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Good Monsters is the eighth full-length album from Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay

Jars of Clay is a Grammy Award winning Christian rock band from Franklin, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois. Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on singer, Charlie Lowell on piano and Keyboard instrument, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars....
, released by Essential Records
Essential Records (Christian)

Essential Records is a Contemporary Christian record label based in Franklin, Tennessee. It was established in 1992 and acquired by Brentwood Music in 1993....
 on September 5, 2006. This is their last album of new material from Essential Records
Essential Records

Essential Records was the name of two record companies:* Essential Records , a subsidiary of London Records.* Essential Records , a Christian subsidiary of Sony BMG Music Entertainment....
 and it is said to be lyrically their most aggressive album to date. It features eleven original songs, and a remake of "All My Tears" by Julie Miller
Julie Miller

Julie Miller is a songwriter, singer, and recording artist currently living in Nashville, Tennessee, Tennessee. Julie Miller has been married to Buddy Miller for 20 years....
. It also features guest appearances by singer/songwriter Kate York (on "Even Angel
มngel

?ngel is the third single from Belinda Peregr?n's debut album: Belinda. It was a massive hit in Mexico and an international hit for Belinda....
s Cry"), Leigh Nash, of Sixpence None the Richer
Sixpence None the Richer

Sixpence None the Richer is a Grammy-nominated United States Christian pop/rock band that formed in New Braunfels, Texas, eventually settling in Nashville, Tennessee....
 (on "Mirrors & Smoke"), and the African Children's Choir
African Children's Choir

The African Children's Choir is a large choir made up of children ages 7 to 12 from several African nations. Since its inception, the choir has included children from Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana....
 (on "Light Gives Heat").

"Dead Man (Carry Me)
Dead Man (Carry Me)

"'Dead Man '" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. It is the first radio single off of their 2006 studio album, Good Monsters. A Recorded live track of the song appears on the Live Monsters Extended play, while the album version appears on the compilation album Indoor Picnic Music , Penny Candy , and WOW Hits 2007'...
", the first single from the album, was released to radio stations on June 23, 2006.






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Good Monsters is the eighth full-length album from Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay

Jars of Clay is a Grammy Award winning Christian rock band from Franklin, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois. Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on singer, Charlie Lowell on piano and Keyboard instrument, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars....
, released by Essential Records
Essential Records (Christian)

Essential Records is a Contemporary Christian record label based in Franklin, Tennessee. It was established in 1992 and acquired by Brentwood Music in 1993....
 on September 5, 2006. This is their last album of new material from Essential Records
Essential Records

Essential Records was the name of two record companies:* Essential Records , a subsidiary of London Records.* Essential Records , a Christian subsidiary of Sony BMG Music Entertainment....
 and it is said to be lyrically their most aggressive album to date. It features eleven original songs, and a remake of "All My Tears" by Julie Miller
Julie Miller

Julie Miller is a songwriter, singer, and recording artist currently living in Nashville, Tennessee, Tennessee. Julie Miller has been married to Buddy Miller for 20 years....
. It also features guest appearances by singer/songwriter Kate York (on "Even Angel
มngel

?ngel is the third single from Belinda Peregr?n's debut album: Belinda. It was a massive hit in Mexico and an international hit for Belinda....
s Cry"), Leigh Nash, of Sixpence None the Richer
Sixpence None the Richer

Sixpence None the Richer is a Grammy-nominated United States Christian pop/rock band that formed in New Braunfels, Texas, eventually settling in Nashville, Tennessee....
 (on "Mirrors & Smoke"), and the African Children's Choir
African Children's Choir

The African Children's Choir is a large choir made up of children ages 7 to 12 from several African nations. Since its inception, the choir has included children from Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, South Africa, Nigeria, and Ghana....
 (on "Light Gives Heat").

"Dead Man (Carry Me)
Dead Man (Carry Me)

"'Dead Man '" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. It is the first radio single off of their 2006 studio album, Good Monsters. A Recorded live track of the song appears on the Live Monsters Extended play, while the album version appears on the compilation album Indoor Picnic Music , Penny Candy , and WOW Hits 2007'...
", the first single from the album, was released to radio stations on June 23, 2006. "Work
Work (Jars of Clay song)

"Work" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. It is the second radio single from their 2006 studio album Good Monsters. The song was the 13th most played song on U.S....
" was released as the second single, along with its music video, in late August. The band also released a music video for the album track "Good Monsters". In the September 2006 edition of CCM Magazine, the band credited fellow artist Ashley Cleveland with inspiring the improvisational sound of the album.

In an editor's fall albums overview in CCM Magazine
CCM Magazine

CCM Magazine was a monthly magazine published by Salem Publishing, a division of Salem Communications. It was first published in July 1978, and it has always been a Christian music magazine....
, Good Monsters was called, "the album that Jars of Clay will be remembered for" even though most thought that the band's self titled debut (Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay

Jars of Clay is a Grammy Award winning Christian rock band from Franklin, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois. Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on singer, Charlie Lowell on piano and Keyboard instrument, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars....
) was, and it ended up taking the award for the CCM Magazine
CCM Magazine

CCM Magazine was a monthly magazine published by Salem Publishing, a division of Salem Communications. It was first published in July 1978, and it has always been a Christian music magazine....
 staff picks as album of the year, winning four out of the five spaces.

Overview

Concerning the album's title and themes, Dan Haseltine
Dan Haseltine

Dan Haseltine is an United States singer best known for being the lead vocalist for Christian alternative folk rock group Jars of Clay. Despite being a multi-instrumentalist, Haseltine has only ever performed vocals, accordion, percussion and most recently, melodica, while with Jars of Clay....
 explains, "I was not sure how all of the experiences of the last few years would translate into music. There have been so many things to look at and describe. This record is part confessional, part euphoric love poem, bitter separation and part benediction
Benediction

A benediction is a short invocation for divine help, blessing and guidance, usually at the end of worship service....
. It was born out of many experiences and conversations between addicts, failures, lovers, loners, believers, and beggars. And so the language of recovery and the honest discourse about our attempts to live apart from God and apart from each other is a theme. Engaging people who are doing the hard work of laying their lives open to others, and avoiding isolation, has allowed me to see that there is both immeasurable evil and unfathomable good mixing under my own skin and it is grace
Divine grace

In theology, grace may be described as 'enabling power sufficient for progression'. In Christianity, grace divine is an "unmerited favour" of God, indispensable gift from God for development, improvement, and character expansion, and without God's grace, there are certain limitations, weaknesses, flaws, impurities, and faults mankind cannot...
, mercy
Mercy

Mercy can refer both to compassionate behaviour on the part of those in power or on the part of a humanitarian third party .Mercy is a word used to describe compassion shown by one person to another, or a request from one person to another to be shown such leniency or unwarranted compassion for a crime or wrongdoing....
 and freedom
Freedom (philosophy)

Freedom, or the idea of being free, is a broad concept that has been given numerous interpretations by philosophy and schools of thought. The protection of interpersonal freedom can be the object of a social and political investigation, while the metaphysical foundation of inner freedom is a philosophical and psychological question....
 that allow me to not simply be a monster, but to be a good monster."

Honors

  • CCM Magazine named Good Monsters "Album of the Year", shortly after its September release, unusually early for such a distinction. According to editor Jay Swartzendruber, "Jars of Clay's new record is the landmark album of 2006. Consider that all six members of CCM's editorial team agree that choosing Good Monsters as our 'Album of the Year' is a no-brainer. In fact, it's an understatement. Practically all of us would say this is the most profound album the Christian music community has released in years."
  • Good Monsters was Christianity Today
    Christianity Today

    Christianity Today is an Evangelicalism Christian periodical based in Carol Stream, Illinois. It is the flagship publication of its parent company Christianity Today International, claiming circulation figures of 145,000 and readership of 304,500....
    's #1 album of 2006, and ranked #5 of New Release Tuesday's top 10 albums of 2006.
  • Good Monsters won the Best Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year at the GMA Dove Awards of 2007 held at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville.
  • Peaked at #58 on the billboard 200, selling over 15,000 copies in its first week.


Track listing

Note: All songs written by Dan Haseltine, Charlie Lowell, Stephen Mason, and Matt Odmark unless otherwise noted

Standard release

  1. "Work
    Work (Jars of Clay song)

    "Work" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. It is the second radio single from their 2006 studio album Good Monsters. The song was the 13th most played song on U.S....
    " – 3:53
  2. "Dead Man (Carry Me)
    Dead Man (Carry Me)

    "'Dead Man '" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. It is the first radio single off of their 2006 studio album, Good Monsters. A Recorded live track of the song appears on the Live Monsters Extended play, while the album version appears on the compilation album Indoor Picnic Music , Penny Candy , and WOW Hits 2007'...
    " – 3:20
  3. "All My Tears" (Julie Miller
    Julie Miller

    Julie Miller is a songwriter, singer, and recording artist currently living in Nashville, Tennessee, Tennessee. Julie Miller has been married to Buddy Miller for 20 years....
    )     – 3:45
  4. "Even Angels Cry" – 4:22
  5. "There Is a River
    There Is a River

    "There Is A River" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. The song was written with Ron Aniello, who produced a handful of tracks on the band's Who We Are Instead studio album and is most notably known for producing Lifehouse debut album, No Name Face....
    " (Haseltine, Lowell, Mason, Odmark, Ron Aniello
    Ron Aniello

    Ron Aniello is an United States multi-platinum record producer. Some of the noteworthy artists that he has worked with include Lifehouse , Barenaked Ladies, Jars of Clay, Days of the New, Sixpence None the Richer, Leigh Nash, Ashley Tesoro, Vanessa Amorosi and Moshav Band....
    )     – 3:51
  6. "Good Monsters" – 4:05
  7. "Oh My God" – 6:06
  8. "Surprise" – 3:50
  9. "Take Me Higher" (Haseltine, Lowell, Mason, Odmark, Aniello) – 4:40
  10. "Mirrors & Smoke" – 3:58
  11. "Light Gives Heat" – 4:42
  12. "Water Under The Bridge" (Haseltine, Lowell, Mason, Odmark, Aniello) – 3:58


iTunes
ITunes

iTunes is a Proprietary software digital media media player application, used for playing and organizing digital music and video files. The program is also an interface to manage the contents on Apple's popular iPod digital media players as well as the iPhone....
 Pre-release track listing

  1. "Work
    Work (Jars of Clay song)

    "Work" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. It is the second radio single from their 2006 studio album Good Monsters. The song was the 13th most played song on U.S....
    " – 3:53
  2. "Dead Man (Carry Me)
    Dead Man (Carry Me)

    "'Dead Man '" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. It is the first radio single off of their 2006 studio album, Good Monsters. A Recorded live track of the song appears on the Live Monsters Extended play, while the album version appears on the compilation album Indoor Picnic Music , Penny Candy , and WOW Hits 2007'...
    " – 3:20
  3. "All My Tears" – 3:45
  4. "Even Angels Cry" – 4:22
  5. "There Is a River
    There Is a River

    "There Is A River" is a song written and performed by Jars Of Clay. The song was written with Ron Aniello, who produced a handful of tracks on the band's Who We Are Instead studio album and is most notably known for producing Lifehouse debut album, No Name Face....
    " – 3:51
  6. "Good Monsters" – 4:05
  7. "Oh My God" – 6:06
  8. "Surprise" – 3:50
  9. "Take Me Higher" – 4:40
  10. "Mirrors & Smoke" – 3:58
  11. "Light Gives Heat" – 4:42
  12. "Water Under The Bridge" – 3:58
  13. "Work" (Acoustic Version) - 3:36


Album Leaf

On the bottom of the last page in the album insert there is a quote which reads:

"All that is required for evil to prevail is for good men to do nothing" - Edmund Burke
Edmund Burke

Edmund Burke was an Irish statesman, author, orator, political theorist, and philosophy who, after relocating to Great Britain, served for many years in the British House of Commons as a member of the British Whig Party party....
 1729-1797 (This quote is apocryphal.)

Personnel


Performance credits

  • Jars of Clay
    Jars of Clay

    Jars of Clay is a Grammy Award winning Christian rock band from Franklin, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois. Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on singer, Charlie Lowell on piano and Keyboard instrument, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars....
     - primary artist
  • Leigh Nash - guest vocals
  • Ashley Cleveland
    Ashley Cleveland

    Ashley Cleveland is an United States singer/songwriter perhaps best known as a background vocalist and Grammy awards-winning Gospel music singer....
     - guest vocals
  • Rosemary Butler
    Rosemary Butler

    Rosemary Butler began her career playing bass and singing in the heavy rock band Birtha who released 2 albums for Dunhill. After they split in 1973 she became a popular back-up singer in the late 70's and early 80's....
     - guest vocals
  • Kim Fleming - guest vocals
  • Kate York - guest vocals
  • John Catchings - cello
  • Kris Wilkinson - viola
  • Jennifer Kummer - french horn
  • Ned Henry - violin
  • Aaron Sands - bass
  • Jeremy Lutito - drums


Technical credits

  • Richard Dodd
    Richard Dodd

    Richard Dodd is a cellist, recording artist, musician in Bristol, England....
     - mastering
  • Jars of Clay
    Jars of Clay

    Jars of Clay is a Grammy Award winning Christian rock band from Franklin, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois. Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on singer, Charlie Lowell on piano and Keyboard instrument, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars....
     - producer, art direction
  • Terry Hemmings - executive producer
  • Christopher Davis - horn arrangements, string arrangements
  • Tim Parker
    Tim Parker

    Timothy Charles Parker , commonly known as Tim Parker, is a millionaire British businessman nicknamed the "Prince of Darkness" by labour unions for his track record of laying off workers to cut costs....
     - art direction
  • Mitch Dane
    Mitch Dane

    Mitch Dane is a Nashville record producer and the owner of Sputnik Sound Recording Studio. He has over 20 years of production and engineering credits to his name, crossing lines into every music genre....
     - engineer
  • Jonathan Richter - art direction, cover design


In Other Media

The track "Good Monsters" was featured on the pilot episode of Eli Stone
Eli Stone

Eli Stone is an United States television comedy-drama created by Greg Berlanti and Marc Guggenheim, who also serve as executive producers alongside Ken Olin who directed the television pilot, with Melissa Berman television producer....
.

External links

  • (September 16, 2008)