Unable to tour, the singing priest rediscovers the most important parts of his faith.
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All the lights on the boulevard
All the diamonds and fancy cars
I watch them all just fade away
When I look into Your Face
Fr. Rob Galea released his latest single, “3AM,” in late September 2020. The tune is a tender reflection on the fleeting nature of material gains, inspired by the world pandemic.
Prior to the spread of COVID-19, Fr. Rob was touring all over the world to perform his unique brand of Catholic music. In an interview with Rome Reports, featured below, the crooning cleric noted that the cancellation of shows left him time to reflect. In his introspection, he found that many of the things he had appreciated about life on the road had gotten in the way of his faith practice. He said:
“This song is a song about brokenness. It’s a song which came out of my year, last year. As the year started to go by, I began to realize that I was serving Jesus. I was proclaiming Jesus. Jesus was on my lips, but I wasn’t making the time for Jesus to be in my heart.”
A return to his roots
The tune follows in Fr. Galea’s trendy hip-hop style, with a gentle ballad melody and a beat made for dancing. We especially enjoyed how well the song builds in each verse. The accompaniment slowly swells until he goes up for wonderful, crisp high notes on the line “save me.” The tune may not be his most intricate, but it’s comforting in its tone and rhythms. All this with a melody that will continue to play in one’s head after listening.
Rather than lamenting the loss of his musical outlet, Fr. Rob is using his time to focus on what really matters. As a priest, after all, his music is merely a vessel for a faith-filled message. His YouTube channel may not have as many live recordings as it used to, but in their place are more videos of Fr. Rob celebrating Mass. He has also added several new installments to his “In Just a Minute” series, which teaches theological lessons in brief videos.