Jars of Clay is a Christian rock band from Nashville, Tennessee. They met at Greenville College in Greenville, Illinois.
Jars of Clay consists of Dan Haseltine on vocals, Charlie Lowell on piano and keyboards, Stephen Mason on lead guitars and Matthew Odmark on rhythm guitars. Although the band has no permanent drummer or bassist, Jeremy Lutito and Gabe Ruschival of Disappointed By Candy fill these roles for live concerts. Past tour band members include Aaron Sands, Scott Savage, and Joe Porter. Jars of Clay's style is a blend of alternative rock, folk, acoustic, and R&B.
The band's name is derived from the New International Version's translation of 2 Corinthians 4:7:
This verse is paraphrased in their song "Four Seven", which appears as a hidden track on the CD release of their self-titled album.
Dan Haseltine, Steve Mason, Charlie Lowell and Matt Bronleewe formed Jars of Clay at Greenville College, in Greenville, Illinois in the early 1990s.Charlie Lowell first met Dan Haseltine after noticing that he was wearing a Toad the Wet Sprocket shirt. Pursuing a career in music together was not necessarily their original goal; some of the first songs they wrote together were for music and recording classes they were taking at the time. Their second guitarist Matt Odmark joined some time later. While in college playing together at local coffee houses, Jars gained a reputation for their original arrangement of "Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer" which had been adapted to the tune of Nirvana's "Smells Like Teen Spirit".
Jars of Clay is the eponymous first full-length studio album by Christian rock group Jars of Clay. It was released on October 24, 1995 by Essential Records. The album has been highly acclaimed, being one of few Christian albums of the mid-nineties to achieve platinum status. As the group's debut album, Jars of Clay introduced many internationally to the group and established the group due to their distinctive style.
Jars of Clay's eponymous first full-length album is characterized by a combination of drum loops and acoustic guitar strumming that would become an early trademark of the band. Strings are also used prominently in most of the songs. Honest, intense, poetic, and harmonic with sonic influences as diverse as Gregorian chants, mandolin, and gothic layered vocals, Jars of Clay was a refreshing break from the pessimism and alterna-angst that dominated the mid-90s music scene.
The album was mostly self-produced, with the exception of "Liquid" and "Flood" which were produced by King Crimson guitarist Adrian Belew.
I love the way, the way you carry on
You make me wanna say, you make me wanna sing another love song
Sing another love song, sing another love song
Sing another love song to you
Bury my head for the shame, you pick me pup, you say I look like you
Though it makes no sense to me, you make me believe that I could trust someone
I could ever trust someone, I could ever trust someone
I could ever trust someone, I could ever trust someone
Through flame, I touch the fire, you know that I still burn for you
Flood water rain crash down, soak the ground, still I thirst for you
Still I thirst for you
Sing another love song, sing another love song
Though it makes no sense ot me, it make me want to sing