His name
was Bill, and he must have been a pretty special friend. Deborah and Michael
Smith were willing to wear their hearts on their sleeves one day in 1982, and
with feelings that made them ache, “Friends” was the result. If you’ve lived
among people and ever had to leave a buddy, a comrade, or perhaps someone you
might have even called ‘family’, then you’re no stranger to what Michael and
Deborah felt that day. Maybe you were even as close as the biblical David and
Jonathan. (See this depicted here in von Carolsfeld’s 1860 painting.) The circumstances
of leaving friends might be different each time, but the bottom line is the
same – you miss them. How can one avoid the anguish? Maybe that was at the root
of what Deborah was thinking, as she crafted the words that Michael would marry
to music in just a few moments. Does our Creator know what it feels like to
leave, or to see somebody special depart from us? What’s His solution?
Both
Michael W. and Deborah D. Smith had no doubt experienced this situation before,
as they prepared to say ‘so long’ to their friend Bill Jackson. They’d been
bible studiers together, probably providing insights and helping hands to one
another spiritually and otherwise. Perhaps they might say there was even something
like synergy when they were together. The rest of us might use the word ‘special’.
It was Deborah who suggested they write a song for Bill’s going-away that would
take place later that same day, and Michael the doubter that they could accomplish
such an endeavor in time. But, once his wife – with an apparent God-given
talent – gave him the poem within the hour, Michael must have known there was
something exceptional in it. It captured something deep inside – could it have
been the Spirit? He put it to music in minutes, and said it pricked the hearts
of all who heard its debut that night. It hasn’t stopped doing so in over 30
years, he says, even inside himself when he performs it repeatedly for
audiences today. Michael says kids who’ve lost friends tragically (as in car
accidents, or otherwise in death), or just miss each other after summer camp,
can identify with the song’s lyrics. ‘Everybody
cries’, Michael says. It was part of the first album he put together, and it
remains Michael’s signature song. And, its unique kind of genesis remains extraordinary,
as Michael says almost all his other songs have developed with the music first,
followed by the lyrics. Isn’t that interesting, perhaps even metaphorical for
human friendship?
Friendship
seems to be an integral part of the human condition. We don’t know exactly what’s
in store for us when we encounter a new group of people, so we necessarily
experience at least a few, but most likely numerous, times together before we develop
true camaraderie. That’s kind of a metaphor for “Friends”, wherein experiences
and the words shared between people precede
the bonhomie -- the music -- of relationship.
It’s glue-like, so that’s probably why it hurts to be taken apart – as when
someone moves away. ‘I wish we didn’t have to say good-bye to Bill!’ Can you
hear Michael and Deborah saying this about their pal? Yet, they didn’t run from
it; they chose to sing about it. That was the Smiths’ solution. Lean upon the
One who made us all this way. Trust the One that knows about our lifetimes, and
that we can aim toward a time when friends never have to part, ever (alluded to
in refrain of ‘Friends’). Do I hear ‘Amen!', somewhere?
See
biography of the composer here: http://www.michaelwsmith.net/biography.html
This
link is the primary source for the song story: http://www.songfacts.com/detail.php?id=12244
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