You know, sometimes songs just go off into the world and do their own thing.
I remember the first time I played this, enjoying the sunshine with friends in a Bristol park. Just me and an acoustic guitar, the song freshly written and still with a couple of placeholder lines I knew I'd replace later. There's always a slightly tense moment as the last note dies away - especially with friends as blunt as mine. A pause. Then, “I'd like to hear that again”. Inward sigh of relief.
When I recorded an album (What's not to like?) a short while afterwards Redemption Road was one of the tracks. I had worked up a rockier arrangement by then, even added a guitar solo. It was fun to play - lots of fun. And a fun track with a serious lyric is good to pull off. But just an album track, I never pushed or promoted it. And as I was used to the band arrangement it didn't get played live at my solo gigs.
Recently, something strange has happened. Redemption Road started appearing on Spotify playlists. At one time I got as high as third position on a popular Singer Songwriter chart. Most of my online songs are streamed and downloaded about the same. Redemption Road climbed well clear of the pack and its lead increases every month.
Of course, streams and downloads aren't everything. And I'm nowhere near a level that would give Taylor Swift or Ed Sheeran sleepless nights. But I do have people messaging me saying nice things. How they discovered the track and why they feel a connection with it. That they play it in the car on the drive to work, play it with friends when they're happy or maybe when they're alone and feeling down. The fact that strangers will take time to write to me this way is the single best thing about having music online, the biggest thrill, and I'm always touched and grateful.
How did this one track suddenly break loose and develop a life of its own? No idea. All that matters to me is that I know it hasn't been through advertising, bots or playing the algorithm. It's through individual listeners stumbling across a tune and finding something in it they respond to. The same pleasure I experience when I discover a song or artist that's new to me, and - as the last notes die away - find myself saying, “I'd like to hear that again”.
You can listen on Spotify here: