Rock in a Heart Space

Album: All One (2004)
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Songfacts®:

  • Running 14:41, this is one of the more elaborate kirtan chants you're likely to hear. "Rock in a Heart Space" is the third movement of the 50-minute suite of songs that comprise the All One album. Each movement represents a different style of music, which this one taking on rock.

    Each section was recorded live at Avatar Studios in New York with a 70-person choir.
  • Some notable names in rock played on this track: Walter Becker of Steely Dan and Rick Allen of Def Leppard.

    In our interview with Krishna Das, he talked about Becker's contribution. "He's such a great player," he said. "I don't think people really know, or appreciate that. They know him more as a producer and a songwriter, but what a player the guy is. When he comes in with the bass, you could die, really. It's so deep and so perfect."
  • This song, and the entire album, are essentially one continuous chant, repeating the "Hare Krishna" mantra. Says Das: "I had this idea to record one chant for a whole CD. I put it off for a long time, but finally I had to give in and just do it. After all, in India there are places that the chanting of just ONE of the Sacred Names has been going on for centuries. So what’s an hour?"
  • The title is a play on the phrase "rock and a hard place," but a lot of folks didn't get it. Krishna Das has a hard time naming songs, since his chants don't have obvious titles, so sometimes he has a little fun with it.

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