Lucy Barna, College of Charleston

Home base: Santa Fe, N.M.

Recorded at: Santa Fe Brewing Company

Lucy Barna, College of Charleston

The songwriting process: “Some of my songs come out pretty quickly. It may take me only an hour to write. This song came out that way. In this song, I was trying to get in touch with my spiritual values, to remember where I am grounded. I thought back to my times at the College and the religious studies program. I remembered my readings in Buddhism with Professor Zeff Bjerken. One part of Buddhist philosophy deals with this idea of a sense of urgency. I really liked that term – ‘sense of urgency’ – and it seemed appropriate.”

Behind the song: “I didn’t really have a direct message. It seems to be about the struggle between my spiritual sense and practical life. I was torn. You have to live.”

Where I am running to in the song: “It’s kind of ambiguous. Even at the time I wrote it, I didn’t really know where I was running to. I’ve always been a traveler, always trying to find something better. I’m not sure where I’m going, but I still want to run. Maybe it’s back to me. Maybe it’s a geographical place or an emotional place, or maybe I’m running to or away from someone. I just need to change.”

Musical influences: “They’re pretty vast. It’s funny. I’m only 30, and a lot of my influences are from way before I was born – artists my dad listened to, like James Taylor, Joni Mitchell, Kate Wolf. I also like Patty Griffin, Emmylou Harris and new California folk, such as Jack Johnson and Meiko.”

Lucy Barna, College of Charleston

Balancing work and music: “I’m actually a manager at Trader Joe’s, which is a great job. But I work about 50 hours a week. It’s pretty difficult balancing work, family and music. The music side, it comes and goes. I’ll devote a lot of energy to booking shows and then take a break. I can always make time. Music is a good release. My kids like music so they enjoy it when I pull out the guitar while they’re playing in their sandbox. Like most musicians, I just juggle it. Most musicians have to work, especially those with kids. But they find a way – it just works out.”

Check out more music by Lucy Barna.

Lyrics for “Sense of Urgency”

The walls are coming down
the ground’s breaking apart
it’s a barricade of sound
on the steel strength of this heart

but there is no refuge
in the solitude of you
and there is no escape
when there’s nothing left to prove

This sense of urgency
is deep inside of me
it’s always telling me to run
this sense of urgency
has got a hold on me
who have I become

I’m hiding out, I’m holding on
I’m just trying to be strong
seeking answers in the dust
in the ash of a burning trust

I always wanna run
I always wanna fly
but I’m just trying to sustain
a fire deep inside

this sense of urgency
is deep inside of me
its always telling me to run
this sense of urgency
has got a hold on me
who have I become

I wanna run, run to you
to the solace of this solitude
run, run to you
but freedom scares me too

the answers come and go
like the wind who can’t make up her mind
it’s just a gamblin’ game you know
all these things we leave behind

well, I’ve been trying to unwind
I’ve been trying to come clean
we’re all just trying to define
if the truth could set us free

this sense of urgency
is deep inside of me
its always telling me run
this sense of urgency
has got a hold on me
who have I become

well, it’ll all come to light
and I know that it’ll come to pass
but I just can’t get it right
its all changing here so fast

there is no safety here
jumping high into thin air
but there is no time to waste
when we’re letting go of fear

this sense of urgency
is deep inside of me
its always telling me run
this sense of urgency
has got a hold on me
who have I become

I wanna run, run to you
to the solace of this solitude
run, run to you
but freedom scares me to

run, run to you
run, run to you
run, run to you
but freedom scares me too

Listen to all of the songs on The Soundtrack.

– Photos by Sully Sullivan