Grandma's Gospel Favorites Jason Mraz

• 1 Turn Your Radio On 02:57
• 2 Daddy Sang Bass 02:37
• 3 It Is No Secret 04:23
• 4 Peach Pie 02:41
• 5 Evening Prayer 02:30
• 6 His Eye Is On the Sparrow 03:20
• 7 Old Rugged Cross 03:29
• 8 Never Grow Old 03:16
• 9 When We Die (You Are Loved) 04:19
• 10 God Be With You (Til We Meet Again) 01:32
• Total Runtime 31:04

Info for Grandma's Gospel Favorites

Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriterJason Mraz releases his newest album, "Grandma’s Gospel Favorites".

Even as Jason Mraz was topping the charts and traveling the world, his Nanny Razz playfully pestered him to write something she could share with her church friends. “Whenever I made music, she asked, ‘Is it gospel? When are you going to make me a gospel album?’” he says. It was a running joke of sorts, but Mraz loved his grandma, so he finally gave in. “I made her a gospel album.”

The album was originally recorded for his grandmother almost two decades ago as a Christmas gift in 2007, and on May 8, the project will reach a broader audience in honor of the late Mary Helen Mraz-Fowler.

Grandma’s Gospel Favorites honors some of Mraz’s earliest musical memories: the songs he heard in church on Sunday mornings and the sounds of Appalachia in rural Virginia. His new song, “His Eye Is On The Sparrow,” is his own take on the 1905 hymn by the same name. The album also includes standards like “Old Rugged Cross,” a bluegrass version of “Turn Your Radio On,” and Johnny Cash’s “Daddy Sang Bass.” To complete the album, Mraz penned two original songs, “Peach Pie,” and “When We Die (You Are Loved).”

“I spent all my weekends with her in my youth,” says Mraz, whose parents divorced when he was young. “She was a fun lady, a jokester, a great cook, supportive of arts and creativity — music and playing outside and eating from the garden, all things that I am today.” She also took him to church on Sunday, which he didn’t enjoy as much. Young Mraz was more into Aerosmith than the Apostles, but he loved the camaraderie of those days, going out for meals after church and humming along to Ray Stevens and George Jones in Nanny Razz’s car. It didn’t hurt that he got to sing in church, which was as close to a gig as he was going to get in those days.

Mraz’s career took off like the titular rocket in his debut, 2002’s Waiting for My Rocket to Come, racking up GRAMMYs and accolades along the way, but he still kept returning to Nanny Razz’s kitchen. So, while he was working on his third record, 2008’s We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things., he decided to apply the new skills he was learning in the studio to a special gift for both his church-going grandmothers. Teaming up with pals Andy Powers (guitarist and President, CEO, and Chief Guitar Designer of Taylor Guitars), bassist Ian Sheridan, violinist/violist Ray Suen, and vocalists Noel “Toca” Rivera and Gregory Page for those fan-favorite harmonies, Mraz recorded a suite of gospel classics, presenting the record to his grandmother for Christmas. “She just broke down crying,” Mraz recalls. “Then she immediately asked if there was more than one copy, because she was definitely going to have to share this with all of her friends at church.”

Nanny Razz passed away in 2014, but, as the years went by, Mraz realized she wanted him to share that music with the world — after all, she asked him to make 75 copies of it over the years. So, after releasing the bubbly, bright Mystical Magical Rhythmical Radical Ride in 2023, it felt like time to bring that sepia-toned, sweet gospel to the public.

The record opens with the twangy cover of Ray Stevens’ “Turn Your Radio On,” a song Mraz heard often during after-church car rides. “It’s a beautiful way to say, ‘Open your mind and receive the offerings of this spirit,’ whatever that looks like,” he says.

The quirky Johnny Cash tune, “Daddy Sang Bass,” follows, an appeal to his grandmother’s funny bone, leading into the honeyed “It’s No Secret” (Stuart Hamblen). And then there’s the cheeky original “Peach Pie,” about Mraz’s battle with the squirrels laying siege to his fruit tree. “My grandmother taught me to love your enemies, even if they’re squirrels. Feed them, lend an open heart and an open hand. There's always a place for everyone at the table.”

Jim Reeves’ “Evening Prayer,” a favorite of his other grandmother, Nanny Powell, slides in next, followed by classic hymn “His Eye Is on the Sparrow,” which Mraz fell in love with after seeing it performed by Lauryn Hill and Tanya Blount in Sister Act II. And then there’s George Bennard’s softly swinging, “Old Rugged Cross,” which Mraz sees as a song of comfort and faith for those facing the end of their lives, along with Reeves’ “Never Grow Old.” The inquisitive, sadly poignant “When We Die (You Are Loved)” is another original, which Mraz wrote for his aunt — Nanny Razz’s daughter — who died in 2011. At his family’s request, the song was played at his aunt’s memorial.

The record closes, then, bright and sweet with “God Be With You (Til We Meet Again),” an echo from those church days of his youth, where his grandmother and her friends would use that phrase like hello, goodbye, and see you soon — a promise of days to come. Because that’s what religion is to Mraz, really. He doesn’t conform to one or the other, but he sees the way it can bring people together, to bind them, to keep them in our hearts.

“In the end, I believe in music,” he says. “Music is a spiritual practice — like prayer — it’s language, intention, repetition, and heart.”

Jason Mraz

We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. comes six years after Jason Mraz saw his major label debut, “Waiting for My Rocket to Come” explode off the success of such hits as “Remedy (I Won’t Worry),” “You & I Both” and “Curbside Prophet.” Shortly thereafter, he returned with his Grammy-nominated, critically acclaimed Mr. A-Z, which continued his chart success with “Wordplay.” Throughout, his reputation as a tremendous live act soared.

We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. earned three Grammy nominations, including Song of the Year and Best Male Pop Vocal Performance for “I’m Yours.” The album, Mraz’s most self-assured effort to date, is characterized by songs wrapped in clever, observant lyrics and strong, engaging pop melodies, all inspired by “gratitude.”

“I’m Yours” is a warm breeze of a song about generosity, surrender, and openness to life’s infinite possibilities set to a lilting island tempo. A demo of the song sneaked into the world a few years prior to the current release and developed a cult following. “I considered it my happy little hippy song and wanted to share it even when it was fresh and new. Over the years as we performed it live, it became the song people sang along to at the loudest volume. And they sang it to each other. That’s when I realized I needed to give it a home on this new record.”

“I’m Yours” has since been certified 4x platinum and made history as the first song ever to top the charts at four pop radio formats: Hot AC, CHR/Top 40, Triple A, and AC. Propelled by the success of the song, We Sing. We Dance. We Steal Things. has been a breakthrough album internationally for Mraz. More than 2.5 million albums have been sold worldwide. In addition to being certified platinum here in the U.S., the album has also received platinum certification awards in France, Canada, Singapore and Hong Kong, triple platinum status in Korea, double platinum in Australia, with gold records in the United Kingdom, Malaysia, Portugal, Norway, Sweden, New Zealand, The Netherlands, and Switzerland.

Another highlight on the album is “Lucky,” a simple, endearing duet with platinum singer-songwriter Colbie Caillat. “I got word that she was a fan and might consider working together, so I immediately demanded her phone number,” Mraz says with a laugh. He sent her segments of a love song that she and her guitarist Timothy Fagan completed.

Caillat then joined Mraz in a London studio where he recorded the album with producer Martin Terefe, best known for his work with Coldplay and James Morrison (who guests on the intricate “Details in the Fabric”).

Terefe, along with songwriter/pianist Sasha Skarbek (who co-wrote James Blunt’s “You’re Beautiful”), also played a hand in co-writing some of the tunes with Mraz, including “Love for a Child,” a searing autobiographical tale of Mraz’s parents’ split when he was five. “I don’t usually care to share the crafting of the lyrics,” Mraz confesses. “Sasha and Martin did a wonderful job introducing me to melodies and textures, while pushing me to sing my instincts. In the case of ‘Love for a Child,’ my instincts kept leading me back to getting complete with my parents. I was nervous about it as it isn’t your typical love song, but I think that’s why it resonates with so many. Whether or not you’re in a relationship, we all have one with our parents. And until you acknowledge them, it’s hard to practice unconditional love or act with integrity in the rest of your life.”

While Mraz and Terefe deliberately kept the music stripped down, they added flourishes that distinguish “We Sing” from standard pop fare, including a gospel choir on “Live High,” and operatic embellishments and a children’s chorale on “Coyotes.”

“Martin is an extraordinary artist,” Mraz says. “He holds space for whatever I choose or choose not to express. Putting his producer image aside, he supports the artist. So in my case, both fervency and humor get to be represented. A fine example is his willingness to bookend “Details in the Fabric” with the ridiculous voice mail messages left on my phone one afternoon by my good friend/writing partner Bushwalla.”

The album takes its title from a piece of art by Glasgow-based visual humorist David Shrigley that Mraz saw in Scotland while traveling.

“We are a language based species,” hums Mraz, “So anything that comes out of our mouths is our song. Our movement is our dance. And anything we might take for granted, well, consider it stolen moment.”

For an artist who is so well known for his clever, inspired way with words, it should come as no surprise that many of the songs for “We Sing” were born from a songwriting game he plays with a number of other artists, including noted Texas-based songwriters Billy Harvey & Bob Schneider. “Bob and company will give me a word or a phrase, and I’ll have to turn that info into a song and email it to everyone else who’s playing.” The impressive verbal torrent that spills forth on “Dynamo of Volition” that once again shows Mraz’s unmatched ability to sing at the speed of sound, came from being tasked to use the phrase “blind man’s bike.” Similarly, “Coyotes,” “Butterfly,” and “Lucky” all sprung to life after starting from songwriting challenges. “The game is like a support group. It’s a way for writers to encourage each other, to stay active in their craft and not get too heady and where their song might end up.”

Mraz’s songwriting talents were recently recognized when he received the Songwriters Hall of Fame’s esteemed “Hal David Starlight Award” at the organization’s 40th anniversary gala. The award—given to gifted songwriters who are making an impact in the music industry via their original songs—has previously gone to such artists as Rob Thomas, Alicia Keys, John Mayer, and John Legend.

“For me, music is the closest I may ever get to realizing what God is. (Music) is an awesome invisible force that gets under your skin, makes you dance and has the power to transform you. I’m the most at ease when I’m wrapped up in a song or deep inside the mania of the creative process. Success to me is the exploration of sound and vibrations and the freedom that exists when you dwell in those spaces. Awards and recognition are always encouraging and nice to receive, but they’re just a pageant show compared to the real reward that music gives. Therefore, I’ll be writing songs and setting stages for a long time to come. I’m hooked on it. And I’m grateful.”

This album contains no booklet.