes: I gained my first real understanding of grief after the agonizing loss of my maternal grandparents (the Borthicks) so close together in 1983 and 1986. These records sprang from that grief. It was also my first sobering encounter with my own mortality. One of the benefits of growing older is that the older we get as believers, the more we become conformed to the image of our Lord who, among other characteristics, was “a man acquainted with grief.” Obviously, since the release of both albums, I’ve lost a number of family members and dear friends, among them my dear friend Doug Doyle, the brilliant engineer of both records. It is to them, as well as those who continue to find solace in these songs, that this re-issue is dedicated.) A remastered version is available at Bandcamp: https://terryscotttaylor.bandcamp.com/album/knowledge-innocence-remastered
The Upper Room Presents: Terry Scott Taylor of Daniel Amos (Streamed live on February 9, 2021).
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