NPR Tiny Desk Contest 2023 Entry--'If I Had My Way, I'd Tear That Idol Down'

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Loosely inspired by a story of Blind Willie Johnson's getting arrested for singing "If I Had My Way, I'd Tear This Building Down" in front of the New Orleans courthouse, I wrote "If I Had My Way, I'd Tear This Idol Down" using similar biblical themes from Exodus and Judges to address more modern iterations of issues that extend back to Johnson's time and beyond.

Recorded in front of the Alamance County Historical Courthouse in Graham, NC, with its Confederate statue, protected by a fence since 2021. Videography by Alexei Mejouev.

Music and lyrics by Colin Cutler

Moses on the mountain, he done talked with God.
Walked down that hillside with the holy law--
Down in the valley, people danced and laughed,
Up on that pedestal had a golden calf.

Chorus
If I had my way (3x)
I'd tear that idol down.

Philistia fought with Israel.
Some made slaves and some they killed.
Back to their city, they took God's ark,
Set it up in Dagon's temple dark.

Chorus

It sat there for about a week,
The very stones, they began to creak.
Morning broke across that whole wide land,
With that idol laying facedown with shattered hands

Chorus

Now in this country, in these modern times,
People still thinking like the Philistines.
They said that we're God's own chosen heirs,
But we still got statues in the old town square.

Chorus