A couple of weeks ago, I added this album, Let the Son Shine (1971), by Marj Synder to my queue. Admittedly, I know very little about Marj Snyder, even after trying to find a bit of information about her online. She seems to be a singer/songwriter who released some seemingly Christian and hippie inflected folk albums back in the 1970s. Her discogs biography is empty, and all I can really find is a bit of information about her from various music blogs, but nothing much beyond that. I’m pretty intrigued to here what’s on the album, as this lack of information about Snyder combined with the album artwork for the record has me excited to give this album a listen. With that said, I’m going to jump on into the music.
“Can’t Help but Sing” starts out with some really upbeat folksy sounds with distant guitars that gently add some accentuations to the tune while the tune is driven mainly by the muddied and dynamic bass line and Snyder’s upbeat vocals. There are some really tasty orchestral additions from some strings and horns as the tune continues along. Very pleasant introductory tune to the album, and I’m excited to hear more.
Oh wow, “Tick Tock” starts out with some super tasty folksy guitar and the gentle knocking of what sounds like a mixture of a ticking clock and what sounds what might be an old western music representation of a horse trodding along a path. Oh wow, there’s a really pleasant delicateness in the soundscape that really puts you at ease as the ticking sound nearly hypnotizes you while the gentle guitar and vocals create a relaxing soundscape. Super sweet tune.
“Reach Out” starts out with a very gentle acoustic guitar that really puts the listener at a continual ease. There’s a tangible assuredness in the vocal performance from Snyder that is nearly infectious. Oh wow, the instrumentation picks up a bit of intensity as the smooth bass guitar comes into the soundscape. This seems like a very pleasant album thus far to listen to at the end of the night. Super sweet track.
Oh wow, “Walk by Faith” starts out with some super tasty country and western sounds with a strong bass note on the backbeat, an acoustic guitar that seems to nearly have a bit of gallop, and a pedal steel electric slide guitar that seemingly paints an old country sky overtop of the soundscape, as though you’re a cowboy in the old west making your way from town to town while lending a hand to the folks you come across in your travels. Great track.
“With My Lord” seems to come back to that gentleness from earlier, though at an even simpler level with a very delicate acoustic guitar on one side of the soundscape, with Snyder sounding as though she’s singing into a starry night sky in the middle, and a super sweet violin adding tasty accentuations on the other side of the soundscape. Super sweet tune.
Oh wow, “And There I Sit” has a very familiar delicate folksy guitar line to start out the soundscape. Oh wow, Snyder’s vocals seem to have a ton of different feelings in this one, ranging from introspection to gratitude and beyond. I really dig when the tune seems to pick up with a bit of intensity to seemingly add an exclamation mark on the sentiment being communicated in the tune. Super sweet track.
“Sweet Sweet Song of Salvation” has a super tasty soundscape with a mixture of earthy acoustic guitar, a slow bopping bass line, and a piano that sounds like it was played in an old western saloon. Oh wow, the different horns add a ton of flavor to the soundscape that nearly reminds me of Pokey LaFarge. Great tune.
“Rain” starts out with some gentle and evocative that has a sound reminiscent of raindrops on a window pane on a solemn summer day. Oh wow, this tune is super interesting, as Snyder brings about feelings of both loneliness and gratitude at the same time, bringing about an introspective sound with thankfulness. Oh wow, there’s a second vocal part from Snyder in the tune that harmonizes her main vocal line, which adds a ton of depth to the simple soundscape. Really sweet tune.
“I Shall Be Released” has a really tasty acoustic guitar chord progression to begin the tune in this cover of the tune originally written by Bob Dylan and performed by The Band. Oh wow, the bass guitar comes on flavorfully and strong with a sturdy backbeat from the drums behind the bass, all while a super tasty piano on the other side of the soundscape adds a ton of dynamic sound in both the soundscape and the album, making the soundscape sound even richer than it could have been without it. Wow, super tasty cover track.
“Nothing but You” brings things back to a gentle sound with the delicate acoustic guitar and the soft and inviting vocals seem to begin to move the tune and album to a wholesome and natural sounding ending. At this point, it would be difficult not to be relaxed to some degree while listening to this album. Super sweet tune and a very pleasant way to wrap up the listening experience.
This album was a super gentle listening experience and a great way to wind down the end of a long day. The album itself is very religious in terms of lyrics, while the folksy instrumentation and singing is timeless. Snyder moved between a very gentle folk style towards more of a country folk style with pedal steel slide guitars and a country sounding bass line, and back to her gentle folksy style multiple times throughout the album, which leads to very pleasant payoffs as tension is released through her playing at different points in the album. If you enjoy folk music, and enjoy Christian oriented music, you might want to consider checking out this album. If you do decide to give this one a listen, I sincerely do hope that you enjoy the listening experience at least as much as I did.
-A