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Randy Travis – Above All (Live At Calvary Assemble Of God, Orlando, FL/2003)

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Introduction

In the realm of contemporary Christian music, “Above All” stands as a poignant testament to the genre’s ability to bridge the gap between divine adoration and profound personal reflection. Composed by Paul Baloche and Lenny LeBlanc, this song first resonated through church halls and radios in the late 1990s, quickly ascending to a beloved status among worship anthems worldwide.

At its core, “Above All” is a narrative of sacrificial love and divine supremacy, poetically juxtaposing the wonders of nature and human achievement against the humility and greatness of Jesus’ sacrifice. The imagery is rich and evocative, with lines that paint pictures of kings and thrones, juxtaposed with the stark image of a crucified savior. What makes the song particularly moving is not just its lyrical depth but the gentle, almost tender melody that carries these profound truths. It’s a melody that reaches out, wrapping listeners in a comforting embrace, reminding them of a love that transcends earthly bounds.

To sit with “Above All” is to be reminded of the quiet power of faith. It’s easy to see why it touches so many so deeply: in moments of personal reflection, the song serves as a gentle whisper in the ear, a reminder of something greater than ourselves, something “above all” worldly concerns and struggles. Its impact on listeners is a testament to its spiritual depth—many describe feeling a sense of peace and reassurance, a reminder of their place in a larger cosmic story.

Engaging with “Above All” is like revisiting an old friend who speaks wisdom softly but firmly. Each listen is a call to reflect on our own lives, to find beauty and meaning above the noise and haste of everyday existence. For many, it’s more than just a song; it’s a spiritual touchstone.

So, the next time you find yourself looking for a moment of peace, let “Above All” be your guide. Let it lift you above the trivial and transcend into a space of grace and eternal perspective. It’s not just a song; it’s a journey, a prayer, and a profound reminder of the divine that surrounds and supports us all

Video

Lyrics

Above all kingdoms
Above all thrones
Above all wonders
The world has ever known
Above all wealth
And treasures of the earth
There’s no way to measure
What You’re worth.
Above all powers
Above all kings
Above all nature
And all created things
Above all wisdom
And all the ways of man
You were here
Before the world began.
Crucified
Laid behind the stone
You lived to die
Rejected and alone
Like a rose
Trampled on the ground
You took the fall
And thought of me
Above all.
Crucified
Laid behind the stone
You lived to die
Rejected and alone
Like a rose
Trampled on the ground
You took the fall
And thought of me
Above all.
Crucified
Laid behind the stone
You lived to die
Rejected and alone
Like a rose
Trampled on the ground
You took the fall
And thought of me
Above all.
Like the rose
Trampled on the ground
You took the fall
And thought of me
Above all.

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TRACE ADKINS WAS SHOT BY HIS SECOND WIFE DURING A 1994 DOMESTIC DISPUTE. THE BULLET PASSED THROUGH BOTH LUNGS AND HIS HEART — AND HE SURVIVED EMERGENCY TREATMENT. TWO YEARS LATER, HE WAS WALKING INTO A NASHVILLE STUDIO TO MAKE HIS FIRST ALBUM. On February 21, 1994, Trace Adkins was at home outside Nashville with his second wife, Julie Curtis. He had been drinking. The argument got worse. Curtis picked up a .38 pistol. Adkins later said he tried to take it from her. Then she fired. The bullet went through his left lung, through his heart, through his right lung, and out the other side. He was rushed to Vanderbilt. Doctors operated. For a while, the people around him were waiting to find out whether he would make it through the night. At that point, Trace was still just another big-voiced singer trying to get noticed in Nashville. He had moved there from Louisiana in 1992. He was playing Tillie and Lucy’s, a small beer joint in Mount Juliet. No hit record. No Capitol album. No “You’re Gonna Miss This.” No crowds waiting for the deep voice everybody would know later. He survived. He did not press charges. The marriage ended. Then he went back to Tillie and Lucy’s. Later that year, Capitol Nashville executive Scott Hendricks came in to hear him. Trace sang. Hendricks signed him on the spot. In 1996, Dreamin’ Out Loud came out. A year later, “(This Ain’t) No Thinkin’ Thing” went to No. 1.

Country Music

HE WAS ON THE ROAD, TALKING TO HIS WIFE, WHEN HE SAID THE WORDS THAT WOULD TURN INTO A SONG ABOUT A MAN DYING UNDER A BRIDGE. The road had become part of the job. Airports, buses, hotel rooms, soundchecks, another city before the last one had settled in his mind. He tried to reassure her the way people on the road often do. “This is temporary,” he told her. “I’m almost home.” The phrase stayed with him. Later, Morgan and songwriter Kerry Kurt Phillips built a different story around it. Not a road song. Not a love song. A song about a homeless man lying under a bridge, cold and tired, dreaming of a woman named Jenny and a place he can finally reach. “Almost Home” did not sound like a normal radio calculation. The man in the song was not drinking in a bar, driving a truck, or trying to get a girl back. He was dying. The final turn was quiet: the police officer finds him in the morning, but the man has already gone where he believed home really was. Morgan recorded it for his 2003 album I Love It. The song became his breakthrough. It reached the country Top 10, won BMI Song of the Year recognition, and introduced a different side of Craig Morgan to listeners. They knew the soldier. They knew the working-class singer. Now they heard him telling a story about someone most people passed without seeing. Years later, Jelly Roll told Morgan that “Almost Home” had helped him through jail. That may be the strangest part of the song’s life. It began with a husband on the road trying to reassure his wife. It became a dying man’s last dream. Then it reached people in places Craig Morgan could not have imagined when he first said the words into a phone.

Country Music

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Country Music

HE WAS ON THE ROAD, TALKING TO HIS WIFE, WHEN HE SAID THE WORDS THAT WOULD TURN INTO A SONG ABOUT A MAN DYING UNDER A BRIDGE. The road had become part of the job. Airports, buses, hotel rooms, soundchecks, another city before the last one had settled in his mind. He tried to reassure her the way people on the road often do. “This is temporary,” he told her. “I’m almost home.” The phrase stayed with him. Later, Morgan and songwriter Kerry Kurt Phillips built a different story around it. Not a road song. Not a love song. A song about a homeless man lying under a bridge, cold and tired, dreaming of a woman named Jenny and a place he can finally reach. “Almost Home” did not sound like a normal radio calculation. The man in the song was not drinking in a bar, driving a truck, or trying to get a girl back. He was dying. The final turn was quiet: the police officer finds him in the morning, but the man has already gone where he believed home really was. Morgan recorded it for his 2003 album I Love It. The song became his breakthrough. It reached the country Top 10, won BMI Song of the Year recognition, and introduced a different side of Craig Morgan to listeners. They knew the soldier. They knew the working-class singer. Now they heard him telling a story about someone most people passed without seeing. Years later, Jelly Roll told Morgan that “Almost Home” had helped him through jail. That may be the strangest part of the song’s life. It began with a husband on the road trying to reassure his wife. It became a dying man’s last dream. Then it reached people in places Craig Morgan could not have imagined when he first said the words into a phone.

Country Music

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