Search - Daniel Amos :: Kalhoun

Dis = Da Definitive D.A. Disc

Danny M. Dean | Baton Rouge, Louisiana United States | 07/22/2003

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Daniel Amos. Jethro Tull and Pink Floyd have a couple of things in common. 1. They are bands, not individuals. (* "By the way which one's "Daniel"?) 2. They play music. They are dissimilar in that: 1. One of these bands is one you haven't heard of. 2. That's a DARN shame! Daniel Amos (then D.A., then DA, then Da, then da and then Daniel Amos again) was formed in 1976 by a group of 4 guys out of Southern California who could play really decently. Even better, they played what many churches seem to believe is God's favorite kind of music: Country. (Somehow, I just can't picture God with a John Deere cap on, but maybe that's just ME.) They started as countrified as you can get without actually digging up Hank William's corpse. (The older one who is actually buried.) Cut to the chase: to say their style of music changed is about as much as an understatement as how many times their name has been modified: Country to Country Rock to Rock to New Wave To Punk to New Wave to Alternative and all the way back again. The "Church" only took the first couple of steps WITH them, and then they started stepping ON them. Radio wasn't any help. Record companies and mismanagement hurt even more. This recording is the BEST of the bunch. Trust me. Buy it and listen 5 times, and then you'll have a new habit. You won't listen to anything else for about six months. Talk about bang for the buck! Several cuts were surefire radio hits, but the fact a single was never released from this CD shows the kind of uphill climb the group has had to deal with for over 25 years. Yes, they're still * "making records, ... fans they can't wait." I hope Amazon lists more of their catalogue. I also hope you'll add this to yours. You won't be disappointed by DA guys in Daniel Amos. (*Quotes: Pink Floyd: Have A Cigar & Joe Walsh - Life's Been Good)."

Another Classic DA Disc

Dwight Blubaugh | The only Eaton Rapids on Earth, MI, USA | 11/08/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Daniel Amos has been putting out some of the best quality Christian music for decades, and Kalhoun is no exception. Things are quirky at times (but it's a GOOD quirky), and the satire is biting. And, of course, the music is consistently excellent and original.



This disc is from the period when Daniel Amos changed their name to då (double dot above the "a", and Kalhoun is written with double dots above the "o") - I don't know what the purpose of this name change was, but I'm sure it must have greatly confused fans and descreased sales, and with such an underrated, underrecognized band, they could certainly use the extra sales.



I've quoted small portions of several of the songs below. For the full lyrics and LOTS of other information about the band, their history, product sales, etc., see their website (sorry, I can't print the name here, as it will be automatically censored, but it's easy to find).



*Big, Warm, Sweet, Interior Glowing, the opener, is an upbeat but mellow tune. Though I often have trouble deciphering Taylor's true intent in his lyrics, this one seems to be about a man whose Christian "confidence" overshadows God's true will for him.



*If You Want To comes next. This one has a rockier edge with heavy guitars, but softer backing vocals. It talks about our relationship with God being up to us - that God is always there waiting. "I'll block the door / or I'll step aside / we'll change the world / if you want to."



*Kalhoun is a heavy-rocking, very satirical look at how we often forget the true meaning behind our religious symbols and observances, making them meaningless "traditions" (or worse). Some of the lyrics:



"It's the magic word, they claim / came down from ancient Babylon / when the tower of Babel crumbled / and the language was all wrong. / The natives were confused and yet / they understood one word..."



"Some preacher says it's the first word / that Adam said to Eve. / Religious tracts and bulletins note / 'speak it and believe.' "



"Yeah everybody sing Kalhoun. / Don't know exactly what it means / it's just a sacred kind of thing - Kalhoun."



*I Will Return ("I will be coming like a thief in the night") is an apocolyptical song, about as easy to interpret as the book of The Revelation. It incorporates what sounds kind of like an accordian in spots - few other than Terry Taylor / Daniel Amos could make this work so well in an upbeat pop song.



*Tracking the Amorous Man seems to be about the simultaneous pulls between sin and God on our lives. Slow music, mellow singing, but with fairly heavy guitar sound, as in much of the rest of the album.



*Virgin Falls is a pretty heavy rocker throughout. Another song about temptation - "then a dirty little secret spoils everything / let the virgin fall."



*Gloryhound seems to be talking about cultish, militia-type religion, toting a Bible in one hand and a gun in the other. I wonder whether the big Kalhoun "K" featured on the cover and throughout the liner notes could be partly satirizing the Klan, as this songs sounds like it could be talking about their hypocrisy. When they talk about "a neo-gospel for the hungry nations," I also have to think that they may be referring to the Neo-Nazis (doesn't German use double dots over some of their letters? The liner notes have a reference, "Irgendeiner stempeln mich!" - "Somebody stamp me!" And several other Nazi-ish, New World Order-looking symbols and references.). This song is a beautiful, soft rocker, backed by rough-edged guitar.



*Prayer Wheel may be about televangelists, or about how repentance and being humbled will come with the final days - sorry, this one is over my head. A very upbeat, catchy song, done in quirky Daniel Amos style. Just try NOT humming along with this one and tapping your foot after hearing it a few times.



*Note to Anna seems to be about regretting not being able to save "Anna" from suicide. A slow, steady beat with a haunting bridge on something like a cello makes this a great song.



*Father Explains is about war and how it's the result of our callous, sinful world - "our lot in life," as a father explains to his son. Has a driving beat and catchy tune in the chorus.



*The Gate of the World seems to be about how we are passing through our brief lifetime on earth on the way to eternity, and about the things we do during this brief time, which have eternal effects. DA's songs often have the feel of Beatles music, and this one is no exception - kind of sounds musically like Across the Universe in spots.



For other Terry Scott Taylor music, check out his solo work, as well as discs recorded as part of The Swirling Eddies and The Lost Dogs."

Taylor Triumphs Again!!!!

MadHackerMike | Paradise | 07/28/2002

(4 out of 5 stars)

"Terry Taylor and his crew triumph yet again. Perhaps it is premature to liken the writing of Terry Taylor with kingdom literary greats like CS Lewis, but if we are only waiting for his passing to give him his own postage stamp, let me be the first to recommend him.This is the comprehensive Daniel Amos record. Taylor's eloquence and sarcasm when singing his thinly veiled social commentaries bring delight and validation to the intellect and soul of the weary faith traveler.His songs, in all their glory, remind me of the great Stuckey's rest stops along the highways of America. Full of pecan logs and country music cassettes from singers you've never heard of, they are warm and familiar and always there when you need to stop and get directions. His songs are truly a beacon in the night to the intellectuals who are weary with the world and weary with the sentimental fluff that is so pervasive in contemporary Christian music.Songs like Father Explains, Prayer Wheel and Kalhoun are great!"