Khrusty Brothers sing Sympathy for Jesus

As I ran through the nominees for the Emergent Idol contest, a reader from Kansas City kept mentioning the Khrusty Brothers, the latest side project of Waterdeep's Don Chaffer. How I missed this when it came out in late fall, I will never know. 

Needless to say, I have been listening since it was introduced to me last week and I am impressed. A little stranger than your average Waterdeep album, the Khrusty's are a Traveling Wilburys or Swirling Eddies type creation, complete with costumes, back story and stage show. Luckily for all, the also have the songs to compliment the creativity.

While the album is no stronger than your average Waterdeep CD (this is a compliment actually), there is a stand out on the album. Sympathy for Jesus is the strongest song Don (or Waterdeep) has done since Both of Us Will Feel the Blast. Nothing I can say will do justice to actual song, so here is the YouTube version of it live (sans some of the good lyrics cut due to it being church, and all).

Here is a link to the back story of the band in which you can listen to Sympathy for Jesus in all its glory (along with Both of Us Will Feel the Blast).

Here are the lyrics. You will see why nothing I can say does it justice.

I came stumbling into church with a hot gun in my hands

I was ready to talk to Jesus to tell him my demands

But Jesus ain’t no fool, he’s seen this kinda thing before

And He had a couple angels stop me at the front door

I said now come on that ain’t fair, you should be accessible to all

He said everybody gets a secretary even just to take their calls

So address me to my face if you think you’ve got the balls

But I ain’t playin around, boy, at all

This was not what I expected so I stiffened in my stance

And I tried hard to remember every single shitty circumstance

Then I quivered like a victim with his predator in sight

I was ready now to vindicate, I was ready to start a fight

Now you can stand right there and judge me,

     shoot, you can send me straight to hell

I know you got the power, I know that fact full well

But before you do explain to me, Why suffering and why death?

And why did I pray all those years and waste all that good breath?

Hallelujah, Hallelujah

Well the angels sang it under their breath by the door

Hallelujah, Hallelujah

I give up, I can’t go on like this any more

Well I appreciate your kind, he said and then Jesus poured a drink

My face musta looked funny cause he said, It’s not like you think

I’m saddled with the job you know of interpreting my Dad 

To a bunch of frightened people, frightened or just mad

And most of ‘em think they got it right and then he threw some ice cubes in

But most of ‘em are just dead wrong about life and death and sin

And then I got my fiancee, she’s 'sposed to speak my mind

But sometimes she’s just chicken and then she messes it up other times

Here is a story, along with the song streaming.