"Already There" is a song by American Christian music group

Casting Crowns Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band started in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall, who serves as the band's lead vocalist, as part of a youth group at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida. They lat ...

. The song was written by lead singer, Mark Hall, along with

Matthew West Matthew Joseph West (born April 25, 1977) is an American contemporary Christian musician, singer-songwriter, and actor. He has released five studio albums and is known for his songs "More", "You Are Everything", and " The Motions". He was nomin ...

and Bernie Herms.

Content

The main idea of the song is that "no matter how tough life can be, God is looking back, he is already there waiting for you" (Hall) "In the midst of a rough stretch, God gave me a gentle reminder that whatever we face ahead of us, he's already there and he's in control" (Hall). So wherever you are in your life, just know that at the end of the day, Jesus is already there. The song has had many positive reviews from many critics talking highly about the song's musical style which is more like Pop Rock and the lyrics having a strong connection to God (Hall). The song has also gotten its fair share of ratings, hitting number 10 on the

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

Hot Christian AC chart and number 12 on the Hot Christian Songs Chart. Hall composed the song after a personal experience he had as a child. Growing up, Mark Hall and his family would attend the Thanksgiving Day parade in his hometown of Montgomery, Alabama. While waiting for Santa's float to approach, Hall would dream that he was on top of a building viewing the parade from afar. This made him think how God works in life, saying God is "outside of time" (Hall). "If your goal is to honor god, he is not going to steer you off a cliff. He's sitting on the porch with you. He's not governed by time, he's already there looking back on it" (Hall).

Background

lead singer Mark Hall described the lyrical message of "Already There" as being relates the concept that "God is already sitting at the end of your life looking back at it". He related the lyrical theme of "Already There" to his childhood experiences at an annual parade in his hometown. His dad would take him and his sister to see the parade each year, for one reason only - to see the parade float of

Santa Claus Santa Claus, also known as Father Christmas, Saint Nicholas, Saint Nick, Kris Kringle, or simply Santa, is a Legend, legendary figure originating in Western Christianity, Western Christian culture who is said to Christmas gift-bringer, bring ...

. Being a small kid, however, Hall was unable to see more than one float at a time. Hall recounted wishing that he could go to the top of a building so he could see when the Santa float would be coming, instead of having to anticipate when it would come. Hall compared this to God's view of time, saying that God is outside of time, already at the end looking over your life. What really got him to write this song to make it come to mind, He adopted a Chinese girl named Meeka Hope. The little girl had special needs and needed surgery and as these surgeries were going on, Hall was receiving a message from God saying that I am already there, no matter what is thrown at them he is already there. "Already There" was written by Mark Hall,

, and Bernie Herms, and it was

produced Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

by Mark A. Miller. It was recorded and mixed by Sam Hewitt at Zoo Studio in Franklin, Tennessee, and was mastered by Andrew Mendelson.

Composition

"Already There" is a song with a length of four minutes and thirty-one seconds. According to the sheet music published by Musicnotes.com, it is set common time in the

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

B major B major (or the key of B) is a major scale based on B. The pitches B, C, D, E, F, G, and A are all part of the B major scale. Its key signature has five sharps. Its relative minor is G-sharp minor, its parallel minor is B minor, and its ...

and has a

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 132 beats per minute. Mark Hall's vocal range in the song spans from the low note of C₄ to the high note of G₅. Musically, "Already There" is a

pop rock Pop rock (also typeset as pop/rock) is a fusion genre with an emphasis on professional songwriting and recording craft, and less emphasis on attitude than rock music. Originating in the late 1950s as an alternative to normal rock and roll, earl ...

song, drawing comparison in style to " Clocks" by

alternative rock Alternative rock, or alt-rock, is a category of rock music that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1970s and became widely popular in the 1990s. "Alternative" refers to the genre's distinction from Popular culture, mainstre ...

band Coldplay. The song features a "modern" intro and an "upbeat premise".

Reception

Critical response

"Already There" received positive reviews from music critics. James Christopher Monger of

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

described it as a "nice, emotive moment" in comparison to other tracks in the midpoint of ''

Come to the Well ''Come to the Well'' is the fifth studio album by American contemporary Christian band Casting Crowns, released on October 18, 2011, through Beach Street and Reunion Records. The album, which has a predominantly pop rock and rock sound, was base ...

'' that he felt were "tacked on". Nathaniel Schexnayder of Jesus Freak Hideout praised the song's "upbeat premise", feeling that it could be a radio single. Lindsay Williams of Gospel Music Channel felt that "Already There" was one of the best on the album, praising its sound and "strongly relatable" lyrics. She also compared the song's intro to U2's " Beautiful Day". Barry Westman of ''Worship Leader'' opined that the song was an example of the "familiar pop-rock we’ve all grown to love" and would be material "die hard fans will be very pleased with".

Charts

Chart performance

"Already There" was released to radio as a single on October 15, 2012. It has currently peaked at number ten on the ''

'' Hot Christian AC chart and number twelve on the Christian Songs chart.

Weekly charts

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the digital booklet for ''

''. Casting Crowns *

Hector Cervantes Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band started in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall, who serves as the band's lead vocalist, as part of a youth group at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida. They lat ...

–

electric guitar An electric guitar is a guitar that requires external amplification in order to be heard at typical performance volumes, unlike a standard acoustic guitar (however combinations of the two - a semi-acoustic guitar and an electric acoustic gui ...

Juan DeVevo Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band started in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall, who serves as the band's lead vocalist, as part of a youth group at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida. They later ...

–

acoustic guitar An acoustic guitar is a musical instrument in the string family. When a string is plucked its vibration is transmitted from the bridge, resonating throughout the top of the guitar. It is also transmitted to the side and back of the instrument, ...

, electric guitar * Melodee DeVevo –

violin The violin, sometimes known as a ''fiddle'', is a wooden chordophone (string instrument) in the violin family. Most violins have a hollow wooden body. It is the smallest and thus highest-pitched instrument (soprano) in the family in regular ...

, background vocals *

Megan Garrett Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band started in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall, who serves as the band's lead vocalist, as part of a youth group at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida. They late ...

–

piano The piano is a stringed keyboard instrument in which the strings are struck by wooden hammers that are coated with a softer material (modern hammers are covered with dense wool felt; some early pianos used leather). It is played using a keyboa ...

keyboard Keyboard may refer to: Text input * Keyboard, part of a typewriter * Computer keyboard ** Keyboard layout, the software control of computer keyboards and their mapping ** Keyboard technology, computer keyboard hardware and firmware Music * Musi ...

, background vocals * Mark Hall –

vocals Singing is the act of creating musical sounds with the voice. A person who sings is called a singer, artist or vocalist (in jazz and/or popular music). Singers perform music (arias, recitatives, songs, etc.) that can be sung with or without ...

* Chris Huffman –

bass guitar The bass guitar, electric bass or simply bass (), is the lowest-pitched member of the string family. It is a plucked string instrument similar in appearance and construction to an electric or an acoustic guitar, but with a longer neck and ...

* Brian Scoggin –

drums A drum kit (also called a drum set, trap set, or simply drums) is a collection of drums, cymbals, and other Percussion instrument, auxiliary percussion instruments set up to be played by one person. The player (drummer) typically holds a pair o ...

Recorded at *Recorded at Zoo Studio in Franklin, Tennessee. *Submixed at ShinShack Studio in

Nashville, Tennessee Nashville is the capital city of the U.S. state of Tennessee and the county seat, seat of Davidson County, Tennessee, Davidson County. With a population of 689,447 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 U.S. census, Nashville is the List of muni ...

. Production *Natthaphol Abhigantaphand - mastering *Shelley Anderson - mastering *Daniel Bacigalupi - vocal recording *David Davidson - string arrangements *Michael France - vocal recording *Eric Jackson - vocal recording *Terry Hemmings -

executive producer Executive producer (EP) is one of the top positions in the making of a commercial entertainment product. Depending on the medium, the executive producer may be concerned with management accounting or associated with legal issues (like copyrights o ...

*Michael Hewitt - recording, digital editing *Sam Hewitt - recording, mixing *Billy Lord - vocal recording *Jason McArthur - A&R *Mark A. Miller -

producer Producer or producers may refer to: Occupations *Producer (agriculture), a farm operator *A stakeholder of economic production *Film producer, supervises the making of films **Executive producer, contributes to a film's budget and usually does not ...

*Andrew Mendelson - mastering *Matt Naylor - recording, digital editing

Release and radio history

References

External links

"Already There" Lyric Video
{{authority control Casting Crowns songs 2012 singles Songs written by Matthew West Songs written by Mark Hall (musician) 2011 songs Songs written by Bernie Herms