Spot Music Awards Review: Spotnix in the zone
By MATT GLEASON World Scene Writer

10/13/2003Two of the best performances were by the Tractors' frontman Steve Ripley -- he was inducted into the Spot Music Hall of Fame along with the renowned bluesman Flash Terry -- and, of course, the big man himself, Big Ric.

With nothing but a guitar, Ripley sang "No Depression (In Heaven)," a powerful song with lyrics about the afterlife where "there'll be no hunger/No orphan children crying for bread/No weeping widows, toil or struggle/No shrouds, no coffins, and no death."

For his second song, Ripley was joined by a backing band that included church-worthy singers that helped him sing his tune "Crossing Over," a moving song about the Jordan River "that's gently flowing from the deepest part of God's mind/Where you can wash your sins away/In the tears of time."

Ripley's performance was achingly beautiful.

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