First Things First is Bob Bennett's first release. It was released about three years after he became a Christian.
Track listing
All songs written by Bob Bennett, except where noted.
"Carpenter Gone Bad?" – 3:32
"The Night Shift" – 6:34
"Whistling In The Dark" – 2:31
"The Best" – 3:45
"You're Welcome Here" – 3:31
"Forgive And Forget" – 2:48
"(I Know That) My Redeemer Lives" (text: Samuel Medley; Tune: "Duke Street", John Hatton; adap. Bob Bennett) – 3:16 "The Garden Song" – 3:46 "I Belong To You" – 3:57 "Healings" – 4:49 "Spiritual Equation" (CD bonus track) – 2:18
Additional tracks on 2007 release
<li>"Spiritual Equation" (acoustic version, re-release CD) – m:ss
<li>Track by track commentaries (acoustic version, re-release CD) – m:ss
Personnel
Bob Bennett – acoustic guitar, Vocals, composer
Jim Fielder – acoustic bass
Ron Tutt – drums
Alex MacDougall – percussion
Bob Sanders – baritone horn
Nils Oliver – cello
Terry Winch – flugelhorn
Darrel Gardner – flugelhorn
Bill Alsup – French horn
Ron Loofbourrow – French horn
Val Johnson – trombone
Phil Ayling – woodwinds
John Phillips – woodwinds
Jonathan David Brown – producer, recording, mixing
James Gabriel – horn/woodwind arrangement on Track 7 ("My Redeemer Lives")
Release history
First Things First was originally released on LP and cassette in 1979. In the early 1990s it was released on CD; where that release contained an additional track, "Spiritual Equation". After being out of print for many years, in 2007 Bob Bennett arranged for a limited twenty-fifth anniversary edition; in addition to the original "bonus track", the 2007 release also contains an acoustic version of "Spiritual Equation" and newly recorded song by song commentaries.