Far From Heaven

Album: A Dramatic Turn of Events (2011)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • Guitarist John Petrucci and keyboardist Jordan Rudess penned this ballad as a piano/vocal. Rudess told MusicRadar about the song's origins: "John Petrucci came in with a musical thought, if you will," he said. "He played me a couple of things, like, 'Hey, check this out.' He knows I'm the kind of guy who can pick up a mood or a vibe pretty easily."

    "One of the bands I really like is Coldplay," continued Rudess. "I love how they keep common tones between chords, and they find interesting ways to change chords while maintaining common tones, which all works to create a certain sound. I've wanted to do that kind of thing for a long time. Before we did 'Far From Heaven,' I was looking at certain kinds of chords in that way. We went down that."
  • Petrucci described this song to MusicRadar as vocalist James LaBrie's "centerpiece." He said: "For a few days James, Jordan and I worked on the vocal melodies. James had some very strong ideas, which were great. He recorded his parts up in Canada with Rich Chycki. We never did anything like that, where I as a producer wasn't present when the vocals were being sung, so it was a bit of an experiment." I was blown away when I heard what they had done, not only by the vocal sound but the emotional quality that James put into it. He has such a beautifully unique voice. The way that Andy Wallace mixed it, putting James right up front, gives me shivers."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Supertramp founder Roger Hodgson

Supertramp founder Roger HodgsonSongwriter Interviews

Roger tells the stories behind some of his biggest hits, including "Give a Little Bit," "Take the Long Way Home" and "The Logical Song."

Hardy

HardySongwriter Interviews

The country hitmaker talks about his debut album, A Rock, and how a nursery rhyme inspired his hit single "One Beer."

Arrested For Your Art - The Story Of 2 Live Crew's "Obscene" Album

Arrested For Your Art - The Story Of 2 Live Crew's "Obscene" AlbumSong Writing

In the summer of 1990, you could get arrested for selling a 2 Live Crew album or performing their songs in Southern Florida. And that's exactly what happened.

Weird Al Yankovic

Weird Al YankovicFact or Fiction

Did Al play on a Beach Boys record? Did he have beef with George Lucas and Coolio? See if you can spot weird but true stories.

The Truth Is Out There: A History of Alien Songs

The Truth Is Out There: A History of Alien SongsSong Writing

The trail runs from flying saucer songs in the '50s, through Bowie, blink-182 and Katy Perry.

Michelle Branch

Michelle BranchSongwriter Interviews

Michelle Branch talks about "Everywhere," "The Game Of Love," and her run-in with a Christian broadcasting network.