Mockingbird (Compact Disc)

Mockingbird

A New Law

A King & A Kingdom

I Hate Everything (But You)

Rich Your Ruler

A Consistent Ethic Of Human Life

My Enemies Are Men Like Me

Zeros & Ones

In God We Trust

Please Before I Go

Love Is Not Against The Law

This brooding believer weaves a web of wonderful stories.

Though Derek Webb may be most immediately recognized as a former member of Caedmon’s Call, he’s made exceptional strides as a solo artist thus far. After he gained momentum for his latest studio CD by releasing the live DVD How to Kill and Be Killed, the anticipation finally culminated with Mockingbird. And like his critically acclaimed past, brimming with brooding lyrics and folk-flavored intimacy, this disc creatively unveils the latest chapter in Webb’s complex journal entries.

“My Enemies Are Men Like Me” (complete with a spoken word clip from Martin Luther King, Jr.) is among one of the many compelling expositions tracing how equality, justice and non-violence are essential in today’s society. The piano ballad “In God We Trust” further alludes to Webb’s social and political ruminations, assessing how the Lord’s hand has been with us throughout each stroke of history. The acoustic ease of “A King a Kingdom” is riddled with attention-grabbing metaphors and speaks about having allegiance to our Heavenly Father before any manmade institution.

On a lighter note, “Mockingbird” scoots with jangly guitars and Webb’s signature vocals, hearkening back to his days in Caedmon’s Call. “Zeros Ones” mixes coffeehouse comfort with piano pop, strewn with powerful poetry only a tunesmith of this caliber could deliver. “Please, Before I Go” provides a haunting amalgamation of gentle guitars, emotive violins and even a xylophone, while the glorious finale “Love Is Not Against the Law” develops a slightly jazz flourish. As the disc fades out with a message of practical outreach, Webb further settles into his role as the Bob Dylan of Christian music—who only gets better with age.

ANDY ARGYRAKIS

Review Provided by CCMmagazine.com

The Lead of Love
By: David A. Jenison

Sometimes an artist just needs a change of pace. Derek Webb, who for many years performed before huge crowds as a member of Caedmon’s Call, now opts for more intimate shows as a solo artist. This inspired the Texas native to do a “house” tour in 2004 in which fans piled into homes for a community-style performance. Webb, who’s signed to INO Records, captured this magic on his live The House Show CD which he released independently. He admits the close-knit settings often spurred stressful moments, and not just from raided refrigerators and overflowing toilets.

“I didn’t have a PA, so sometimes it ended up breaking loose,” says the singer. “One night during the Q&A time, a guy stood up and tried to take over with some pretty crazy beliefs. It was difficult to pull it back together, but I said, ‘You and I can talk about this after the show, but this is not your moment to try and convince everyone.’”

On that particular night, the outspoken attendee steered a discussion about honesty into a monologue about perfection. He said he hadn’t committed any sins in x number of years and quoted “bizarre scriptures” for about eight minutes. The man (who’s apparently not married if he still thinks he’s perfect) finally had to be cut off.

“I said, ‘Man, if you say you haven’t sinned, I’ll do my best to believe you, but I’m not going to let you tell everyone in this room that they aren’t believers,’” recalls Webb. “We ended up having a good conversation in the front yard, but he was belligerent about being right.”

Webb gave the man an extended one-on-one conversation, whereas most artists would rather let their tour managers beat the man's head with a hardbound Concordance. In essence, this epitomizes the singer's personal touch that comes through both in concert and on his albums, most notably with his latest, Mockingbird.

The new studio album, which released December 26, is his third for INO, coming on the heels of 2003’s She Must and Shall Go Free and 2004’s I See Things Upside Down.

Mockingbird gets very personal as Webb skillfully reevaluates many commonly held beliefs while challenging the listener to consider new ideas about morality.

“I think Derek has delivered his best record to date,” says Jeff Moseley, president of INO Records. “I am a huge fan of the way he challenges our suppositions and makes us take a new look at the cultural trappings of Christianity. Mockingbird is a watershed recording that will raise eyebrows and evoke passionate conversation. I am proud to work with an artist that does not shy away from examining the ‘sacred cows’ through the lens of Jesus’ teachings.”

In doing so, Webb frames ethical discussions around proactive moral imperatives in a time when so many people limit the discussion to “don't” lists.

“Poverty is a moral issue, and it goes right to the heart of the dignity of human beings and treating people as image bearers of our Creator,” says Webb, citing an example of proactive morality. “We know that ten percent of the world's population lives in Sub-Saharan Africa and that 50 percent of them live in poverty. For people to live in these conditions, especially in a time of such tremendous resources and technology, is just unacceptable.”

At the end of the day, with Mockingbird Webb hopes to show the other side to a discussion that he believes is often too narrowly framed. For example, many believers will talk about a new kingdom in which there’s no hunger, but Webb wants to encourage people to proclaim the kingdom now by putting food in a hungry person’s mouth.

He explains, “You spend two years talking about one side of the gospel coin, the coming of Jesus, but there is the other side that people often forget, the coming of His kingdom. There will be no injustice, no hunger, no disease, no war and no poverty, and all things will be made right. But the way we proclaim that kingdom is by putting our hands into the making right of all things. If you see someone with a disease, proclaim a kingdom with no disease by caring for that person and providing life-saving drugs. I would like to think that is what St. Francis meant when he said, “Go into the world and proclaim the gospel, and if necessary, use words.’”

Article Provided by CCMmagazine.com