Using the translated texts of sacred mystical poetry, David Wilcox and his wife, Nance Pettit, have created a recording of spare and intimate beauty, a product of evenings spent by the fire delighting in the words of ancient poets. As more and more songs evolved from the texts, friends asked for a recording of their work; Out Beyond Ideas was made in collaboration with musicians Phil Keaggy, Bill Kreutzmann (best known as the longtime drummer for the Grateful Dead), and many others. An Iraqi painter created the album art—notable on its own—that accompanies the poems printed in the liner notes, and the music includes one of the poems spoken in its original language, Farsi.
Wilcox and Pettit are clearly used to singing together, and their harmonies are comfortable and close. Like much of the album’s sound, the texts are simple and use only what is necessary to express the thoughts. The writers include St. Francis of Assisi and St. John of the Cross; Uvavnuk, an Inuit poet; Sufi and Jewish mystics; Tukaram of India and other Zen poets, all of whom find beauty in everyday occurrences, such as washing pots and planting seeds. Not only are these treasures and gifts from God, but the mystics see them as the way to God; contentment and wonder in the day-to-day things gives them a look into God’s very presence: “It helps, putting my hands on a pot, on a broom, or in a washing pail.”
Read the Full Article
