Mercy

Album: Stand (In the Light) (2009)
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • James Ingram told Christian Music Today that this song is "a last plea to God for a son who's gone astray." He added: "No matter how much you raised them up for God, it's a plea for him to bring back your son because the streets have him now. Not only does it ask for mercy on your son, but also to have mercy on the parent as they're going through it all."
  • Ingram originally wrote this comforting response to tragedy for a play with Debbie Allen. It was initially about seven minutes long. After being asked to sing on the TV program The Gospel of Music, Ingram's wife suggested this song, which the singer cut down to four minutes. Ingram told Christian Music Today that, "we got such a great response, that [Radio One's] Kathy Hughes came to me and said, 'What are you gonna do now?' I asked what she meant, and she said, 'You've got a hit record, so now you need to do an inspirational album!'" Thus this song laid the seeds for Stand in the Light album.

Comments: 1

  • Rff from AlabamaEvery time I hear this I get a little choked up when I think of my eldest son-“God have mercy...”.
see more comments

Editor's Picks

Top American Idol Moments: Songs And Scandals

Top American Idol Moments: Songs And ScandalsSong Writing

Surprise exits, a catfight and some very memorable performances make our list of the most memorable Idol moments.

Mike Scott of The Waterboys

Mike Scott of The WaterboysSongwriter Interviews

The stories behind "Whole Of The Moon" and "Red Army Blues," and why rock music has "outlived its era of innovation."

Dave Edmunds

Dave EdmundsSongwriter Interviews

A renowned guitarist and rock revivalist, Dave took "I Hear You Knocking" to the top of the UK charts and was the first to record Elvis Costello's "Girls Talk."

Lip-Synch Rebels

Lip-Synch RebelsSong Writing

What happens when Kurt Cobain, Iron Maiden and Johnny Lydon are told to lip-synch? Some hilarious "performances."

Michael Bolton

Michael BoltonSongwriter Interviews

Into the vaults for this talk with Bolton from the '80s when he was a focused on writing songs for other artists.

Johnette Napolitano of Concrete Blonde

Johnette Napolitano of Concrete BlondeSongwriter Interviews

The singer/bassist for Concrete Blonde talks about how her songs come from clairvoyance, and takes us through the making of their hit "Joey."