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Good Monsters
Good Monsters
Studio album by Jars of Clay
Released	September 5, 2006
Recorded	March–May 2006
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	50:32
Label	Essential
Producer	Jars of Clay
Jars of Clay chronology
Singles from Good Monsters
	"Dead Man (Carry Me)"; Released: June 23, 2006; "Work"; Released: November 2006; "There Is a River"; Released: April 2007;

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	^[2]
CCM Magazine	A+^[3]
Christianity Today	^[4]
Cross Rhythms	^[1]
Jesus Freak Hideout	^[5]
Patrol Magazine	(7.4/10)^[6]
Soul Shine Magazine	^[7]

Good Monsters is the seventh full-length studio album from Jars of Clay, released by Essential Records on September 5, 2006. This is their last album of new material from Essential Records and it is said to be lyrically their most aggressive album to date. It features eleven original songs, and a remake of "All My Tears" by Julie Miller. It also features guest appearances by singer/songwriter Kate York (on "Even Angels Cry"), Leigh Nash, of Sixpence None the Richer (on "Mirrors & Smoke"), and the African Children's Choir (on "Light Gives Heat").

"Dead Man (Carry Me)", the first single from the album, was released to radio stations on June 23, 2006.^[8] "Work" was released as the second single, along with its music video, in late August. The band also released a music video for the album track "Good Monsters". In the September 2006 edition of CCM Magazine, the band credited fellow artist Ashley Cleveland with inspiring the improvisational sound of the album.

In an editor's fall albums overview in CCM Magazine, Good Monsters was called, "the album that Jars of Clay will be remembered for." It ended up taking the award for the CCM Magazine staff picks as album of the year, winning four out of the five spaces.

Overview

Concerning the album's title and themes, Dan Haseltine explains, "I was not sure how all of the experiences of the last few years would translate into music. There have been so many things to look at and describe. This record is part confessional, part euphoric love poem, bitter separation and part benediction. It was born out of many experiences and conversations between addicts, failures, lovers, loners, believers, and beggars. And so the language of recovery and the honest discourse about our attempts to live apart from God and apart from each other is a theme. Engaging people who are doing the hard work of laying their lives open to others, and avoiding isolation, has allowed me to see that there is both immeasurable evil and unfathomable good mixing under my own skin and it is grace, mercy and freedom that allow me to not simply be a monster, but to be a good monster."^[8]

Track listing

All tracks are written by Jars of Clay (Dan Haseltine, Charlie Lowell, Stephen Mason, and Matt Odmark), except where noted

Standard release
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Work"		3:53
2.	"Dead Man (Carry Me)"		3:20
3.	"All My Tears"	Julie Miller	3:45
4.	"Even Angels Cry"		4:22
5.	"There Is a River"	Jars of Clay, Ron Aniello	3:51
6.	"Good Monsters"		4:05
7.	"Oh My God"		6:06
8.	"Surprise"		3:50
9.	"Take Me Higher"	Jars of Clay, Aniello	4:40
10.	"Mirrors & Smoke"		3:58
11.	"Light Gives Heat"		4:42
12.	"Water Under the Bridge"	Jars of Clay, Aniello	3:58

iTunes pre-release bonus track
No.	Title	Length
13.	"Work" (acoustic version)	3:36

Personnel

Jars of Clay

Additional musicians

Aaron Sands – bass
Jeremy Lutito – drums
Erin Horner – French horn
Jennifer Kummer – French horn
John Catchings – cello (12)
Kristin Wilkinson – viola
Jonathan Beach – violin
Ned Henry – violin (8)
Christopher Davis – horn and string arrangements
Rosemary Butler – additional vocals (3, 9)
Ashley Cleveland – additional vocals (3, 9)
Kim Fleming – additional vocals (3, 9)
Kate York – additional vocals (4)
Leigh Nash – additional vocals (10)
African Children's Choir – additional vocals (11)
Elizabeth Panga – soloist

Production

Terry Hemmings – executive producer
Jars of Clay – producers, art direction
Mitch Dane – recording
Vance Powell – recording, mixing (3, 4, 6-12)
Allen Ditto – recording assistant, mix assistant (3, 4, 7-12)
Will James – recording assistant, mix assistant (3, 4, 7-12)
Mike Odmark – recording assistant
David Robinson – recording assistant
Chris Lord-Alge – mixing (1, 5)
Jay Ruston – mixing (2, 6)
Keith Armstrong – mix assistant (1, 5)
Dim-E – mix assistant (1, 5)
Seth Morton – mix assistant (3, 4, 7-12)
Nathan Yarborough – mix assistant (3, 4, 7-12)
Richard Dodd – mastering at RichardDodd.com, Nashville, Tennessee
Conor Farley – A&R coordinator
Michelle Pearson – A&R production
Tim Parker – art direction
Jonathan Richter – art direction, cover design, packaging design
Wolf Hoffman – photography
Star Klem – stylist
Robin Geary – hair, make-up
Blackbird Studios, Nashville, Tennessee – recording studio
Sputnik Sound, Nashville, Tennessee – recording studio
Blackbird Studios, Sherman Oaks, California – mixing location
TRS West, Sherman Oaks, California – mixing location
Resonate Music, Burbank, California – mixing location

Honors

CCM Magazine named Good Monsters its Album of the Year shortly after its September release, unusually early for such a distinction. Editor Jay Swartzendruber declared it "the landmark album of 2006." He noted that all six members of CCM's editorial team agreed on the selection and that it was "the most profound album the Christian music community has released in years."^[9]
Good Monsters was Christianity Today's No. 1 album of 2006,^[10] and ranked No. 5 of New Release Tuesday's top 10 albums of 2006.^[11]
Good Monsters won the Best Rock/Contemporary Album of the Year at the GMA Dove Awards of 2007 held at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville.
The album peaked at No. 58 on the Billboard 200. More than 15,000 copies were sold in its first week.