Get all 8 Stephen McNeill releases available on Bandcamp and save 20%.
Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of The Art of Repair, Centerpiece Volume II: Shelter and Shade, Centerpiece: Songs of Gospel Community, The Sounding Joy, Cissy Strut, Names EP, Our Roots Run Deep, and Light of Light Eternal.
1. |
Come To Me
02:53
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Wearied by the changes and the chances of this world
I come to you for rest,
For comfort that is only found in your eternal changelessness
Laden with the burden of my guilt and my regret
I come to you for peace,
For only you can calm the storm that rages on my troubled seas
And you say,
“Come to me, come to me
I’ll put your fears to flight
Come to me, come to me
My yoke is easy; my burden is light”
Toiling in the desert sun of my anxiety
I come to quench my thirst
The living water you supply is all that overwhelms this curse
And you say,
“Come to me, come to me
I’ll put your fears to flight
Come to me, come to me
My yoke is easy and my burden is light”
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2. |
In The Light
04:21
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When I turned to look back
The sun had burned away the fog
And there along the tree line stood
A doe and her grazing fawn
In the dew wet grass as the morning passed,
Wild and silent shadows cast
Upon the waking meadow,
Living, breathing echoes
Of the voice that spoke creation into being
The voice that even still calls out to me
I couldn’t see it before
But true colors break through
In the light, in the light
I was cold and hardened
I was just too tired to care
Underneath a ceaseless burden
That I carried with me everywhere
But you saw me hurting and confused
Your words of grace, in brightest hues
Illuminated all my lurking fears
And it's hard to hear the truth,
But it’s something that I can’t afford to lose
I couldn’t see it before
But true colors break through
In the light, in the light
It can hurt, and it can heal
To finally understand what’s real
It might destroy the only life we knew
But then from the ground comes a tiny rebel sound
A seedling in the dark is breaking through
We couldn’t see it before
But now it towers above us
Basking in the light
In the light
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3. |
St. Patrick's Day
04:44
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If you forgot St. Patrick’s Day,
“My eyes are green,” is what you’d say
I’ve always used the same excuse
‘Cause my eyes came from you
I’ve always been my mother’s son
Built like my dad, but I am more the quiet one
You did what none of us could do
But now those days are through
The spring was coming on
The baby blooms were peeking out to feel the sun
But my time had come and gone
To be with you
Some things just cannot be undone
I drove behind the ambulance
I knew you never stood a chance
The dawn was breaking in the east
And that breaking did not cease
We took a trip out to the beach
Just like we did when it was Dad and you and me
I thought about you in the sand
As I held my daughter’s hand
Now spring is coming on
And in the trees, the bluebird’s song is taking flight
And as I step into another season’s change,
I'll walk by faith and not by sight
And I won’t forget St. Patrick’s Day
I’ll wear some green and tell the kids what you would say
I’ll show them love that they can’t lose
I learned that from you
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4. |
Rebuild
04:36
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It started by the kitchen sink
A faulty wire, worn and frayed
It spread too quick for us to think
We had just seconds to escape
As we stood shivering in the street
And surveyed the smoldering remains
Our lives in ruin at our feet
There was choice for us to make
Rebuild, rebuild
Brick by brick together
Rebuild, rebuild
So that we can stand the weather
It isn’t easy but it’s better
If we try to rebuild
Sometimes your friends will let you down
Sometimes they’ll say the same of you
Sometimes the damage is severe
And there is nothing you can do
But rebuild, rebuild
Brick by brick together
Rebuild, rebuild
So that we can stand the weather
It isn’t easy but it’s better
If we try to rebuild
No one would blame us if we left
And started over somewhere new
Some cracks just cannot be repaired
Some land is better left unused
But the truest beauty that I know
Is not the earth, the stars, the sky
It’s when the dire wounds of death
Are healed as scars that pulse with life
So, let’s rebuild, rebuild
Brick by brick together
Rebuild, rebuild
So that we can stand the weather
It isn’t easy but it’s better to
Rebuild, rebuild
Brick by brick together
Rebuild, rebuild
If we give up altogether
It would be easier, not better
I think we should rebuild
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5. |
All I Want To Know
05:10
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When I was just sixteen years old
I had this group of friends
We ran around this town, you know
‘Til the streetlights called us in
One October day, my best girlfriend said to me,
“I’d like to introduce a young man you might like to meet.”
He had an old, red Mercury,
And we asked him for a ride
I really don’t remember when,
But before we got inside,
He looked me in the eye, just as serious as could be,
And said, “Hey, Mary Nell, you’re gonna marry me”
I will never know
Who I would be without him
All I want to know is when I’ll see him again
I met him on his day of birth
He was eighteen years of age
It took a while to fall in love,
But two years later to the day
I walked that chapel aisle down on Union Avenue,
And made a promise always, ever, only to be true
Mike came first, then Doug and Tim
Then we prayed for a girl
Pam, she came one winter’s day
Another precious pearl
Upon a strand we never dreamed would grow to be long
I wish your Pop could see all these kids who’ve come along
I will never know
Who I would be without him
All I want to know is when I’ll see him again
One April day in ‘91
It was time to say goodbye
The cigarettes, they took their toll
And I held him as he died
I have never been the same, and though it’s been so long,
His arms are still the only place I ever will belong
I will never know
Who I would be without him
All I want to know is when I’ll see him again
I don’t want to know
Who I would be without him
All I want to know is when I’ll see him again
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6. |
Brother
02:15
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We’re getting older, brother
I can see it in the lines on our faces
I can feel it in the stories we tell
And things are not well
And now we need each other
Much more than when we were kids
When it didn’t matter so much what we did
We were just kids
Our love is all we have left
Of the days that we knew
Before life was a mess
Some hurts are hard to forget
But don’t give up yet
Don’t give up yet
I am your older brother
Almost eleven years passed
Without knowing what it would mean
To have you on my team
So when the rain is falling
And the ground seems to shift at your feet
And you can’t find the help that you need
You’ve still got me
Our love is all we have left
Of the days that we knew
Before life was a mess
Some hurts are hard to forget
But don’t give up yet
Don’t give up yet
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7. |
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I don’t have anything to say to you
‘Cause I’ve talked until my face was numb and blue
And I’ve said all I can say
You never listened anyway
So, I don’t have anything to say to you
I don’t know why you call me on the phone
I guess you can’t accept what we all know:
That it’s time to give this up
You’ve already said enough
So, I don’t know why you call me on the phone
I’ve heard it said before,
And it will be said some more,
That a man can only do what he can do
And I’ve done all that I can
But you just won’t understand
So, I don’t have anything to say to you
I suppose that things could change
We could see eye to eye again
And a flying pig could make its grand debut
But I won’t hold my breath
I’m moving on from this, I guess
‘Cause I don’t have anything to say to you
No, I don't have anything to say to you
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8. |
Little One
03:13
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Little one, I can't get past your eyes
They expose the broken parts of me
Your tiny hands hold my heart
And mend it so I can see
A gift you are, you are
And grace shines bright in your blue eyes
A gift you are, you are
A tool in the hand of the Maker
Little one, my deeds don't match my words
My dirty hands don't match my heart
The Spirit isn't finished with me yet
I only see in part
A gift you are, you are
Coming down from the Father of lights
A gift you are, you are
A tool in the hand of the Maker
Little one, real change comes slow but strong
Like a river through a canyon runs
It strips away the years of stone
A masterpiece that's never done
A gift you are, you are
Proof of true love multiplied
A gift you are, you are
A tool in the hand of the Maker
A gift you are, you are
Created in the image of God
A gift you are, you are
A tool in the hand of the Maker
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9. |
I Am Brian Wilson
03:34
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I am Brian Wilson
And I am Mike Love
I am every contradiction
That you could think of
I am optimistic,
Borderline naive
Or else I am a cynic,
Never know who to believe
Show me what I’m missing
Tell it to me plain
Shatter the illusions
That I judge myself against
’Cause it’s hard to know yourself
Without an honest friend
Pride is not the monster
I thought that it would be
It’s much more like a whisper
That drowns out reality
Bound up altogether
With the faith that I call mine
Is every inclination
To steal, to cheat, to lie
Show me what I’m missing
Tell it to me plain
Shatter the illusions
That I judge myself against
’Cause it’s hard to know yourself
Without an honest friend
It’s hard to know yourself
Without an honest friend
'Cause you’re the one who knows
What I’m really up against
So don’t hold back, my friend
(It's hard to know yourself)
Don’t hold back, my friend
(It's hard to know yourself)
Don’t hold back, my friend
(It's hard to know yourself)
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10. |
No Task Undone
04:30
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For the long road through the wilderness
And your faithfulness to me
Oh Lord, I give you thanks
For your patient work and your steady hand
And your perfect plan for me
Oh Lord, I give you thanks
I am sure of this: that he who began
This work in me will leave no task undone
Your kindness to repentance leads
So Lord, I give you thanks
The father shows compassion strong
And suffers long with us
Though discipline may come
He is slow to wrath but never slack
In pruning back a branch
That we would bear his fruit
I am sure of this: that he who began
This work in me will leave no task undone
Your kindness to repentance leads
So Lord, I give you thanks
To pastures green we follow you
And though we pass through the flood
Oh Lord, you won’t lose one
You’ll remember me when your kingdom comes
and your will is done on earth
Forever as in heav’n
I am sure of this: that he who began
This work in me will leave no task undone
Your kindness to repentance leads
So Lord, I give you thanks
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11. |
Fourth of July
03:52
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When the daylight runs short
And the hours crawl by,
And the midwinter moon rises high,
As I lay down beside you,
With the world on my mind
I dream of the Fourth of July
The sun on my skin
And the wind at my back
And your body close against mine
It feels like forever since the world felt alright
Like it did on the Fourth of July
I remember that night
By the light of the stars
We danced and we laughed til we cried
We talked long with friends
Til our glasses were dry
Sipping slow on the Fourth of July
But the sweet summer breeze
Seems a tale we forgot
And each morning I wake with a sigh
From a dream I keep having
Of an eagle in flight
By the river on the Fourth of July
The cold’s as forgiving
As the blade of a knife
Some days I feel barely alive
But as long as you’re with me
I’ll try and get by
And get back to the Fourth of July
The sun on my skin,
The wind at my back,
Your body close against mine
It feels like forever since the world felt alright
Like it did on the Fourth of July
It feels like forever since the world felt alright
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Stephen McNeill Olive Branch, Mississippi
Stephen McNeill is a songwriter, musician, and music teacher who lives just outside of Memphis. He has produced four albums including his latest, The Art of Repair (October 2021). The Art of Repair is a collection of stories and prayers about picking up the pieces after a season of loss. ... more
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