What They Think of Us: Spirit in the Sky

The rock song, “Spirit in the Sky ,” has been considered by some listeners to be a Christian song.  The song is clearly based on “Christian concepts” but was written and performed by  Norman Greenbaum (b. 1942, Massachusetts, USA).  Greenbaum is, and has always been, a practicing religious Jew.

Listeners have been split on exactly what Norman Greenbaum meant by the song.  It has even been recorded and released by Christian bands, such as DC Talk and Stellar Kart .

My personal understanding of the song is that it is quite sarcastic and that it is based on a highly simplistic misunderstanding of Christian theology.  I believe that the song views Christians as starry-eyed empty-headed simpletons.

Speaking of the song, Greenbaum said, “The song itself was simple, when you’re writing a song you keep it simple of course. It wasn’t like a Christian song of praise it was just a simple song. I had to use Christianity because I had to use something. But more important it wasn’t the Jesus part, it was the spirit in the sky. Funny enough… I wanted to die with my boots on.” 

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