"You say you heard every word, but I watched you turn away," Dan Haseltine sings in this aptly-named song from If I Left The Zoo, "Famous Last Words." Strongly symbolic, as is usual from Jars Of Clay, I think they're speaking of the common "Famous Last Words" people often use to put off response to the Gospel: "I'm not ready yet—I won't be gone a minute."
I happen to like Dan Haseltine's voice, which I think is a tenor, though I'm pretty sure it's not superb. Several guitars interweave in this pop song, with a bit of piano, for example, and some other instrument on the song credit listing that I have absolutely no idea what it is but looks Eastern European from the spelling (a wurlitzer). Oh, and a minute timer goes off once, emphasising the song's message that you never know when your time's going to be up.
One point of the lyrics, that "wasted are the days you said you were only waiting," ends up getting a bit repetitive. I know that's common in choruses, but some people find it particularly annoying when songs repeat. I just generally do if a song repeats something over 6 times. (A noteable exception would be Within Temptation's "What Have You Done," but those repetitions are distinctly intentional for the song's meaning.) I find "Famous Last Words" bordering the repetitive line.
"Famous Last Words" is nonetheless one of my favorite songs from If I Left The Zoo, and among my top favorite songs by Jars Of Clay in general. It's not their best by any means, but it's still on the better end.
Music: 4/5
Vocal(s): 4/5
Overall: 8/10
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