Longing for More—Charity Torrence
Churchgoers love to sing old hymns, moms and dads love to croon lullabies to crib-bound babies, and even those of us who are tone-challenged love to play American Idol in the shower. But few of us have the talent or nerve to take singing to the next level. Singing from the pew, after all, is different than singing in the choir; and singing in a choir, surrounded by other voices, is quite different than handling a solo at the Christmas recital.
A handful of folks like Charity Torrence, however, will take that next step. Torrence had sung in groups in high school, at Liberty University, and at Grace Evangelical Free Church, but had never thought of herself as a soloist. Driving home one evening, however, she got an idea: what if she recorded a CD for friends and family?
I visited Torrence on her and her husband Matt’s farm in Concord, and she told me about the original idea for her CD, Longing for More.
“The whole idea came up last October, and I was driving home from music practice one night, and I thought, ‘You know, maybe I should just do a CD for my family just for Christmas’…So I started thinking of different songs that were their favorites…Classic hymns with a fresh sound.”
But working in a recording studio wasn’t the same as singing before a lively church crowd.
“Working in the studio was a lot more challenging,” Torrence said, “because I’m a people person, and when you’re singing live you feed off of the energy that’s in the room.”
Torrence credits the success of Longing for More to the musicians who joined her in the studio. Each one—Paul Brunett, Lucas Hayden, Kendra Jenkins, Kimberly Williams, Luis Mendez, and Dawn Hamilton—added something special to the project.
“We all went to Liberty University - at different times…,” Torrence told me. “The relationships were such…that it was really comfortable to be able to say, ‘no, that didn’t sound good … go up to this note or sing this.’ So I was able to do that…It was so fun … it was easy working with all the people that were on the CD.”
For those who think that good singers are natural performers, think again. A middle child, it would take time for Torrence to be comfortable on stage. Even though she loved music and had been singing since she was three, she would wait until she was 14 or 15 to take her talent public.
“I hated being in front of people, I was very shy as a child …,” she told me. “But my Mom would tape me when I didn’t know it.”
A child of missionaries, Torrence was living in Papua New Guinea when she was asked to join a group of singers at church.
“It was fun,” Torrence said of the group. “…They were really good, so I just felt privileged that they asked me to be a part of their group…I always loved singing in groups, more than solo.”
Inspired to record an album of hymns for her family, however, Torrence stepped outside her comfort zone. In fact, as she started working on Longing for More, the project quickly grew beyond a Christmas present.
“The energy that I put into it - I had to do it right,” she told me. “…I couldn’t mess around cause…once you make it [the CD], it’s gonna be out there forever.”
The title of the album also has a special significance relating to her father-in-law, Ronnie Torrence. In 2005, he suffered from a life threatening brain injury. Although he miraculously recovered, he later remembered feeling the presence of God and “those who had gone before” while in a coma.
This memory left him “longing for more,” and as an outlet, he found himself listening to old hymns.
“He felt like he was able to…go back to that place, where he was before during that time, when he can be alone and then when he is listening to music that is just rich in the faith and in theology.”
When recording Longing for More, then, Torrence thought, “‘this would be really specially for him—[to] pick some of his favorites.’”
Longing for More also had a personal significance for Torrence that expresses her own faith, and the feeling that many of us have experienced during life’s low tides.
“When you’re by yourself, or struggling through life, most of the time we do ‘long for more,’ we long for something different, something more meaningful in life. …I think a lot of people are longing for more, they just don’t know where to go for it.”
Charity,friends, and family:
As you know this CD came out very soon after I lost my precious husband, and you and Luke sang at his funeral. In fact you included a couple of the songs in this CD, so you know they were his favorite too. So when I heard the CD, of course, I just had to have a copy. And - - and, needless to say, I was certainly “Longing For More” at that time.
Thank you again for singing at his funeral, and also for this CD that has, no doubt, blessed many others.
I Love you, Ann