Garrels has been a lot of things: son of a hippie commune, skater boy,
suburban drug dealer, music/design student, coffee roaster, urban shepherd, and now nation- and globe-trotting minstrel of hope and healing.
He is also a beacon of light in a marketplace rife with artists who, whether wanting to acquire fame or just their next meals, have sold their souls to the not-so-almighty dollar and forsaken their first loves – the song – in the process. Garrels’ rogue ethic first led him to self-record, -produce, and -distribute a trio of early recordings, Stone Tree (2002), Underquiet (2003), and Over Oceans (2006), each a holy merging of sampled beats; plaintive, soulful vocals; and earnest acoustic strumming over unabashedly lo-fi production.
Despite fielding offers from major labels, Garrels retained a marked distrust for the recording industry (and it is just that) and, with the release of Over Oceans, formed his own little label that could: Small Voice Records. He also formed a humble but subtly mighty union with one Michelle Ramsdale, whose art has accompanied his aural musings on both Over Oceans and the subsequent Jacaranda album (2008).
It was the recording and producing of Jacaranda that proved a turning point for team Garrels. Housed in an old, rural mansion – a friend’s donated respite on an Indiana river in the woods – Josh and Michelle set to fashioning a home for themselves; crafting his best, tightest collection of songs to date; and creating a baby girl (née Heron Selah Garrels) all at once. The album itself became his most critically lauded so far, and the single “Don’t Wait For Me” was used in a scene on CBS drama “The Ghost Whisperer.”
Josh Garrels’ music is always equal parts confidence and vulnerability. That may seem a dichotomy – and then you hear him. Those trademark vibrant trills, lyricism chock-full of an earthy gusto and the search for God both, and the tapping and slapping against his trusty homemade acoustic axe – the sum of it is an amalgam of sound like precious few before or beside him.
“Fight or flight” is simplistic phrasing for the choice we often have in life’s trying situations. In his gritty formative years the former there was Josh Garrels’ strategy, but since his coming of age (and of belief) and his entrance into bona fide adulthood, within and without, his modus operandi has become flight. Flight as in lift-off, ascension. Rising above. Yea, the name of his young daughter is shared with a bird. Flight is a fixture, and wings a metaphor, in both the love story that Josh and Michelle grew and in the visual and musical arts that both have cultivated.
“My hope is to record at least an album a year for many years to come,” Garrels says, “probably continuing to record myself with my own home studio.” To borrow another well-worn axiom: If it’s not broken, don’t fix it. A minimalist website and album sales at live shows eventually thrust Josh Garrels into the arena where he now resides.
Garrels has always sought to inject his ears and his mind with a wide swath of influences. Early on it was Cat Stevens and De La Soul, and then those gave way to honchos of east-coast hip-hop the likes of the Wu-Tang Clan and A Tribe Called Quest. The mellowing – and yet, ironically, the lionizing – of his head, heart, and soul are evident in his budding young-adult affinities for the sounds of Bob Dylan and Digable Planets, Ben Harper and Gustavo Santaolalla.
Despite being his cherished mentors of music, none of these established artists would make Garrels blink were he to meet them. “In a media-saturated pop culture society where ‘stars’ are the royalty to be worshipped or fawned over, I believe the true role of artists is to serve others with their creations, “ Garrels says. “That means to draw people to fullness of life through revelation, longing, breakthroughs, simple beauty, and unpretentious truths. Artists help people see the obvious, the heart of the matter, and from this regained perspective people become more fully human. So much art these days has people focusing on an unattainable fantasy, lusting over what they'll never have unless they take it by force or by way of money or libido. This is all candy, and candy can't make a man healthy.”
Indeed, and “candy” is the last word for describing Josh Garrels, his life and his tunesmithing. He harmonizes and he freestyles, apt to lift a glitch beat or an accordion to the song at hand, whatever it demands. His latest, Lost Animals (2009), features a sonic quilt of singles, Jacaranda B-sides, soundtrack work, and collaborations. Originally intended as an EP, it outgrew those trappings and emerged a full-length weighing in at 10 songs.
As outgrowing goes, native Michigander Garrels and his family shed their initial digs in Indianapolis, that urban epicenter of gorgeous, golden cornfields, and took to North Carolina for a year to grieve with dear ones a death in the clan. Heartfelt time spent in Carolina bowed out gracefully to their nascent residence in Portland, Oregon, specifically the diverse and progressive artists’ haven that is the Mississippi/Alberta district.
For all the beats and world instruments and innovative guitar work, it will always be about the words with Josh Garrels. His stuff is drenched in musings that encompass time-worn theology and pastoral wonderment, that delight in the fauna of this world and a faith in another still to come. “Has this world been so kind to you that you should leave with regret? There are better things ahead than any we leave behind.” So said the writer C. S. Lewis, and so echo the visceral yearnings, sometimes verbose yet often as unintelligible as the melodies on some of his best tracks, that make up this well-traveled troubadour’s trunk full of songs.
Train Song
Josh Garrels Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Lord he took all our shame and pain, and set men free
And I’ve got that fire on the mountain
Fire in my soul
It’s been a long time coming, long time
And ready to go
I’m stepping out the door
Following my Lord, through the darkest night
And when the path gets narrow
I’ll follow him
And when the world comes down, around
I’ll follow him
He said, sing it on the mountain
Or in the valley low
He’s my God, and he never let me go
He said, sing it on the mountain
Or fight in valley low
Every mans going to see, and everyone will know
That peace runs deep in him
I said peace runs deep in him
Peace runs deep in him.
The opening lines of Josh Garrels's Train Song speaks about shame and pain before moving onto how the lord has taken those away and set men free from it. The lyrics reference the biblical story of Jesus Christ who took on the sins of the world and sacrificed himself on the cross to give humanity the chance to repent and be forgiven of their sins. The song goes on to speak of the fire in the singer's soul, an allusion to the Holy Spirit, and how it has been a long time coming for him to be ready to go out and do what is right - to follow God and his calling.
As the journey continues, the song speaks about the narrow path that leads to heaven and the need to follow God even when the world around us is falling apart. It speaks of singing praises to God whether on the mountain top or in the valley low, and how God will never let his people go. The final lines of the song talk about the depth of peace that now resides in the singer's soul and how it is a testament to the transformative power of following God.
Line by Line Meaning
Shame on you, shame on me
Both of us have fallen short and sinned. We are each to blame for our own wrongdoing, but God has taken all our shame and pain and saved us from our sins.
Lord he took all our shame and pain, and set men free
Jesus took all our shame and pain upon Himself when He died on the cross, and through His death and resurrection, He has set us free from sin and death.
And I’ve got that fire on the mountain
I have a passion and zeal in my heart to follow and serve God, even in the midst of challenges.
Fire in my soul
I am filled with the Holy Spirit, which gives me a burning desire to live for God and to share His love with others.
It’s been a long time coming, long time
I have waited and worked hard to grow in my faith and to develop a deeper relationship with God.
And ready to go
I am eager and prepared to follow wherever God leads me, even if it means facing trials and difficulties along the way.
I’m stepping out the door
I am leaving my comfort zone and taking a step of faith to follow God's call.
Doing what feels right
I am following my conscience and obeying God's Word, even if it contradicts societal norms.
Following my Lord, through the darkest night
I am committed to following Jesus even in the midst of trials and sufferings, trusting that He will guide and protect me.
And when the path gets narrow
When the way ahead is difficult and uncertain, I will continue to trust in God and follow His leading.
I’ll follow him
I will remain loyal and obedient to God, even when it is challenging to do so.
And when the world comes down, around
Even when everything around me is falling apart, I will cling to God and trust in His goodness and faithfulness.
He said, sing it on the mountain
God wants us to praise and worship Him everywhere, whether on the mountaintop experiences of life or in the valleys of suffering and pain.
Or in the valley low
God is with us always, even in the lowest points of our lives, and we can find comfort and hope in knowing that He loves us.
He’s my God, and he never let me go
God is faithful and will never abandon us, even when we feel alone or lost. We can trust in His unfailing love and mercy.
Or fight in valley low
Even when we face intense spiritual battles and trials, we can take heart in knowing that God is with us and will help us overcome.
Every mans going to see, and everyone will know
One day, every person will see the goodness and glory of God, and everyone will know that He is King and Lord of all creation.
That peace runs deep in him
When we give our lives to God and trust in His plan for us, we can experience a deep peace that transcends all understanding.
I said peace runs deep in him
I am testifying that I have experienced this peace for myself and know that it comes from God alone.
Peace runs deep in him.
This peace is not temporary or shallow, but it is a lasting, life-changing peace that only comes from a relationship with God.
Contributed by Savannah Y. Suggest a correction in the comments below.