My #4 All-Time Favorite Album: Illinois by Sufjan Stevens

The 2005 album ILLINOIS, by Sufjan Stevens, is my all-time #4 favorite album...I doubt whether most of you have ever heard of it, though, or even of Stevens himself.  It was the fifth album of this versatile and highly creative, multi-instrumental artist with a subdued-but-expressive singing voice.  His previous album, Michigan, contained tracks relating to different parts of that state and his experiences as a resident there...this has continued to Illinois as well as he gives a rigorous history and geography lesson of the Prairie State with autobiographical and Christian themes woven into the lyrics.  One might well say that this is a Christian work that will never be played on any of the so-called "Christian" radio stations that depend on fundamentalist churches to render judgment on what is "appropriate".  Stevens took up 74 out of the allotted 80-minute space on a compact disc, and still had a lot of material left over...much of which he used for his follow-up album The Avalanche (also excellent).  I first heard of Sufjan Stevens and this album while randomly listening one day in 2009 to what was then AOL Radio, on their alternative music channel, when they played Chicago, one of its more known tracks...that was an experience!  I quickly explored further into his music and found that my local public library carried most of his CDs, which I checked out and listened to.  My "song of the year" for 2009 was another Illinois track: Casimir Pulaski Day.  Sufjan Stevens has produced a wide variety of albums, many instrumental in nature, a few Christmas-themed, others more Christian-oriented and for those containing lyrics, nearly all with an introspective, autobiographical slant.  He's quite a singular artist...it's hard to find another with whom to compare him.  Stevens is a Christian who honestly writes about his real, personal experiences and struggles with his faith...so as I've said before, you'll never hear him on whitewashed, sanitized Christian radio.  On Illinois, the songs tend to have overly long titles (and alternative titles as well), which I've whittled down.  Also, he split the brief instrumental endings of a few into separate tracks, which frustrated me when listening to the album in shuffle mode on my MP3 player.  Oh well, nobody's perfect.  Illinois, or Sufjan Stevens for that matter, may or may not resonate with you, but I highly recommend you check it out to see for yourself...YouTube carries it, I believe.  My favorite songs from it are, in order of preference, Casimir Pulaski Day, Jacksonville, Come On Feel the Illinoise, Decatur and Chicago. Below are listed the basic tracks of Illinois as they appear on the album...

CONCERNING THE UFO SIGHTING NEAR HIGHLAND, ILLINOIS

THE BLACK HAWK WAR

COME ON! FEEL THE ILLINOISE!

JOHN WAYNE GACY, JR.

JACKSONVILLE

DECATUR

CHICAGO

CASIMIR PULASKI DAY

TO THE WORKERS OF THE ROCK RIVER VALLEY REGION

THE MAN OF METROPOLIS STEALS OUR HEARTS

PRAIRIE FIRE THAT WANDERS ABOUT

THEY ARE NIGHT ZOMBIES!

THE SEER'S TOWER

THE TALLEST MAN, THE BROADEST SHOULDERS

OUT OF EGYPT, INTO THE GREAT LAUGH OF MANKIND

Next week: my #3 all-time favorite album...from the turn of the century...