Running on Love (1989) – Kenny Marks

I was runnin’ on loneliness
And now I’m runnin’ on love

I became familiar with the Christian singer Kenny Marks when a friend of mine ‘Eric’ lent me his cassette tapes in school. In no time I consumed a lot of Kenny’s music and even bought his greatest hits collection years later called ‘Absolutely Positively‘. I could reminisce the music I grew up with which included today’s featured track Running on Love. All of his songs had very strong and uplifting messages. I was baptised in the Uniting Church as a youngster, but the only time I went to church was with my Grandmother Dorothy Walton on holidays. Kenny comes from the Evangelical and Charismatic branches of the Christian tree having played for fellowship groups and at Billy Graham events.

I have made it no secret on this blog that I have a proclivity for ‘outreach’ Christian music and Kenny Marks is the first source I can remember listening to in a line of Christian artists who have come along since and featured here including Hillsong, Michael W Smith and Marcela Gandara.

Today’s song ‘Running on Love‘ which comes from his Another Friday Night album (considered by many as his most enduring album) is an inspiring contemplation piece about the ineffable effect of being ‘reborn’ or ‘renewed’; letting go of self pity and unshackling oneself from the rim of the ‘wheel of life‘ by living in the centre, where according to Christians – Christ is said to be. ‘Christ is Love and the eternity of it’.

I was runnin’ on empty
I was runnin’ on fumes
I was runnin’ on desperately
‘Neath the cold dark moon
Now I’m runnin’ on tenderness
Thankin’ God above
I was runnin’ on loneliness
And now I’m running on love
I was runnin’ on loneliness
And now I’m runnin’ on love

I was runnin’ on heartache
I was runnin’ on pain
I was runnin’ on borderlines
In the cold hard rain
Now I’m runnin’ on happiness
Sunny skies above
I was runnin’ on loneliness
And now I’m runnin’ on love

Chorus…

Runnin’ on love
And love’s around me
In everything that I do
Runnin’ on love
And love surrounds me
‘Cause I ran into You, hey!

I was runnin’ on trouble
I was runnin’ on steam
I was runnin’ on bitternеss
Like you would not dream
Now I am runnin’ on faithfulness
Runnin’ hand in glovе
I was runnin’ on loneliness
And now I’m runnin’ on love

Chorus

Now I’m runnin’ on tenderness
Thankin’ God above
I was runnin’ on loneliness
And now I’m runnin’ on love
Runnin’ on love, hey!

Runnin’ on love, runnin’ on love x 4

Kenny’s bio reads: Kenny Marks, born Kenneth Michael Marks, November 6, 1950, Detroit, Michigan, has performed on 6 of the 7 continents world-wide over his music career. His family came from Yugoslavia with the surname Makrovich, but his parents changed to the name Marks when he was born.

Growing up in Detroit, Marks studied classical piano as a kid and learnt to play guitar when he was 15. He tried a group with some guys in high school, then went away to a university on the East Coast. Kenny Marks was one of the mainstay artists in Christian music from his debut album in 1982 ’til the end of the decade. Many of his songs were regularly in circulation on Christian radio and are still considered by many today to be CCM classics.

There is more music from Kenny Marks’ to come so we will dive a little deeper into his background and legacy in subsequent posts. Thanks for reading as always.

References:
1. Kenny Marks – Wikipedia
2. Kenny Marks Dies at 67 – GMA
3. Kenny Marks: Remembering the CCM star of the ’80s and ’90s – Cross Rhythms