Steven Curtis Chapman and Jars of Clay are donating their voices and talents to a special compilation project, titled Music From And Inspired By WE WERE SOLDIERS, which releases February 26th in conjunction with the new Mel Gibson film “We Were Soldiers.” Chapman’s song, “Soldier,” originally titled “When You Are A Soldier” from his 1990 gold-certified project For The Sake Of The Call, was completely re-recorded and partially rewritten for Music From and Inspired by WE WERE SOLDIERS. Also included on the project are Jars of Clay who were invited to a special screening and then wrote “The Widowing Field,” for the project.
This multi-genre collection of songs, written and recorded specifically for the film, includes some of the biggest names from Contemporary Christian, Pop/Rock and Country music such as Chapman and Jars of Clay, newcomer India.Arie, Train, Johnny Cash, Dave Matthews Band, Five For Fighting, Mary Chapin Carpenter, Michael McDonald, Jamie O’Neal, Carolyn Dawn Johnson, Tammy Cochran, and more. The compilation releases in conjunction with Columbia Records, Combustion Music and Sony Music Soundtrax next week.
The film stars Mel Gibson, who was born and raised in the United States before moving to Australia when he was 12, and he is unabashedly patriotic in his love for God and country and his respect for America’s fighting forces. He has made the transition from the Revolutionary War in The Patriot to Vietnam with We Were Soldiers.
Based on a true story about Lt. Col. Hal Moore (Mel Gibson) and his 400 men – the film is centered upon the First Battalion of the Seventh Calvary – and their vicious battle against 2000 North Vietnamese soldiers. The ensuing battle was one of the most savage in U.S. history. The film, which also stars Madeleine Stowe, Greg Kinnear, Sam Elliott, Chris Klein, Keri Russell and Barry Pepper, is a tribute to the nobility of those men under fire, their common acts of uncommon valor, and their loyalty to and love for one another.
“While the film is compelling as well as disturbing in it’s realistic and violent tribute to Vietnam veterans, I was inspired by the redemptive themes of relationships, courage, Christian faith and prayer that the writer Randall Wallace (Braveheart) clearly communicates through this script and film,” comments Chapman. “I was honored to personally be invited to screen the film and submit a song for consideration on the soundtrack. The lyric to a song I had written a few years ago for my father entitled, ‘When You Are A Soldier’ kept coming to mind and I couldn’t get away from the thought that a new version of that song, with new music and slightly new lyrics, should be submitted for consideration.”
The film WE WERE SOLDIERS, a Paramount Pictures and Icon Productions Presentation, opens in theaters nationwide March 1, 2002.
Besides contributing to “We Were Soldiers,” Jars of Clay’s hugely successful radio hit “Flood” from the RIAA certified double-platinum, self-titled debut is also being featured prominently in the Warner Bros. Pictures film, A Walk To Remember, starring Mandy Moore, which released nationally January 25.
