#289 WHISTLIN' IN THE DARK by Bryan Duncan (1987)

WHISTLIN' IN THE DARK by Bryan Duncan (1987)
Modern Art Records 7-01-460060-5

Producer: Larry Brown

File Under: Blue-Eyed Soul/CCM

Time Capsule-Worthy Track:

Help Is On The Way

I don't think Bryan Duncan would be offended if I referred to him as "the little man with the BIG voice." He's somewhat small in stature. And he certainly does have a big voice. One of the biggest in all of music.  

In his Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music, author Mark Allan Powell calls Duncan a "Christian music superstar" and says that Duncan's post-Sweet Comfort Band albums are "masterpieces in their own right." Powell writes that Duncan's solo albums "have, in fact, set the standard for blue-eyed soul music." 

Sweet Comfort Band
L-R: Rick Thompson, Kevin Thompson, Bryan Duncan, Randy Thomas

Born in 1953 in Ogden, Utah, Duncan was an Assembly of God preacher's kid (you can read all about Bryan's backstory on our 70s blog). The family eventually settled in North Carolina. Duncan tried to fulfill his family's expectations by heading off to Bible College inFlorida, but he was a square peg trying to fit into a round hole and eventually dropped out. News of the Jesus Movement made its way across the country and soon drew Duncan like a moth to a flame. There, he met the Thompson brothers (Kevin and Rick) and, later, a guitarist named Randy Thomas. The quartet became known as the Sweet Comfort Band and brought a new benchmark of quality musicianship to the fledgling CCM genre. SCB's

catalog of six albums (not counting greatest hits compilations) is among the very best that rock and roll has to offer. They began with a strong jazz influence and an exuberance befitting young believers in Jesus...evolved to more of an arena rock sound and lyrics that explored deeper issues, included painful aspects of life...and ended their career with a harder-edged sound thanks to the production of the Elefante brothers.   

It's been said that the members of Sweet Comfort Band grew frustrated by their failure to achieve a level of acceptance and success commensurate with the group's talent and ability. So SCB came to an end and gave birth to two new musical incarnations: Randy Thomas formed a band called Allies with his friend Bob Carlisle, and Bryan Duncan embarked on a solo career.

Whistlin' in the Dark was the third release in Duncan's solo catalog. I had a chance recently to talk to Bryan about the album. 

"Whistlin' in the Dark went gangbusters," he said. "My first debut of the record was at Knotts Berry Farm Theatre, and everyone already knew all the lyrics."

"It also marked my tendency for flamboyant outfits on stage," Duncan remembered. "I came out in a white jacket with zebra stripes, shoes and sunglasses that matched, and leather pants!"

He smiled and added, "Let's just say that was a big change from the usual Christian presentations."

I asked him about the producer, Larry Brown -- a name not usually associated with CCM records. "Larry was the first non-believer I ever worked with," Duncan answered. "He was a real soft-spoken guy; more engineer than producer, I think. But he had worked with a favorite band of mine: Tower of Power. Plus he had everything 'in house' in the way of recording, and I was budget limited!" 

The title track was trademark Bryan Duncan from a musical and vocal standpoint, with an upbeat, danceable groove...but the lyrics took on a somewhat darker tone. "I wrote Whistlin' in the Dark in my truck," Duncan revealed, "just driving around thinking about all the answers I didn't have in response to faith questions. Acknowledging doubt was a change of direction in my Christian career," he admitted. The song was relentlessly open and honest, and found Duncan in a mood to no longer pretend that he was an expert on spiritual matters...

I spent my time between the answers
And I swear there's nothin leaves you more alone
Tracing your faith through fact and fiction
Whatever it takes to draw that line

You know that I hate to wait

I'm someone that feels
That I can't fake the answers
And I don't make believe
I just keep praying
God don't fail me now!
I hardly know the questions
But I'll stand rest assured
That You won't leave me
Whistlin' in the...

I'm just a man, nobody's hero
And left alone I stand on feet of clay
Counting the cracks found in this armor
So all of my strength must come from you
To carry me through the night

I can't fake the answers
I don't make believe I'm whistlin' in the dark
But I stand rest assured that you won't leave me
Whistlin' in the dark

"I can't fake the answers." That's about as brutally honest as any CCM artist was prepared to be in 1987.

The bouncy Paradise brightened the mood a great deal, and is a favorite from this record. It's almost as if this song is an R&B update on all those songs about Heaven that Bryan grew up singing in his daddy's church. In it, he playfully describes Heaven as "my favorite choice for a relocation." Duncan's old SCB mate Randy Thomas played guitar on this track, and if you listen, you can pick out the voice of Bob Carlisle on backing vocals.

All My Life was a pop ballad that served as a good vehicle for Duncan's powerful voice.

"The best lyric on the record for me was Break Out Of Chains," Duncan told me. One reviewer called that song "an R&B celebration of how the truth will set you free."

Above me gather legions who've stood the test of time
A cloud they are who witness a master's grand design
I find myself surrounded, a threat on every side
I've just begun to suffer where greater men have died
To stand and face the challenge, to quench the fiery dart
Won't find your strength in numbers
In a struggle for the heart
The prisoner of your mind

The lure of secret vices, integrity let slide
Discreet, misplaced affection, a self-indulgent pride
Addictive taste of power, the smell of sweet success
Whatever makes you stumble will be your only test
To stand and face the challenge, to quench the fiery dart
Won't find your strength in numbers
In a struggle for the heart
The prisoner of your mind

Break out of chains
Find the lock and turn the key
Break out of chains
Know the truth will set you free
Break out of chains
One more time, now do it right
Break out of chains
If I have to fight all night
Break out of chains

Break Out Of Chains is especially poignant in light of Bryan's own battles with addiction, a subject about which he has been very open in recent years (more about that in a moment). By the way, John Mitchell turned in a nice sax solo on this track.

When I Think of Home was a memorable ballad from this record. With a different production approach, this song would've fit on an SCB album.

When I told him that Every Heart Has An Open Door was probably my favorite song on the album, Bryan Duncan laughed and admitted, "Every Heart was completely written on the fly! The title was taken out of my journaling and the hook was added last minute. I needed something and I just made it fit!" He also acknowledged that most of the songs on Whistlin' In The Dark "were completely built from loop patterns."

At least one reviewer thought that You Can Rely On Me compared favorably to the Eagles' Heartache Tonight, only with much more hopeful lyrics. The horn section (John Mitchell, Glen Myerscough, Don Markese, Larry Hall, Stu Blumberg) shines on this track.

Another standout track is a funky gem called Help Is On The Way. The memorable bridge recalls Christian Skate Night at the local roller rink.   

Dot dot dot, are-you-O-K? Are-you-O-K?
Oh no! Oh no! S-O-S! Help is one the way!

After almost a full side of Duncan-esque funkiness, it was time to close out the album with another ballad. You're Never Alone, cowritten with Chuck Barth and producer Larry Brown, is a source of encouragement that Jesus is always with us.  

I asked Bryan Duncan if, looking back, he is pleased wit the album Whistlin' in the Dark. "I don't know," he answered,"but it was the best I could do at the time!" He says that WITD marked the beginning of a period of co-authoring more songs with other writers, as opposed to going it alone.

In fact, Chuck Barth co-wrote more than half of the songs on WITD; Brown co-wrote 2; while Don Cason and Gary Whitlock helped out on All My Life.

After Whistlin' In The Dark, Bryan Duncan continued to tour and record...and tour and record...and tour...and record...to the point of burn-out. He eventually became a "star," landing 10 #1 songs on Christian radio in the 1990s. So he found the music industry success that had eluded the Sweet Comfort Band...and yet it was not fulfilling. Even though he ended up selling well over a million albums during a career that has spanned more than 30 years, the pressures of performing 200 dates a year, constantly being away from home, and always having to promote himself wreaked a lot of havoc for Bryan. A marriage dissolved along the way, and he has been quite open about his bouts with addiction and depression. He explains that people (even Christians) engage in self-medication when they rely on something other than God to bring comfort. And when that something becomes unmanageable, it's an addiction. For some it's drugs or alcohol; for others it's food or work or acclaim; still others become addicted to sex or unhealthy relationships. Whatever the coping mechanism, it can be a destructive force. Duncan understands all of that from personal experience. He's now able to reach out to others who have similar issues and point them toward hope and healing. 

Bryan Duncan still writes and records, sings and tours. He'll come to your church, maybe even do a house concert or private event. To learn more about scheduling an event or obtaining Bryan's newest music, visit www.bryanduncan.com. The Sweet Comfort Band even released a reunion album a few years back and they reunite to do select dates now and then. 

On songs like Whistlin' in the Dark and Break Out of Chains, we began to get clues that Duncan was aware of his own shortcomings, his own limitations. Growing up in a pastor's home, he says he was given answers at a very early age to questions no one was even asking. So, during his years with SCB and his solo career, he felt pressure to be an expert on all things spiritual, but he knew that he wasn't.

In a 2009 interview with The Christian Examiner, Duncan said, "I think of all the years I expounded Scripture through music and talked about God's marvelous grace and those kinds of things. I never had much experience on it. I just borrowed what I said and I just cut and pasted what needed to be there to be acceptable in Christian circles."

Over time, that changed. Bryan became very open and honest in his music concerning the fact that he doesn't have all the answers. And he's no longer chasing "success." 

"I don't have to be acceptable in Christian circles any more," he told The Christian Examiner. "Not sure I ever will be. I can only give to God what I have and what I am. It's up to Him to do something from there. The world is clearly not revolving around me."

I hardly know the questions
But I'll stand rest assured
That You won't leave me
Whistlin' in the...