Higher Power- Boston's timeless tribute to desperate souls leaning on God
When you think of the band Boston, you probably shake your head at how good they could have been. Their first few albums- especially the first 2- were legendary. The first is arguably the single greatest debut album of any rock band in history. Yes, that's a meaty claim but just tell me any other band who produced anything approaching the guitar, keyboard, bass and vocal complexity of songs like "More than a Feeling" and "Foreplay/Long time" on a debut record! The lists of records engineered as well as that album is very short. The fact that Tom Scholtz engineered this record in his own basement is mind boggling. The vocals of Brad Delp on "More than a Feeling", crashing against the soaring twin guitars of Schultz and Barry Goodreau have few-if any- peers in the entire history of rock music. Sib Hassian's incredible drumming just completed the absolute Rockestration of this classic album.
Sadly, Boston could not sustain it's meteoric rise because of infighting and Delp took his own life in 2007. Boston's biggest legend may be that of tragedy.
Before they flamed out, they released a greatest hits compilation with a few new tracks. Among them, were 2 versions of a song called Higher Power. I number it as one of my 4 all-time favorite Boston tracks, along with "More than a Feeling", "Don't look Back" and "A Man I'll never be".
It's a bit of a departure from Boston's normal feel-good party rock. It's actually a deeply religious and spiritual tribute to those battling addiction the only way one can succeed- by reliance on God. The song has been a staple of the Deeper Truth show for all of it's 12 years and more than 2000 episodes.
Let me love you Take me home to your religion for the night Let me touch you Teach me how to see your vision through my eyes
Turn the pages Tell my story, let me face another day Safe embraces, I feel it comin' now My captain's on his way.
Hey, my high power The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Yeah
Let me hold you Take me back into the secrets of my mind Let me know you Come and save me Lord Don't let me cross the line
Hey, my high power The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Ooh, let me love you Ooh, let me love you
Hey, my Higher Power The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yea, my Higher Power It's the beginning of another day.
Hey, my Higher Power The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid
Yeah, my Higher Power It's the beginnin' of another day.
Hey, my high power The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Hey, my high power The world is spinnin', but I'm not afraid Yeah, give me the power It's the beginnin', the beginnin' of another day.
Yea, yea, yea.
If the overtly religious lyrics are not enough to convince you that this song is about addiction, listen carefully to the whispered words during one of the bridges of the song. They will sound quite familiar.
God, give me grace to accept with serenity
the things that cannot be changed,
Courage to change the things
which should be changed,
and the Wisdom to distinguish
the one from the other.
Living one day at a time,
Enjoying one moment at a time,
Accepting hardship as a pathway to peace,
Taking, as Jesus did,
This sinful world as it is,
Not as I would have it,
Trusting that You will make all things right,
If I surrender to Your will,
So that I may be reasonably happy in this life,
And supremely happy with You forever in the next.
Amen.
If there ever was a prayer- and a song- needed as a good summation of what it means to be a Christian relying on God. This would be a good place to start.
