Check out this haunting cover of ‘One of Us’, the Eric Bazilian-penned classic, famously performed by Joan Osborne. Featuring delicate keys and the ethereal voices of Seth Glier and Raye Zaragoza, this version transforms the original into a meditative piece that transports the listener far from the everyday. Particularly impressive is the pedal steel from Ryan Hommel (Amos Lee), which sounds like an unearthly choir, truly fitting for a song filled with such big questions about existence. Lines like: “If God had a name, what would it be? And would you call it to his face // If you were faced with him in all his glory?” are all the more engaging when they sound like the artists’ own deep and introspective reflections.
Glier says of the song: “I wanted to strip this song down to its beams but still have it feel modern. The keyboard is my Juno 60 and I’m joined by Raye Zaragoza on this track, who added a whole other haunting element to this song. Raye is one of my favorite musicians out there right now so it’s a real treat to have her with me. I think Eric Bazilian caught a whale when he wrote ‘One of Us’. The idea is so huge and the delivery is so simple. There is a sense of God’s loneliness in this song that I related so strongly with. Eric’s question ‘Would you want to see, if seeing meant that you would have to believe?’ felt so appropriate to the theme of this album. Am I willing to be accountable to what you know to be true?”
Zaragoza is also one to watch and her melodic protest folk on her second album, 2020’s ‘Woman in Color’, is beautifully engaging and worthy of further exploration. She will be performing at Americana Fest in Nashville later this year. ‘One of Us’ features on Grammy-nominated Seth Glier’s new album ‘The Coronation’, out now on MPress Records, his sixth record for the label. The multi-instrumentalist is known for experimenting with instruments and arrangements to make traditional sounds his own. Once again, the result is an engaging mix of styles and subjects.
Look out for the album, but start here. In a world full of wonder and tragedy, joy and darkness, just imagine being face-to-face with God and consider: “What would you ask if you had just one question?” Be absorbed.
