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Debut album titles are often self-titled. It’s a testament to Mark Philpot’s character, substance, and focus, that he would name his first album Sovereignty of You, rather than Mark Philpot. A quick scan of his self-penned lyrics show a man quite willing to explore weighty theological themes, no small task within the time constraints of a four minute song. Among other topics, Sovereignty of You digs into the assurance of salvation, God’s providence, and God’s will. If you have a comfort level with much of present day, radio-ready CCM, which often panders to its audience and dumbs down the Word of God, perhaps you should be warned that Sovereignty of You requires that you listen with brain engaged. If you appreciate an artist with a gutsy willingness to tackle issues outside this often shallow creative paradigm, read on. 

For context, understand that Sovereignty of You is a low-budget effort from an indie artist. Although his musical skills are solid, Mark Philpot is essentially a freshman in the school of song writing and guitar playing. In fact, barely over the age of twenty, Philpot didn’t even pick up a guitar until around the age of sixteen. Up to that point, much of his free time was devoted to baseball, soccer, and basketball, with little thought given to musical pursuits. You’ve got to admire the courage it takes to venture into the recording studio with such limited experience. Moreover, crafting an album under those circumstances, which doesn’t fall on its face, is downright impressive.

Stylistically, Philpot builds his sound primarily from a folksy acoustic guitar base, occasionally embellished simply and tastefully with the work of a couple of noteworthy instrumentalists. Jordon Critz of the praise and worship pop/rock band Destination Known supplies a savory dose of electric guitar on the chorus of "Captive", the opening song on the project. Another supporting cast high light is the contribution of Debbie Brooks, a cellist from the Ft. Worth Symphony Orchestra. Taking a page from the Jars of Clay playbook, Philpot and producer Oliver Benavidez succeed in using Brook’s cello to create appropriate ambiance. "Not the Way" is colored with an aching, melancholy mood. In "You are Beautiful", although subtle, the cello creates an aura of earnest, unaffected sincerity.

Sovereignty of You is an ideal title for this work. The Christian life is stacked to the steeple with mystifying questions. Why doesn’t God shelter us from pain? Why do children die of cancer? When debilitated and destroyed by a string of life’s most trying events, why does God allow yet one more thing to smack us upside the face? Why, why, why?

Some folks smile and pretend everything’s fine, while their hidden soul rumbles like a thunderstorm. Others choose to blow through the pain, naively believing the invisible walls they build really aren’t there. Still others self medicate and self-indulge, numbing doubts and pain with drugs, alcohol, and all manner of compulsive addictions. Sometimes it seems that few of us are willing to face these difficult issues with courage and conviction. With Sovereignty of You, Philpot joins the small stable of artists with a passion for maintaining eye contact with truth and candor.

Making such private reflections public can be like balancing on a high wire. The writing must be personal, yet not so personal that the listener can’t identify with the meaning. Says Philpot, "The tough part about writing so intensely personal is trying to make it something everyone can relate to. You have to make the focal point the universal emotion that everyone has felt, the questions that everyone has asked, rather than just the specific situation."

"Not the Way" illustrates Philpot’s unflinching inclination for asking tough questions:

It wasn’t the way it’s supposed to be
A loving father of three
Fighting this cancer, and fighting to stay alive
What did he ever do
To deserve this from you
This can’t be in your plan
We weren’t created for this much pain
And I know it’s not my place
But there must be some mistake

If we question and doubt in a vacuum, without the context and conviction of fundamental Biblical truth, we risk being tossed about as a boat on the raging sea. Although stopping far short of dogmatically prescribing glib answers, Philpot does offer foundational tenets of truth that make living with ambiguous circumstance, formidable questions, and shades of doubt, easier to understand and ultimately, accept. "Providence" features this passage:

And it’s been so long since I’ve believed what I couldn’t see
And trusted in the sovereignty of you
But your providence outweighs my confidence
My confidence in the truth

Thankfully, Philpot does a decent job of tenderizing these meaty themes into bites that are easier to chew. Still, a few of the songs seem to last too long and diverge into occasional side bars. "Providence" is a good song, but it has three choruses. The melody of the chorus is memorable and strong and it was clever how Philpot wrote similar, yet different lyrics, depicting slightly variant aspects of God’s relationship with us. Despite that, this is heavy stuff, intermittently hard to chew, and you won’t just be singing along after a couple of repetitions. Although I’ve listened to this CD over twenty times, I’m just now starting to learn the words.

Speaking of songwriting, you might notice Philpot attempting to insert too many words or syllables into a line. That’s no surprise. He’s obviously an artist with a lot to say. Still, once a metering pattern is established, if the singer or songwriter changes the cadence, the song can lose momentum or have moments of sounding clumsy. This slip-up is commonly found in the work of developing songsmiths and is easily remedied. Be that as it may, Philpot has a flair and intuition for creating a pleasing melody, which is far more important than the fine tuning of specific beats. 

Without question, the best song on the album is "You are Beautiful," which was written for and played at his brother’s wedding. The song is gorgeous as a bride in waiting, resplendent in her dress. The pacing and diction are perfect. The hook, "you are beautiful," with the harmony of Sandra McCracken sound alike Ashfield Duke coming and going at just the right time, is stunning.

Mark Philpot has a likeable and interesting, earthy tone to his voice, reminiscent of Marc Cohn. It sounds weathered and experienced, lending a "been there, done that" credibility to the songs he writes. Although he slides slightly off key a time or two, the overall impression we get is that Philpot can more than hold his own as a lead singer.

Ask about musical influences, Philpot mentions Andrew Peterson, Don McLean, Nichole Nordeman, Jim Croce, Derek Webb, John Mayer, Jon Foreman of Switchfoot, DMB, David Wilcox, Rich Mullins, Jennifer Knapp, Jonatha Brooke, and Caedmon’s Call. Philpot shares at least one characteristic with these artists. In a word, songwriting. Although still in the development mode, Philpot has the thoughtful spirit and songwriting sensibility of these artists. From there, it’s just a matter of practice and time.

At this stage of his career, Philpot is working in a corporate environment by day and performing as time permits, on weekends. Says Philpot, "Yes, it’s been a struggle, but, when God gives desires, He provides the means to use them for His glory. I’ve learned that if I am always looking to the future and knowing God has plans for me to fulfill, but, I’m not content with knowing He has me right where I am now, for a purpose too, then I’m not trusting in the full Sovereignty of God." Sounds to me like a guy who has invested his heart fully in the very themes he writes about in Sovereignty of You.

In a quote taken from a forthcoming interview with Seventhseed.com, a web site devoted to promoting emerging Christian artists, Philpot says, "... the most important thing, as a musician, and for that matter as a human on this planet, is to share the truth of the message of Christ in an honest and culturally relevant way – and let that be salt and light to an ever-darkening world – and hopefully that’s portrayed in my music, and my life. Because in the end, it’s all going up in smoke, and God’s not going to ask how great my songs were, you know?"

In short, the debut effort from Mark Philpot is substantive and cerebral, perhaps too much so for some audiences. Even so, other listeners will see the projects brainy sophistication as its strength. The lyrics are insightful. The tunes are pleasant and interesting. Although a little awkward in isolated areas, Sovereignty of You features respectable vocals and sturdy instrumental support. The miscues are few and easily attributed to Philpot’s relative inexperience. And although still finding his wings as an emerging artist, Mark Philpot is a man with a spiritual maturity way beyond his years. When this man’s artistic development catches up with his already keen spiritual sensibility, I predict we will behold something very memorable. In the mean time, I won't forget Sovereignty of You. It's an album Philpot should feel good about and you most certainly will enjoy.

Curt McLey July 16, 2002