#286 SIGNATURE by Scott Wesley Brown (1982)

SIGNATURE by Scott Wesley Brown (1982)
Sparrow - SPR 1061

Producer: Dan Collins


File Under: Singer-Songwriter/CCM

Time Capsule-Worthy Track:

He Will Carry You

Scott Wesley Brown has worn many hats over the years. 

After beginning his music ministry as a shaggy-haired folk-rocker, Brown eventually morphed into one of CCM's most played balladeers and most respected singer-songwriters - with a strong emphasis on missions. While many artists had a Compassion booth at their concerts, Scott Wesley Brown walked the walk by traveling to more than 50 countries, supplying hundreds of musical instruments to missionaries and believers in Third World countries, and conducting the first publicly promoted Christian music event in what was then the Soviet Union to an audience of over 15,000 people, with 2,000 making a decision to follow Jesus. Working with the U.S. Center for World Missions, he has ministered to audiences around the globe. He's also led worship seminars and served as a worship leader and Senior Pastor here in the United States. For Mr. Brown, it's always been about more than radio airplay and magazine covers.

Born June 4, 1952, in the City of Brotherly Love, Scott Wesley Brown developed a love for music at an early age. "My first attraction to music was my grandmother’s piano," Brown said in an interview with ccmclassic.com. "It was one of those old uprights and barely in tune. But to me, it was the door that opened up into a world of endless possibilities, especially for a three-year-old." 

The guitar came later. 

"I received my first guitar for my seventh birthday," he recalls, "and despite the fact that I had no idea of how to tune it, I spent hours making up songs. But the real epiphany came in sixth grade."

Scott was inspired by a sixth-grade teacher who encouraged him to write poetry -- a skill that he would eventually hone into a gift for songwriting. "Each afternoon she would sit down with me and read through my poems," he remembers, "helping me steer through the grammar, the tense and the flow. By the end of that sixth-grade year I was starting to add music to those poems and thus a career was born." 

Scott later surrendered his heart and life to Jesus Christ during the Jesus Movement. I had a chance recently to talk to him about the early years of his music ministry.

"I became a Christian in 1970," he said, "and because I was a musician I was asked to play at various Christian events including Young Life clubs where I led the singing. We used to take secular songs and add Christian lyrics. After a while, I thought I should just write my own Christian songs. So in 1971, I came out with a 45 RPM record of 4 songs I'd written! That later led to a full album in 1973." 

The album to which Scott refers was a very hip, self-titled release on an indie label. In 1973 it was ahead of its time; today it's a collector's item. And it almost led to an exciting opportunity for Scott Wesley Brown.

Larry Norman

"My dad was sending my songs to several record companies and that led to me signing on to be an artist with Larry Norman's Solid Rock label. Unfortunately, it was taking too long for all the things to come together, so I left and recorded an album with Gary S. Paxton in Nashville. We did one album together and then I was asked to sign with Sparrow Records in LA."

Hmm. 

Sounds like Scott got the old hurry-up-and-wait treatment from Mr. Norman. Who knows what might've been? On the other hand, Brown doesn't seem like the typical Solid Rock type. Maybe it was all the hand of Providence at work in his life and ministry. After all, the footsteps of a righteous man are ordered by the Lord, right? But to work with two larger-than-life personalities like Larry Norman and Gary S. Paxton? That's a lot for a young believer to take in. 

On his 1975 I Am A Christian release on Newpax Records, Brown was assisted by the likes of Paxton, Randy Matthews, and some of the finest studio musicians in Nashville at the time. A year later, he made the move to Sparrow and released an album with a cumbersome yet memorable title: I'm Not Religious, I Just Love the Lord. The title track and a song called I Wish You Jesus would become huge hits, the latter still a favorite of Brown's audiences even today. Brown received help on his Sparrow debut from a (then) new group called Glad and a young Steve Camp, who sang background vocals and played some acoustic guitar on the record.

After a live project and two more studio albums, it was time for Brown to make a record called Signature in 1982. "Dan Collins produced Signature," Scott said, "and I had the honor of having his wife Jamie Owens-Collins sing on it."

Most of the albums covered on this blog will lean more to the rock and roll side of the aisle. Signature isn't one of them. It owes a lot more to middle-of-the-road pop than to rock and roll. It is, however, a quality recording from start to finish, featuring top-drawer musical performances from some great session players, along with the National Philharmonic of London. 

The opener, Within His Joy, sounds very much like the kind of accessible, feel-good pop music that Steve Camp and Michael James Murphy were making during the same time period. It features a scorching lead guitar solo and encouraging lyrics like these:

'Cause eyes weren't made for darkness
And ears weren't made for silence
And you weren't made to live without His joy
You can see His face in darkness
You can hear His voice in silence
You're free to live your life within His joy

Most of the songs on Signature exhort believers, encouraging Christians to walk by faith and place their trust in God's Word rather than feelings and emotions. A quiet confidence in the providence and sovereignty of God is a thread that runs through the entire project.

By the way, the song Babe is part of a small but notable catalog of love songs by Scott Wesley Brown. Like This is the Day and My Treasure, it was a celebration of romantic love, informed by a Christian worldview.

It Ain't Magic wraps Side One of Signature. Musically reminiscent of Jamie Owens Collins' I'm Yours, it's a full-throated endorsement of the supernatural power of God, whether expressed through healings and other types of miracles or through the salvation of our souls.

For whatever reason, most albums in the 70s and 80s began each side with an uptempo song. Scott Wesley Brown bucked that tendency by opening Side Two of Signature with a slower song. 

In hindsight, it was a ballad for the ages. 

"He Will Carry You became my 'signature' song in many ways (if you'll pardon the pun)," he says, smiling. "I actually wrote this song after reading the poem 'Footprints In The Sand.'"

Covered by artists as diverse as The Gaither Vocal Band and Lynda Randle (and lots of other folks in between), He Will Carry You contained a message of comfort and hope that struck a chord with millions of people over the years.

There is no problem too big God cannot solve it
There is no mountain too tall He cannot move it
There is no storm too dark God cannot calm it
There is no sorrow too deep He cannot soothe it

If He carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulders
I know my brother, that He will carry you
If He carried the weight of the world
Upon His shoulders
I know, my sister, that He will carry you

He said, "Come unto Me
All who are weary
And I will give you rest"

Musically, Brown's rendition of this song on Signature has a lot in common with the "Inspirational" genre of Christian music recorded by artists like Sandi Patti, Steve Green, and others. The song did benefit, however, from guest performances from some of CCM's most popular stars. 

"Yeah, the big treat was having Amy Grant and Gary Chapman sing backgrounds on that track," Scott recalled, "along with Jamie Owens-Collins. God just really blessed that song. It's been recorded in many languages around the world. I actually heard it in a restaurant in Hawaii where it was very popular! He Will Carry You really opened a lot of doors for me to travel internationally, especially after The Continentals recorded it and used it on dozens of their world tours." 

Other highlights on Side Two include an impressive, twin-lead, harmony guitar break on There Is Power...a power ballad (Just at the Right Time) that could've been a huge general market hit for Barry Manilow...and a poignant ballad (Wise Men) that grapples honestly with selfishness and our hollow justifications for rejecting the Savior... 

I would be a fool to let You go
I would be a fool, You know
But every single day You pass my way
And my only door is closed

How could I pretend I'm occupied
When I feel so empty inside
Am I just a fool or am I blind
What is my excuse this time

Wise men still seek You

"Overall, I was very pleased with Signature," Scott told me. "I loved my days at Sparrow. It felt like we were all a family!"

In all, Scott Wesley Brown's music ministry has spanned four decades. He has recorded more than 25 albums, with 9 #1 singles (Christian radio loved this guy). He's been a prolific songwriter; his songs have been covered by the likes of Petra, Pat Boone, Bruce Carroll, Sandi Patty, Amy Grant, the Imperials and even Plácido Domingo. He's also worked with Promise Keepers and Campus Crusade for Christ. 

I wasn't kidding when I said he's worn a lot of hats over the years.

L-R: Bob Bennett, Chuck Girard, Scott Wesley Brown

When asked about his favorite moments, he doesn't talk about awards or radio singles. "I would say my greatest highlights have taken place overseas where I've been privileged to minister in third world countries and have seen the dedication and faithfulness of believers who are in the midst of tremendous suffering, yet worship with total abandon," he says. "Even though they are poor or persecuted, they have humble and grateful hearts. This has shaped my entire approach to ministry. Being in fellowship with these precious brothers and sisters is greater than any award or commercial success I could have in the Christian music industry." 

He continues: "When we yield our lives to Him and give our hearts to Him in service, God can use us in remarkable ways. I don't think God ever wastes any of us. He uses us in what sometimes may seem like a small way, but it's significant in the Kingdom's economy."