Blessid Union of Souls exploded onto the music scene in 1995 with the smash hit "I Believe," which hit No. 1 in the UK, Asia and the USA--where it became the fourth-most played song of the year. The band's hits play like a soundtrack of the last two decades, thanks to numerous hit singles including "Hey Leonardo (She Likes Me for Me)", "Let Me Be The One", and "Oh Virginia" to name a few. With a new album and a renewed focus, the band is ready to add more to the list.

Thanks to the seamless merger of contagious pop, rock and soul from founder and lead singer Eliot Sloan, coupled with his ability to continuously write socially conscious and spiritually inspiring songs, it’s no surprise that Blessid Union of Souls has become one of this generation's most beloved and consistent pop-rock groups. With gold and platinum records and chart-topping singles, the band has toured the world, sharing stages and buses with the likes of Goo Goo Dolls, Bon Jovi, Third Eye Blind, Sister Hazel, Vertical Horizon, Edwin McCain and more, while making appearances on such top-rated television programs as “Late Night with Conan O’Brien”, “Live with Regis & Kelly”, “Good Morning America”, “Top of the Pops" and VH-1.

Sloan’s remarkably humble demeanor stems from a lifelong Christian faith that’s repeatedly made its way into Blessid Union of Souls’ songwriting. With The Mission Field, the band takes a spiritually overt direction while retaining the signature qualities that have attracted millions of fans over the years.

I had the chance to speak in-person with Eliot Sloan in Atlanta before the Dove Awards about “The Only Song,” which is one of my favorite songs of the year.


Please tell me about the background message behind the song "The Only Song."

I wanted to focus on a song that pointed directly at Christ. That’s where I am musically and personally. Being in mainstream music was something that kind of happened on its own. When we wrote the first album and released it, our record company didn’t know where to market us. When the song “I Believe” hit radio and was successful, it all grew from there. We didn’t pick our audience, our audience picked us based on our songs. People would ask us if we considered our music Christian, Pop, or Top 40, and this song and this album is really an extension of what we wrote for our first album. When I embarked on wanting to write music for God, I wanted to write the same style of songs I’ve always written. I wanted to write songs that are upbeat with a positive message to God. The message of the song is the only song we want to sing is “Hallelujah.”

Do you have a life verse or any Bible verses you used in writing the song?

We were very deliberate in getting across the key message of the song, which is that Jesus is “the way, the truth and the life.” To a Christian, that may seem simple and matter of fact, but we wanted that to be the basis of the hope that people get from the song.

John 14:5-7: Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don't know where you are going, so how can we know the way?" Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. If you really knew me, you would know my Father as well. From now on, you do know Him and have seen Him."

 What do you consider to be the takeaway message for listeners?

Sometimes we can lose focus on The Way, and Jesus is the only Way. The first lyrics of our very first song “I Believe” are, “Walk blindly to the Light and reach out for His hand.” That sets the tone for what we’re about as a band. I’ve always sung about wanting to live right, and with The Mission Field, it’s just a matter of taking things one step further and doing in my heart what I’m called to do.

The songs we wrote for our first album, Home, were particularly strong in that direction, and though there was more of a light-hearted direction in some of the later tracks, the underlying spiritual tone was always there. All of the pondering and articulating matters of faith on The Mission Field are basically an extension of the ideas I first started exploring on Home, which makes the two records seem like bookends with one another.

A lot of fans have said this is the perfect transition, and I also hope to inspire new listeners as well, but I don’t really think about marketplaces or numbers when I’m writing. I always just want to make them sound as good as possible while singing something of substance, which on this record says, “Let's strap in and really make a daily, conscious effort to follow in Christ's footsteps.”

I’m always under construction, but at the same time, if I wait until I’m perfect before taking a step, then it’s never going to happen. I don’t know of any perfect people except one and they hung Him on the cross! I think the songs speak about looking at ourselves a little closer, paying more attention to what we say and do, and knowing that overall world change is possible, but it starts with one person at a time.


Here are the lyrics:

I see the choir in the robes the piano player plays
And they all sing hallelujah
All the people in the front and the people in the back
Are singing praises to Ya
And I close my eyes and let the music wash right over me
Just like the blood of the lamb that washed me clean

I'm looking through the book at the hymns
That a thousand men have written for You
"Amazing Grace" and "I'll Fly Away"
And "Joyful We Adore You"
And it occurred to me that the songs I sing although they're beautiful
They just don't compare to the best one that I know

You are the melody the words You're the chorus
Cause You gladly laid Your life down for us
All the blessings that You bring
You're the only song I ever wanna sing.

All the sinners and the saints got something to say
But we know who gave 'em voices
And we're all down here in the atmosphere just making joyful noises
Birds are singing in the air thunder crashes like a drum
Your song is everywhere; it was my first number 1

You are the melody the words You're the chorus
Cause You gladly laid Your life down for us
All the blessings that You bring
You're the only song I ever wanna sing.

Sing Hallelujah
Hallelujah
Sing Hallelujah
Hallelujah

You are the melody the words You're the chorus
Cause You gladly laid your life down for us

You are the melody the words You're the chorus
Cause You gladly laid Your life down for us
All the blessings that You bring
Lord of Lords and King of Kings
We will let our voices ring
You're the only song we ever wanna sing.
You're the only song I ever wanna sing (hallelujah)
You're the only song I ever wanna sing (hallelujah)
You're the only song I ever wanna sing.


Something Eliot and I discussed was how the core of our faith as Christians is found in John 14:6. Jesus is the only way. All roads don’t lead to Heaven, despite what a secular culture tries to tell us. This is an extremely important and uplifting song. I have been singing it at the top of my lungs since I first heard the song and we all need to be bold as followers of Jesus and express that truth. It is interesting to me that someone who has had major mainstream music success is truly reaching out and making it clear that Jesus is the only way in his song. We all need to be unashamed of our faith in Jesus and we all need to be bold in expressing our faith. If you don’t fully share the Gospel with friends and family members, it’s a disservice to them, really.

The extremely catchy chorus really sums up the challenge of the song, “You are the melody the words You're the chorus, Cause You gladly laid Your life down for us, All the blessings that You bring, You're the only song I ever wanna sing. Sing Hallelujah. Hallelujah!” Amen!

(You can watch the music video here.)