David Meece was a big name in Christian music in the 1970s and 1980s. A classically trained pianist, David offered a unique blend of that classic pop/rock sound infused with a classical touch. While the music would likely come across as very dated to many modern listeners, there's a lot of value in revisiting some of his offerings. For this article, we look back at his–as of this writing–final release, There I Go Again, as it turns 20.
A Late-Career Endeavor
It's weird to think of this album as being 20 when it was already sort of a "comeback" album for David, an artist I heard a lot of growing up. At the time of its release, David hadn't completed a full-length album in nearly a decade. After releasing a hits project in 1995, an entire album's worth of material was lost to record label politics. Not to mention other artists had come to the forefront of the industry A-list.
Given David's classical music influence coupled with a sound very much the product of his heyday, the corporate side of the Christian music industry didn't make much room for his stylings.
And so brought us this return album of sorts. With a simple cover and little promotion, There I Go Again was already primed to fly under the radar. Yet, despite David still doing shows and writing through the years, it serves as sort of a finale to quite a prolific catalog of music.
What Was Old Is New
There I Go Again found a sort of updating of David's sound. While the signature sonic forces are still more or less consistent with his past material, the production gets some modern makeover (for 2002 at least). The title track had a gentle guitar hook and, overall, carried a vibe somewhat more consistent with where Christian music was at the time. David still employed some of his cinematic showstopping anthems such as "Run." But the musical hooks made an effort to keep pace with the calendar, while still adhering to David's more timeless style.
Having seen David perform about a decade or so after this album's release, it was amazing to see how influential it was to his late-career setlists. With "Run," the jubilant "Raise These Arms," and the gentle ballad "By The Waters" still adhering themselves to David's collection of all-time classics. Other highlights include the ballad "I'll Be Waiting For You" and the dramatic opener "No Other Hope."
Real Talk
David often wrote straightforwardly about topics relevant to the faith in a way that feels refreshing to the often generic "issues" we so often hear about in music now. Songs like the title track explore our penchant for falling into the same sins continually, while "The Things You Never Gave Me" is a rare prayer thanking God for all the things we prayed for that we didn't get, and how God's planning ultimately ended up being better than ours.
"Dancing With The Enemy" might come off as a bit silly at first listen. But its politically-tinged lyrics seem to be even more relevant to our landscape today than ever before. A few media nouns may have been modernized, but the overarching themes ring all too true to our troubled and conflict-driven times.
While David hasn't officially called it quits in the music business, he hasn't released new music since this record and doesn't tour like he used to. Still, he hasn't stopped writing music. Might he have another album or two left in him? Only time will tell.
David Meece might not feel relevant to the modern contemporary Christian music or praise and worship crowd. Maybe just a name you vaguely remember from your parents' 1980s Christian music collection. But he was, truly, an essential part of the early Christian music era with his unique sound and truly impassioned songwriting ability. This album may not be one often remembered in Christian music history. But that's all the more reason why you might have missed it. If you're interested in learning more about some of Christian music's early heavyweights, maybe this can be a solid point of entry.
J.J. Francesco is a long-time contributor to the NRT Staff. He's published the novel 'Because of Austin' and regularly seeks new ways to engage faith, life, and community. He is currently working on releasing a brand new novel.
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