As I said last week, I’m on a bit of a Steve Taylor kick. For this one, I’ll let Taylor’s own words (in the booklet for the boxed set Now the Truth Can Be Told) explain my reason for posting it:
Ah, to have the Bible’s sense of balance.My goal with “A Principled Man” was to write a song that inspired me to live a principled life. The seed came from a “tree motif” in the Book of Psalms: “Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or stand in the way of sinners, or sit in the seat of mockers. But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. He is like a tree planted by streams of water . . .” (Psalms 1:1-3)But lest principles become an end unto themselves, we have in Ezekiel the dark side of the tree metaphor: “Therefore, this is what the sovereign Lord says: Because it towered on high, lifting its top above the thick foliage, and because it was proud of its height . . . I cast it aside.” (Ezekiel 31:10-11)This song still inspires me. May it continue to do so for all the right reasons.
A Principled Man
Under a flag they swore a bond;
Caught under fire they ran.
Are you the one standing your ground?
Are you a principled man?Followers fall, blinded by kings,
Lost in the lie of the land.
Are you the one sworn to be true?
Are you a principled man?Now . . . begin—come alongside it,
Seize the wind—come along, ride it.
One day it will be you believing
There is a principled man.Who goes there? Do you belong, lad?
You know there is a new dawn, and
One day to say, “Stick with me, baby,
I am a principled man.”Many’s the man grounded by greed,
Leaning on power and land;
Show me the one lost in the stars—
Show me a principled man.ChorusBleeding and hushed, hung between thieves,
There the foundation began,
Are you the one taking your cross?
Are you a principled man?Words and music: Steve Taylor
© 1987 Soylent Tunes
From the album I Predict 1990, by Steve Taylor