“It’s mysterious. I can’t even really recall recording ‘At a Loss,’” she says of her current single, a lost track originally written and recorded in 1997. “It was created in the midst of my grief over the death of [friend and recording artist] Rich Mullins, a grief I know I continue to share with so many people. In the blur of that loss, we recorded a piano/vocal. And then somehow we lost track of the song.”

It was only weeks ago that a member of Arends’s fan community reminded Carolyn of “At a Loss” and asked if she would consider releasing it. “I offered it to the folks on my mailing list,” Carolyn explains, “and it connected with so many of them so deeply that it seemed like maybe it was meant to be rediscovered in this particular season.”

Arends thought of recording an updated version of the song, but her listeners urged her to let the raw simplicity of the original version stand. And so, “At a Loss” has been release to all digital music platforms—a single 23 years in the making.

“I think sometimes it helps to be able to name our pain,” Arends observed, “and to know we’re not alone. It means the world to me that ‘At a Loss’ seems to be doing that for folks. In this season of so many different kinds of losses, ‘At a Loss’ is offered with love to anyone who may need to hear it.”

“At a Loss” can be heard wherever you listen to music online. Or visit www.carolynarends.com for more information.

ABOUT CAROLYN ARENDS

“One of the most affecting communicators in any genre.” – Billboard Magazine

Carolyn Arends has released 12 albums and is the author of 3 critically-acclaimed books. 15 of Arends’ songs have become top 10 radio singles on the Canadian pop and US Christian charts. Arends has earned 2 Dove Awards, 3 Juno Nominations, and was recognized as the West Coast Music Awards’ Songwriter of the Year. Her prose has been recognized by The Word Guild, The Evangelical Press Association and The Canadian Church Press Awards.

2020 heralds the twenty-fifth anniversary of the release of Carolyn’s first album I Can Hear You, and the induction of one of her signature songs, “Seize the Day,” into the Canadian Gospel Music Song Hall of Fame. It also marks a fresh wave of creativity for Arends. A summer Kickstarter for two new projects was fully-funded in just over eight hours, and the songstress has been hard at work on RECOGNITION (an album of eleven new originals) and IN THE MORNING (an acoustic worship EP), both to be released early in 2021.

In addition to her busy touring and speaking schedule, Carolyn serves as the director of education for Renovaré, a far-reaching organization that encourages and nurtures personal and spiritual renewal. She has also been a regular columnist for Christianity Today and Faith Today, and has served as an adjunct professor at Trinity Western University, Regent College, ACTS Seminary, Pacific Life Bible College, Columbia Bible College, and Prairie Bible College. She has a degree in Psychology and English from Trinity Western University and a Master of Arts in Theological Studies from Regent College. She lives in Surrey, BC with her husband, Mark, and their young adult children Benjamin and Bethany.

www.carolynarends.com

 

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