Life Would Be So Much Better with a SoundTrack

Michael McLean

One of the great things about living in "Music City" is that talented people visit all the time to work on projects. Last night, Michael McLean, the famous LDS musician who has done 30 years of LDS films (including one of my faves, "Mr. Kreuger's Christmas") & commercials, as well as 30 of his own CDS, came to Franklin.
He was in town to work on a project with Brett Raymond, a fabulous musician in our stake who has also done tons of LDS projects, as well as Hollywood movie scores, commercials, etc. and works out of a studio in his home. Brett's wife, Becky is the Relief Society president in the Franklin 2nd Ward (formerly Winstead Hill ward) and since Michael was coming to town to work on a project with Brett, she asked him to do a fireside for the three wards that meet in our building.
All that to say...what a great concert!

I saw Michael and his son a couple of years ago at a Nashville "Time Out for Women," and liked him then. I have also heard his music over the years, and actually have a couple of his songbooks.

But seeing him up close, at our ward building, very casual and comfortable, meeting him in person afterward...was very cool. He's not a great singer, per se, but he's a great songwriter and storyteller. He's funny, engaging, and very accustomed to performing.

I loved something he said his mother used to say: "Life would be so much better with a soundtrack." I SOOOO agree with that! His mom said that way when his dad took 20 minutes to propose to her, she would have been more patient, knowing when he was finally getting around to it because the sweet, quiet piano music would have started (and Michael demonstrated all the soundtrack sounds as he went along). And when she needed Michael to clean his room, it would be in loud, threatening sounds! And when he DID clean his room, there would be a hallelujah chorus! Funny stuff!

(I really think right now my life's soundtrack would be "Flight of the Bumblebee!")
He told funny stories, one about when he and his wife had three very young children -- four, three and one year old -- and he came home from work, and his wife had apparently had a particularly difficult day. She pulled everyone into the living room for "Family Home Moment" (wink, wink) and through a smile with gritted teeth, talked about the plan of salvation, i.e., Heavenly Father was telling us the plan, we'd all come to earth, we'd make choices to come back to Him, and there were two things that would need to be done 1) hold the priesthood, 2) have the children -- and then He let the men choose first! HAHA

He sang some of his most popular songs, including several tributes to mothers and womanhood, and one of his most famous songs, "Hold On, the Light Will Come," obviously a song of encouragement and hope. Another one I've heard many times that really touches my heart was "From God's Arms, to My Arms, to Yours," a story about adoption.

There were mostly teary faces during the refreshments afterwards, including mine.

I almost didn't 'make the time' to go...I'm glad I did.