Justice for All Lyrics

1. Justice for All

Music and lyrics by Amanda Vernon
(including a musical sample of “America the Beautiful” by Samuel A. Ward)
© 2015, Joyful Noise Inc.

VERSE 1
He’s wearing a jet-black suit with shiny shoes
He’s waiting to defend
the girl whose daddy paid
To wipe her record clean
Across the room in front of the judge
A young man pleads in broken English
He will pay for his crime for the rest of his life

CHORUS
One nation under God
Indivisible
Home of the brave
Of liberty in law
America, do you recall…
Justice for all?

VERSE 2
A knock at the door
They hear the news
The one they love has gone, too soon
Their preacher preaches forgiveness
But some wounds can never be hidden
Across town, a girl walks the streets
She’s glancing over her shoulder
The night is getting colder

BRIDGE
Justice brings us what we’re due
Who deserves justice? (I do, I do)
Justice stands up for the truth
Who deserves truth? (I do, I do)
Justice (Choir echoes Amanda)
is a … (echo)
shield of love (choir + Amanda)
Who deserves love?
All of us! (everyone)
From the babes in the womb
To the young and free
From the slaves on the corner
To authorities
From the wise and aged
To the fresh creatives
From the rich
To the poor
To the in between

Choral arrangement by Dr. Mark Webb
Commissioned by Bruce Courtade
Piano and Lead Vocal by Amanda Vernon
Choir: Members of the Aquinas College Choir, the Grand Rapids Chamber Choir, and many other gracious voices from around West Michigan
Choir directors: Dr. Mark Webb and Debra Perry
Chorus: Gwendolyn Ramos, AC Rapadas Lorenzo, Maribel Marania, Ruby Perez, George Ellis Coaston, Jr., and Abdon Santiago
Children’s choir: Alaina Hall, Riley Ravara, Jamal Shaheen
Drumline: Benny Craig, Bailey Groendyke, Evan Hyde
Recorded at Megasonic Sound (Oakland, CA); River City Studios, Aquinas College, and Joint Heir Music Studios (Grand Rapids, MI)
Produced by Amanda Vernon Co-producers: Jeremy Goody, Roy Wallace, Debra Perry, Theresa Miller, and David Shaheen

2. Embrace

Music and lyrics by Amanda Vernon
© 2015, Joyful Noise Inc.

VERSE 1

The plan that I was clinging to
Slipped out of my fingers
Crashing as it hit the ground
The fragments now lay scattered
As my pride is torn and hurt
In this promise I take comfort

CHORUS 1
If I lay my broken heart
Down upon the cross
If I taste the tears that fall
And accept the loss
If my dreams are crucified
They will rise up to new life
Death won’t have the final say
If I embrace the pain

VERSE 2
If I try to fit the jagged pieces back together
I could never reconstruct the image I had pictured
I raise my hands to let them stay
Deep in silence I remain

CHORUS 2
If I lay my broken heart
Down upon the cross
If I taste the tears that fall
And accept the loss
If my dreams are crucified
Will they rise up to new life
Or will death have the final say
If I embrace the pain

BRIDGE
From the silence someone takes
The pieces one by one
Gently sets them side by side like I could not have done
Dreams I thought had died take on new shape
Before my eyes
Beautifully so much more
Than I had ever hoped for

FINAL CHORUS
When I laid my broken heart down upon the cross
When I tasted tears that fell
And I felt the loss
Though my dreams were crucified
They have risen to new life
Death won’t have the final say
For I embraced the pain
And I will praise His name

Piano and vocal by Amanda Vernon
Violin by Cristina DeLeon
Vocal coach: AC Lorenzo
Recorded at Megasonic Sound (Oakland, CA)
Produced by Jeremy Goody
Co-producers: Amanda Vernon, Christopher Trinidad, and Stephen La Porta

VERSE 1
If I could
Make your nightmares
Disappear
And free you to live a
Beautiful dream
If I could
Take away your
Doubts and fear
And let you live strong and free

PRE-CHORUS
I would, I would

CHORUS
For now I’m here
Walking with you
And when you need to talk
I’m listening to you
I can’t change
The course of your life
But love can
And I can
Love you

VERSE 2
If I could
Turn the darkness
Into light
And turn you back to
Your carefree youth
If I could
Trade your tears
For happy times
And help you stand
In the truth

BRIDGE
Somehow survivors
Push through the pain
Somehow weakness
Becomes a source of strength
I can’t wait to see
You rise above
On the winds of love

Commissioned by the Michigan Abolitionist Project
Piano and vocal by Amanda Vernon Violin by Shawn Williams
Recorded at ICON Studio Productions (Fort Wayne, IN) and The Sound Cabin (Nashville, TN)
Produced by David Smith