Parker Ferrell genuinely loves his family. On the first two tracks of his debut album “Love Runs Through,” Parker introduces us to his kids, describes the joy of living up to the title of father, details the magical transformation of house into home, and describes the love his family shares as the same powerful force religions are built around. It’s an absolutely beautiful experience to share in his wholesome joy.
“Christians, we say that God is love,” Ferrel explained. “But I think it’s even deeper than that. Love is that creative force, it’s kind of like the sun in our solar system. There’s so many different religions and beliefs and world views, and I have to be careful what I say here, but in some ways, some of those things can be constructs. And if all of that were to fall away, I believe that love would endure. Ultimately, love is what we are trying to get at with a god.”
It’s not surprising that someone who experiences love as deeply as Ferrell does looks in amazement at his children. On “To Deserve You,” he shares experiences with his children and the enjoyment he feels living up to the tasks of fatherhood.
“You’re all in,” said Ferrell. “And that’s one of the things that’s so cool about it because it brings your life into focus. Even sometimes when I sing those songs live it gets me a little emotional.”
Elsewhere on the album Ferrell shares a tribute to Nobel Peace Prize Winner Malala Yousafzai and a love song to his wife. But it’s a song celebrating courage through the story of the Wright Brothers that’s most affecting. When he paints the picture of a life and death desire to take live and death chances for a dream, you can tell he’s talking about more than two historical figures.
“I’m probably not going to get killed playing guitar, but for me it’s inevitable,” Ferrell said. “I don’t know what else I would do if I was not making music. At this point in my career there’s no going back.”
Above is the full episode as aired on WUSB’s Country Pocket, including both my interview with Parker Ferrell and the songs we discussed, starting with To Deserve You, which mentions each of his kids. The interview begins afterward. You can hear the show live every Monday at 11am on WUSB 90.1 FM or check the blog to watch it as a YouTube playlist. Visit http://www.WUSB.fm and https://www.parkerferrellmusic.com for more.
Country Pocket 