‘When There Are No Words’ album

Description

An album exploring grief, loss and hope. Based around discussions I had with my terminally ill father about Jesus and eternity.

The story

In November 2021 my Dad, Melvin Tinker, went home to glory. He had only been diagnosed with cancer 6 weeks before, and it was quite the shock.

However, in God’s graciousness, those 6 weeks were so precious. We spent time musing over eternity. What would God’s new heaven on the new earth be like? What will we enjoy there? We talked about how close eternity felt – how thin the veil really is between this world and the next.  I was able to watch him die well with his gaze increasingly heavenward until his gaze was upon the one who held him close all those years.

I wrote this song which Dad was able to hear before he went home and he asked that it be played at his funeral. It was the first step towards the new collection of songs.

This time has led me to think a lot about what it means to lose someone, and what it means to hope in the future that God has in store for us. To grapple with what life looks like when someone so precious is removed from it, and to contemplate what joys he is experiencing.

The Album

My Dad had a wonderful ministry throughout his life, both to his own family and to his wider church family. I want this album to be a legacy of that ministry, an outworking of the things he taught me and so many others. I want this to be a reflection of him, and in doing so I know it will always reflect Christ.

I also want this album to be of help to those facing loss. I want it to serve others, just as my Dad did. I want it to be an album that grapples honestly with the pain of loss even when hope is so sure. As I walk the road of my own grief and hope through song, I hope in some way that I can walk with others on their road.

(For those who know me through my music for kids, this is an album primarily for adults).

The Team

I have the honour of knowing a number of wonderful musicians. Jonny Race, whom I played my first ever paid gig with back when we were teenagers, will be there on guitar. Joe Montague, a fellow Beatles fanatic, is our drummer. To produce the album we’re bringing in Jamie Evans who produced the wonderful debut album for Wildwood Kin (among others).

The album artwork is a painting by the wonderful Jamin Still.