"Shepherd of the Hills" - my first single!

What a day! My first single has been released, and I've just finished twelve solid hours of promotional work. Exhausted, but very happy indeed!

Here's what filled the day:

- I've released "Shepherd of the Hills" through Radioactive Airplay. Each week, they do their own chart, and I've debuted at #30. Whoo-hoo! (UPDATE: I just visited the page again, and I've moved up to #27!)

- I posted the song on my Shoutlife page and my MySpace. Feel free to visit and take a listen!

- No official results yet from last week's "Make It or Break It" - Hopefully, soon!

- My Dottie Rambo article was posted today, so I emailed all the people who gave me quotes to thank them and send them the link.

- Tara and Kyle are sending out my press release for the single through JMA, so Tara and I spent a good bit of time working on that today. It was sent out tonight, so hopefully, it will get some notice tomorrow!

- The largest part of today was letting people know about my Single Release Party next Monday. I'm posting lots of public notices for it, but I also wanted to send out invites to people I know in Nashville - over 120 personalized invites! Yes, it took hours!

That said, the event is very public, and if you're in the Nashville area, please drop by!

Here are the details:

ALLISON LYNN'S SINGLE RELEASE PARTY
Monday, June 9, at 7:00pm
Edgehill Cafe, 1201 Villa Place, Nashville, TN 37212
With special performances by Allison Lynn, Tara Jackson, and Gerald Flemming.
FREE ADMISSION!
ALL ARE WELCOME!

And very special news: Mom and Dad are coming down for the weekend! They wanted to be here for Gerald's Bluebird debut on Sunday and my show on Monday. So awesome!!

Oh, so that was the other thing that filled the day - cleaning the house for company!

Dottie Rambo Tribute on SGM Radio.com

For this month's SGM Radio.com article, I was honoured to write a tribute to the great Dottie Rambo.

I collected quotes from some today's best artists and songwriters, such as Allison Durham Speer, Gordon Mote, and Rodney Griffin of Greater Vision, and asked them, "How did Dottie Rambo influence your singing and/or songwriting?"

To read their answers, and a few thoughts of my own, please visit here.

While on the site, you can also read Lorraine Walker's beautiful memories of watching Miss Dottie perform live.

Thanks to everyone who sent me a quote!

Make It or Break It - My First Press Release!!!

In the continuing trend of new things, I've just sent out my first press release! I've sent it to 16 different websites and online magazines.

Here 'tis:


ALLISON LYNN FEATURED ON "MAKE IT OR BREAK IT"


NASHVILLE, TN (Press Release) – May 26, 2008 - Allison Lynn's upcoming single, "Shepherd of the Hills," is the current song featured on Solid Gospel's "Make It or Break It". "Shepherd of the Hills" is the first radio release from Allison's debut CD, Real Big Fan. Produced by Aaron Minick, Real Big Fan mixes Southern Gospel with the sounds of big band, jazz, and western swing.

Written by Joel Lindsey and Tony Wood, "Shepherd of the Hills" is a soothing ballad that evokes images from the 23rd Psalm. "I love the message of this song: No matter how far or how often we may wander, the great Shepherd will always travel to the darkest places to find us and bring us home," says Allison Lynn. "The first time I heard this song, I knew I had to record it. I would have sung this song ten years ago, and I pray I'll still be blessed to sing it ten years from now."

Known for her blog, "Adventures of a Starving Artist", Allison Lynn is a Canadian artist who recently moved her ministry south to Nashville, Tennessee. Allison received her call into full-time ministry while attending Ben Speer's Stamps-Baxter School of Music in 2005.

"Shepherd of the Hills" will be featured on "Make It or Break It" until May 31. To vote "Make It", please visit www.SolidGospel.com

For more information about Allison Lynn and Real Big Fan, please visit www.AllisonLynn.com

Jackson Ridge Homecoming

Today, Gerald and I drove out to Rockvale, about an hour from our place, to sing at Jackson Ridge Community Church. They were having a Homecoming, and I was one of the 'groups' on the bill.

The church is way out in the country, and the setting is beautiful - clear fields broken by clusters of trees. This congregation has only been there for a few months, but the church itself was built in the 1880's. The pews were handmade and they're gorgeous. No ornamentation, but built from thick rough planks of wood, smoothed over time by generations of worshipers.

The congregation gathered after their morning service for 'dinner on the grounds'. Most people actually tried to escape the heat by sitting inside, but it was a gorgeous day, so we ate under a tent. The whole thing reminded me of being at a church in Botwood - everybody knew each other, and there was enough food to feed twice as many people for two days.

At 2pm, we all filed into the church for the 'singing' part of the homecoming. There were 3 of us on the program - Encounter (a trio managed by JMA), me, and Forever Changed (a 6-person local group). We each did 2 sets - a 25 minute and a 15 minute. I mostly did songs from Real Big Fan, but Gerald also accompanied me on 2 songs. I think the shift in dynamic really worked well.

This was my first 'homecoming' performance, so I really didn't know what to expect. The congregation seemed to like the traditional songs, and I was worried that my music might not be well received. Well, I couldn't have been more wrong. The songs got rave reviews, and the biggest hit of the day - "Real Big Fan"! We had people coming up to the product table asking for it, and one gentleman felt so connected to the song he even shared part of his testimony with us.

It was a long afternoon, but a great one. Musically, I think the day was a success for everyone. Gerald and I felt that we got to connect with a lot of different people in the congregation, and that was wonderful. I knew I was in with kids when they invited me over to see the frog they'd found.

Partway through the program, I felt this wonderful feeling and thought, "This is what it's going to be - just singing and meeting people and trying to spread the message." I just feel so blessed that doors are opening for me, and I continue to pray for the courage to keep stepping through those doors...

Crave Bookstore and Cafe

First let me preface with this: I have been suffering with allergies all week. Not just a little sneezing, not just a little sniffling - suffering! I forgot how rough this was last year. I'm taking Reactine every day and I've started using a neti pot, but it's still pretty rough. I wouldn't normally make public complaints about this, but this is a big singing weekend for me, and any singer will tell you the dangers of allergies. Not only does it feel terrible, but sometimes you just don't know what kind of sound might come out!

Tonight, Gerald and I drove out to Lebanon for a songwriter night at Crave Bookstore and Cafe. Crave is a true treasure - a gorgeous store and a beautiful cafe. If we lived in the area, I would probably spend too much time and too much money there.

They've been holding their monthly songwriter nights in the cafe, but tonight, they decided to hold the event outside. Well, this is when you should refer back to paragraph #1. They have a nice quiet space in the parking lot behind the building. There's lots of room for tables and chairs, and a partial brick wall looks like it was built as a backdrop. The staff pulled out some sound equipment, and the set up was terrific.

I, however, did not feel terrific.

I was just so uncomfortable! Sniffing, sneezing, watery eyes, sore throat - I had it all. I just prayed, "God, please just let this stop long enough for me to sing tonight."

The show opened with a few bands, then a duo, and then us. Gerald did 3 songs - "Real Big Fan", "A Prayer Will Find You", and ... arg! I forgot the third! See how out of it I am tonight?

Next I stepped up and Gerald accompanied me on "Fear Knocked, Faith Answered". We wrote this last summer, but this was our first time doing it in public. I followed with "Wedding" and "Abide".

And at the risk of bragging - I did well! I left the stage area, got back to our table, and starting sneezing - non-stop! It was terrible!

We sat in the air-conditioning for a bit, enjoying some of the lovely Crave fare, and then politely dismissed ourselves. There was no way I could step outside again.

Who knew I would leave a city with bad air warnings and so much summer pollution you lose the top of the CN Tower, only to have my allergies get worse? Arg!!!

Lots of singing to do tomorrow. Praying tonight...

CD Review, and upcoming Single Release Party!!

Long day - we were up at 4am to drive our friend, Deanna, to the airport. But sooo much good stuff going on:

REAL BIG FAN has just received a review by David Bruce Murray. You can read the whole thing here.

We're out in Lebanon tomorrow for a songwriter night at Crave Bookstore and Cafe, and I'm singing a homecoming event on Sunday.

Gerald is getting ready for his Bluebird gig on Sunday, June 8, and I'll be singing back-up for him.

Then the next night, Monday, June 9, I'll be hosting my Single Release Party at Edgehill Cafe. So excited about this! It will celebrate the release of "Shepherd of the Hills". The party starts at 7pm, and admission is free! I'll sing some songs from the CD, and Tara and Gerald will perform too. I'm hoping a few more people will sing, but no official announcements yet...

And now next week (May 26-31) is Make It or Break It!

"Shepherd of the Hills" will be featured on this Solid Gospel show. People can listen to the song online and vote to Make It or Break It. If I get enough positive votes, it'll get added to Solid Gospel's regular rotation. Here's the link to vote MAKE IT.

Must practice a little, write a draft of a press release, and finally go to bed. Seriously - 4am! What are 'morning people' thinking???

Cinderella lost...

I was just on my way to bed when I saw the tragic news about Steven Curtis Chapman's little girl. I'm just heartsick for them.

Please keep this family in your prayers...

Dottie Rambo's Home-Going Celebration

I had set tonight aside to write my SGM Radio.com tribute article on Dottie Rambo, but I'm so flooded with images from today's funeral that I'm having trouble getting my head around the article. Most of today was great, but some of it was disturbing as well.

First, The Basics: We arrived at Christ Church in Nashville at 12:30 for a 1:00 service. This was my first visit, and this place is huge!! We parked way up on the hill, and the shuttle bus came to pick us up. He said people had been arriving since 11:00 that morning. Inside, the results were obvious. The ginormous sanctuary was packed to the gills. They have a huge choir loft, and just before the service, each and every seat was filled by a singer - truly a 'who's who' of Gospel music.

And that's what brings us to ...

The Ugly Stuff: We knew going in to the service that the music would be spectacular, and we also knew that despite the gravity of the day, there would be people in the audience just there to see the 'big show'. For example, Andre Crouch was one of the people in the congregation. Now, if I ever meet Andre Crouch, I'll probably geek out and I will totally want a picture. But I wouldn't ask for a photo at a funeral! Well, apparently, not everyone has that standard. That's right, just before the service, a fan approached Mr. Crouch, sat in the seat next to him, and asked someone to take a photo of them together. At a funeral!

And my other favourite was the woman in front of us. She was clearly a fan, and I think it's great that fans would want to show up at the funeral to show their respect. However, is it really respect when you also sneak your camcorder into the service? First she pulls out these huge black binoculars so she can check out the people in the choir. (There were large screens around the church, so everyone could see everything.). Then she pulls out a camcorder and starts recording her favourite parts of the service. Unbelievable! We joked about it after, wondering where the video will show up first: YouTube or Ebay?

But all that aside, there was definitely...

The Good Stuff: I have never experienced a more joyful funeral than I did today. I've attended more funerals than most people - many as a singer, and far too many as a friend. Most of the funerals I've attended have focused on comforting the grieving and celebrating a life lived. (I'm struggling with the right way to say this, because I don't think one way is better than the other) Today's service focused on a celebration, not just of Dottie's life lived, but of the new life she is living today. It was a joyful expression of salvation, God's grace, and life everlasting given to us by Jesus. There was applause, singing, and shouts of praise.

Some of my favourite moments:

- We opened with prayer for those hurt in the accident that were unable to attend the funeral - a wonderful and generous way to start things off.

- Barbara Mandrell spoke about Dottie's gracious and generous approach to people; how she shunned praise, and always turned the attention towards other people.

- The "Choir of the Artists" was directed by Bill Gaither, and it really was great. They had a band to supplement the tracks, and performed 2 full sets of songs. Soloists would take verses with the choir on the choruses, and on most songs, there were several reprises of the chorus. (Did I mention the service was almost 3 hours long?) In all, 17 of Miss Dottie's songs were performed. What a legacy!

- Ben sang the solo on "Sheltered in the Arms of God". We all know what that song means to me, and this was the most emotional part of the service for me.

- The Voices of Lee sang "He Looked Beyond my Fault" - amazing!!!!

- "I Go to the Rock" had at least 4 full reprises on a double chorus, and another reprise at the end of the service. Truly, I have never attended a funeral where people where standing, clapping, swaying, and cheering. In some moments I didn't quite know what to think of it all, but I also found it to be incredibly wonderful too.

- The Isaacs sang "Mamma's Teaching Angels How to Sing" - stunning!!!

- A bishop read messages from Lily Tomlin, Bishop T.D. Jakes, and said there have been letters from all levels of government. The president sent a flag which was flown over the White House on Mother's Day.

- Lulu Roman sang "I Will Glory in the Cross". Lulu, Dottie, and Naomi Sego had been touring together as The Golden Girls of Gospel. Lulu sounded wonderful - her voice was strong, and her performance was a genuine gift to her friend.

- The Crabb Family sang "I've Never Been This Homesick Before". Again, more standing, clapping, swaying...

- Gloria Gaither gave a short speech where she tied together many of Dottie's own lyrics to celebrate her arrival in Heaven. Wonderful! (of course!)

- Sandi Patty gave us the finale with "We Shall Behold Him". It was gorgeous and powerful, and a fitting way to end the service.


As the family, choir, and pastors filed out, the pianist started to improvise, and ended up playing "I Go to the Rock". The choir and congregation, as if on cue, started to sing along again. It really was pretty amazing for me. Not just for the incredible display of talent, not just for the important guests and the impressive accolades - It amazed me that even in grief, the focus of this service was "joy". Joy for a life lived, joy for a legacy of music, and joy that, one day, we will all sing these same songs, gazing on the face of our Lord.

Summer's here! - Time to sing!

The pool is open! Summer is here!!! Yay!

This morning I attended GracePointe church in Brentwood. This fairly new church started in a living room, and now meets in an elementary school gym. Only in Nashville, you say? They're in the midst of a building campaign to build a brand new church, but I must tell, it's interesting to attend a service in a school gym. Every Saturday, volunteers come to the school to set up chairs, tables for coffee, etc. And each Sunday, they tear it all down again. The artwork and school posters in the hallways remind you of the importance of children in the church, and even of the "faith of a child" passage. The gym reminded me of the old hymn:

The church is wherever God's people are praising,
singing God's presence for joy on this day
The church is wherever disciples of Jesus
remember his story and walk in his way.
(Carol Rose Ikeler, 1959)

The band was incredible, and the preaching was great too. They're doing a series called "Losing Jesus - Confessions of a Scared Christian". Today's message was about growing through those times when you are struggling with your faith. The next few weeks sound like they're going to be pretty great too, so I may check out their podcasts.

I'm hoping I can attend another morning and maybe sing a song. I'm doing a homecoming concert next Sunday (yay!), and the following Sunday, I'm going to sing at the church where Tara sang last night. Saturday, Gerald and I are singing at a Christian cafe in Lebanon, and June 9 is my Single Release Party. (more details tba... but mark your calendar for that night!)

Right now, I'm just trying to get places where I can sing my songs. I'm like the Sower and the Seed. I'm just going to sow that message wherever I get the chance...

Under the Bridge

I finally got back to the Bridge tonight. It's been ages since I've been able to participate. Tuesdays seem to be a crazy day for me!

It was nice to be there with good weather, and there were tonnes of people there! Lots of participants, and an huge number of volunteers. One of the cool things about the Bridge is the special guests who drop by from various ministries. Tonight's preacher was from a group called Oasis, who also brought their children's dance team, P.E.A.K. - Putting Everything Ahead of the King. It was a dozen children, ages nine to early teens, and they were awesome. They had been taught fairly long and complicated routines, and it was great to see them stepping up to the challenge.

The other guest was Joyce Martin. I've heard her with her family (The Martins), but she's also a fantastic soloist. I was glad to meet her and tell her I'd recorded "Shepherd of the Hills". She sang the original demo, so I spent many hours with 'Joyce' learning that beautiful melody. She told me she'd actually recorded the demo about three years ago. This made me smile - It was like the song was waiting for me!

I also thought this was an inspiring songwriting story - Sometimes it takes a long time for a song to get cut, even a great song!

At the end of tonight's service, the preacher did an altar call. About 20 people stepped forward to give their lives to Jesus. After that he did a general call for those needing prayer, and another 20 or so people came forward. What an incredible thing to witness!

Needs are being met, lives are being changed, and the Gospel is being lived out ... under the bridge.

The DIVA comp is here!

The DIVA comps arrived today!

A few months ago, one of the DIVAs suggested we all put together a few songs and make a compilation CD. Nine of us got in on the project and submitted 2 songs each. Leah had everything remastered and put together the packaging, and they finally arrived today.

I'm sooo excited about this! I've never been part of a compilation before and it's so cool to see my name on the same CD as these talented ladies. The packaging is simple but beautiful - It's a glossy white cardboard sleeve with the DIVAs logo on the front and a song list on the back. Inside, there's a larger logo with all our photos, and a break down of our "DIVA" name, complete with scripture references.

I'll be adding the CD to my product table, probably with it's own price, and then a special 2-for deal with "Real Big Fan".

I know this CD will do great things for the DIVAs, but more importantly, it will help spread the Gospel in a way that is meaningful and entertaining. Sooo excited!

Dottie Rambo

I hardly even know what to say. I didn't see the news til this evening, long after most people had experienced the first shock. I'm still at a loss for words.

I didn't grow up with Gospel music, but Dottie Rambo's songs have become an important part of my singing, my writing, and my life.

I lead the congregation in "I Go to the Rock" in a Gospel Vespers service at St. John's York Mills. Our choir sang "Behold the Lamb" countless times, usually during communion. When Joel Lindsey pitched "Shepherd of the Hills" to me, he said, "This was my attempt to write a Dottie Rambo song". I knew I'd love it before I heard a note. I have heard students of all levels sing "He Looked Beyond My Fault" at singing school, and I'm always amazed at the power of a new lyric to transform a classic melody.

But the song that has changed my life the most is "Sheltered in the Arms of God". I fell in love with it the first time I heard it. Monika and I sang it in church services and concerts. It was the first song that made me go, "Written by Dottie Rambo - I need to learn more about her." And when we lost Steve, there was no other song that made sense. The choir sang it at his service. I cried through every note, feeling the overwhelming pain of my loss, but knowing that Steve was at peace, and that he was truly sheltered in God's loving embrace.

A few weeks ago, I was blessed to meet Dottie Rambo and hear her speak at NSAI. She spoke about songwriting, and I got to request a song. Lead by Miss Dottie, we all sang "Sheltered" in ragged four part harmony. I've had a lot of special experiences here in Nashville, but that will forever be one of the best.

We'll miss you, Miss Dottie.

So let the storms rage high, the dark clouds rise,
They won't worry me for I'm sheltered safe within the arms of God;
He walks with me and naught of Earth can harm me,
Sheltered safe within the arms of God.

NSAI Pitch to Publisher

Tonight's NSAI meeting was the infamous Pitch to Publisher - a night when nervous songwriters risk it all by exposing their musical babies to the discerning ears of an industry mogul. Christian pitch night is always much more tame than country pitch night, when things can get really crazy.

Rick Shelton of Daywind was tonight's publisher. Rick is great at doing these kind of events, and was pretty clear about what he looks for in a song. Most times that he would pass on a song, he would still give some kind of feedback. Since I didn't start this blog in screaming joy, you can probably guess he passed on our songs, but we got some positive feedback and encouragement, so that's always valuable.

It's also a reminder that this is part of the drill. Play your songs every chance you get. Show up whenever you can and put your best song forward. Have great, good, or at least decent demos of all your songs so you can take advantage of situations like this.

More and more I'm reminded of my favourite GMA Week phrase:

Making music is blue collar work.

Get up in the morning, roll up your sleeves, and do what needs doing...

Tara Jackson CD Release Concert

You know you're good friends with someone when you brave tornado warnings to attend their CD release concert.

But we were not the only people who braved the weather tonight to support Tara and her new CD. The concert was held at The Resting Place - a church that meets in the storage warehouse for the Bridge Ministry. And yes, it's actually in a corner of the huge open warehouse. They have chairs and a stage and the whole set up, and if you just turn your head a little, you can look at all the food and supplies just waiting to be distributed to the homeless of Nashville. Fascinating set-up!

Candy Christmas hosted the concert, but all the focus was on Tara and her new songs. I've listened to the album several times now, and I was even there for the recording of "God's Got a Word", so I was excited to hear the songs live. I am such a fan of Tara's voice. She has that large belting Southern Gospel sound that I love so much, but then she can also do soft intimate tones as well. She does this one floaty thing that I love. I can't really describe it, but she does it on songs like "Redeemer" and "In Christ Alone" (my favourite track on the album).

The whole night was fantastic! Brittany Galloway, Scharlene Galloway, and Chris Unthank sang back up on a few songs, which was a great dynamic. Candy and Kyle gave short but effective speeches. And the whole audience stuck around after for cake and CD purchasing.

Yay, Tara! So proud of you!

Allison Durham Speer and My First Review!

It's the first of the month, which means my latest SGM Radio article is now online. A few weeks ago, Allison Durham Speer and I met at a little Italian restaurant and chatted for hours about ministry, communication, and the Elijah Conference. You can read the whole interview here. (Actually, not the whole interview. When I actually transcribed our conversation, it was over seven pages long. Edit, edit, edit!)

And... I got my first review of Real Big Fan! It's on the same site, but you can also find it here.

It's weird to have a review. I've been part of theatre shows that were reviewed, and I was sometimes mentioned, but I've never had my own solo effort reviewed. I'm happy that's it's a positive review, and I'm grateful for the opportunity, but overall, I don't really know what to think. Weeeird!

Life note: Gerald and I took Dante to the vet today for a check up. We also had Sebastian with us, and as the lobby was quiet and the weather was good, we were all in pretty good moods. The only other person there was a large, burly man. This is a man who works hard for a living. He uses his body for a tool - maybe building things, maybe driving large vehicles. He was standing by the counter, holding a tiny dachshund, wrapped up in a towel. Dante, of course, wanted to say Hi, but the dog really looked sick, so we held Dante close to us. A woman came out and took the dog into the other room. This man, this strong rough man, started to cry. Not cry - weep. He leaned over the counter for support. He grabbed his shirt to wipe the tears from his face. After he left, the receptionist confirmed the worst. The dog had Parvo - treatable, but expensive to treat. He was being put down this afternoon.

I don't know why I'm writing about this. It has nothing to do with Southern Gospel or anything 'professional'. All I know is I can't stop thinking about that man. He's been in my prayers all day, and I'm holding my own dogs a little tighter tonight.

SGN Music Awards

Tonight I attended the SGN Music Awards at River of Life church in Smyrna. This set of awards is organized and sponsored by the Unthanks, who run www.SoGospelNews.com. This afternoon, a friend who couldn't attend said, "I hope they get a few people out for the event." Talk about being off the mark...

I arrived an hour early to help pass out programs. At 30 minutes before show-time, we ran out of programs. At 20 minutes, we were running out of seats. Chris and Amy Unthank became emergency crowd control, banning saved seats and finding single empty seats to match up with the crowd gathering in the lobby. In the end, every seat was filled, and the lobby crowd stood for the whole show.

The nominees for these awards are chosen by the staff of SoGospel, and then voted on by the public. Besides the standard "Favourite Group" awards, they take it a step further and do a few industry related awards like "Engineer" and "Producer". And actually, this is really cool: The "Songwriter" and "Producer" categories are broken up into "Artist" and "Professional" divisions. So often, it's the performing songwriters who win public-voted awards, so it's nice to see full-time staff writers get some formal recognition.

The show opened with the Freemans, and they had great energy for kicking things off. Some of the performers from the Harmony Honors were on stage again tonight. Tribute Quartet and Mike and Kelly Bowling returned with the same song, and Three Bridges sang a different song, "Step Back on the Rock" (minus the stage leap - much more dangerous in this location!). The King's Heralds have been in ministry for over 80 years, but tonight they were up for Breakthrough Artist of the year! I loved what they did at NQC last year, and they were fantastic tonight.

Gordon Mote had one of the best performances of the night with "Somebody Who Can", with the Isaacs on background vocals. So cool! The Imperials were total rock stars with their version of an older song called "Water Grave". I've never heard the original, but I loved this song! Karen Peck and New River were awesome, as usual. Karen Peck really understands stage presence. So many artists try to fill every empty bar of music with some kind of Gospel shout-out: "Aren't-you-glad-Jesus-came-down-and-died-and-saved-you-from-death?" Really, who's going to say no to that? Karen's not afraid to simply hold her ground, sit in the music, and communicate the message. Love her!

Gold City sang their awesome song "Preach the Word". This song always shakes me up. You know, the exact week Dad retired from 43 years of ministry, I got the call saying my Visa was approved, allowing me to take my ministry to Nashville. I don't think that was a coincidence. I would never compare my ministry to Dad's, but I can't help but feel that God was in that timing.

HisSong ended the night on a crazy high note with "Joy in my Soul". Overall, this was such a great night! It was well organized and smoothly run, and when your main problem is not finding enough seats for the throngs of people walking through your door, well, who can complain.

My suggestion? Next year - the Ryman!

SGMG Harmony Honors

Last year this time, I was writing about the Southern Gospel GMA Week showcase. This year, instead of a traditional showcase, they decided to use the night to host the 4th annual SGMG Harmony Honors. The awards were described as being "objective" in that there is no balloting or nomination process. Instead, the awards are given to artists who, over the past year, have won a number of industry awards and/or have had top sales of product and digital downloads. Other than the top ten songs of the year, there were no real categories that I could see.

In the Southern Gospel realm, this was definitely a star-studded night. I sat up front in the industry section, and many major artists were there. Some received awards, some performed and some were just cheering on friends. Doyle Lawson gave one of my favourite acceptance speeches of the night. I guess he receives some criticism for playing both secular and gospel bluegrass music. He pointed out something that I've always stated: If you sing a gospel song in a secular environment, that might be the only Gospel some people ever hear. He said this is how God called him to minister, and until God tells him otherwise, this is what he's going to do. Amen!

In his speech, choral genius Lari Goss remarked that Southern Gospel is so unique because it's lots of fun, yet it deals with serious theological themes like the cross and the blood. It's sometimes hard to define Southern Gospel to people who've never heard it, so I think I'll be adding this point to the description from now on.

But the best part of the night was, of course, the live performances. The show opened strongly with Jeff and Sheri Easter, now with their daughter Morgan filling Charlotte Ritchie's position. Tribute Quartet came next, and they were fantastic. Great song and great stage presence. Austins Bridge definitely fits into that "progressive Southern" category. They're just crazy talented and great stage performers. Actually, one of the things I really appreciated about tonight was that all kinds of Southern were presented, and not just the quartets (not that there's anything wrong with a great quartet!). The Crabb Family and Lillie Knauls both did traditional gospel, and the Isaacs did their own unique blend of bluegrass and Southern. They are just so great live!

Mike and Kelly Bowling and Brian Free and Assurance provided lots of big singing and great harmony. Three Bridges win the award for Most Physical Performance of the night as the lead singer took a flying leap off the stage to shake hands with audience members. I just love them! Gordon Mote sang the beautiful "Wake Up Dancing", which was intimate and moving. The show ended with Karen Peck and New River singing "Last Night", which is definitely one of my favourite songs of last year. So good!

After the show I got the chat to visit with a bunch of friends. You know, at last year's showcase, I think I saw two people I knew. Tonight, I didn't even get a chance to speak to everyone I knew. That just feels to wonderful to me. This has been a great week. I'm really looking forward to a day off when I can sit with all the things I've learned, email all the people I've met, download all the songs I've heard...maybe that's not really a day off?

GMA Recovery Day

I dragged myself to work this morning on 5 hours sleep. Why am I still up tonight?

Not much to say tonight, only that the new ideas from GMA are spinning around in my head. I'm going to attend the Southern Gospel showcase tomorrow night, so I'm still involved a bit, but to be honest, I'm just ready to work.

Several times this weekend, I heard the words "making music is blue collar work". I get this, and I know I'm a hard worker, I think this weekend is inspiring me to focus my approach to that work even tighter and tighter. I've felt myself on this path for a few weeks now, and this weekend seems to have been an inspiration and a confirmation, all at once.

Don't know if this makes sense to anyone else right now. Maybe it's still too new in my head. I guess right now, I just feel things shifting in me creatively and in my focus, and that's all very cool and exciting. Can't wait to see where it leads me...

GMA Indie Impact - Day 2

Amazing day! Completely exhausted! This morning started at 8am (8ish for some of us), and I didn't get home til 1 am. (I've adjusted the time on this post to keep the date accurate.) Loooong day, but gooood!

The morning started with a chapel service for all GMA registrants. The music was lead by Travis Cottrell - fabulous band, and he has a great voice. Beth Moore gave the message, and she was awesome. I really only knew her by reputation, but it was clear she had many fans in the audience. She spoke about Jacob and the angel, and related that to times in our life when we need to "wrestle with God". Such a great way to start the day!

Next was the opening of the exhibit hall. An hour and a half later, I'm dragging around a bag of free stuff. Good times...

I almost skipped the next session because of its uber-cheesy title: "How to build relationships during GMA Week that will last". I only went because I had friends in there (maybe I could have rationalized that as 'relationship building'?), but seriously, it was fantastic. The opening part on how to network at industry events was fine, but then we broke up into groups of ten. We had to introduce ourselves, and give our email address to everyone in the group. Well, we had amazing people in our group - the woman who works at X-Box who's feeling a call to ministry, the woman from Nigeria who wants to bring CCM to her country, and the "Mom-ager" - a mother managing the career of her daughter.

Next we had the Networking Roundtables. This was great last year, so I was pretty excited about it. Basically, it's a room full of tables and each table has an industry professional in fields like radio, management, booking, etc. You rotate through the tables in 15 minute sets. I didn't get as much out of it this year, but I did sit at Tom Jackson's table for a while, and that was amazing.

Last year, I skipped the Live Showcase so I could watch the Walk of Fame inductions, so this year I decided to attend the showcase. Everyone puts their name in a hat, and over the course of 2 hours they pull names out and those people get to sing. I put my name in, but it didn't get drawn. That was cool though cause a few friends got to perform, including Virginia Hill, who was on the Indie Fest line-up with me and Gerald last summer. Everyone was good, and some people were extraordinary.

Oh, and I also met up with some great Shoutlife people today! I love putting real faces to the cyber faces! Some of us had summer together on the patio of Panera. Nothing says "spring" like sitting on a patio!

From Panera, we rolled down the hill and into the Ryman for Sunday Evening Worship. It was lead by Michael W. Smith, Mandisa, and Israel Houghton and New Breed. At two hours of solid music, it was a bit lengthy for the end of a long day, but soooo incredible! I'm such a fan of Mandisa's, and I'm now a brand new fan of New Breed. Such an amazing mix of praise and rhythm and just cool, cool music!

And then, finally, my favourite part of GMA Week: The Songwriter Showcase. Hosted by Bart Millard (Mercy Me) and Mark Hall (Casting Crowns), the two hour line-up featured over a dozen stunning performances. Each song is performed by the songwriter, which is sometimes the artist, sometimes not. Where the worship service felt a little long for me, the Songwriter Showcase could have gone til morning and I still would be in my seat. It was just incredible. Each song is performed simply and acoustically, so you have rock bands going unplugged, and some songs simply performed with piano or guitar. Joel Lindsey and Sue Smith performed their Hoppers cut, "He Erased It" with piano and 2 part harmony - beautiful. Leeland did their Dove nominated "Tears of the Saints". I'd never heard this song before (I think most people over 25 hadn't either), but it was truly moving. You could feel something shifting in the room as this 'kid' sang about saving the lost of this world. Really incredible.

Another favourite moment for me was Toby Mac singing his hip-hop song "Made to Love" in an acoustic arrangement. I love this song, but to hear it performed with just 2 voices, guitar, and a guy on beat box was really cool. Mark Hall ended the night with "East to the West", which I just love.

Today was my last full day at GMA Week, so after exchanging email addresses and cell phone numbers, I finally got in my car to go home. I walked in the door at 1 am. I'm wired and exhausted and nowhere near ready to sleep. I can't believe I have to work tomorrow morning...

GMA Indie Impact - Day 1

I don't know why I'm still up! It was an early and a long day, and tomorrow will be even earlier and longer, but I really need to write a little before turning in for the night.

So, today was Day 1 of my GMA Week experience. As I wrote earlier, I have been blessed with a scholarship to attend the weekend workshop called Indie Impact. The goal of these workshops is to help the indie artist, and I think they did a fairly good job of that today.

The morning started bright and early with music by husband and wife duo, The Dentes. Actually, they reminded me a little of me and Gerald. I really liked their melodies, but the sound was not good, so I couldn't hear any of their lyrics. The husband is a fantastic guitar player (lots of tapping and cool stuff), so that was awesome.

They were followed by amazing guest speaker Nate Larkin. The core of his speech was how having a false persona can keep you from God. He had this terrific metaphor about how sometimes we act like dogs - faithful, loyal, obedient - but then that cat side of us comes out - wild, independent, wandering. He build the metaphor in a detailed way to illustrate the different ways we relate to God. Really great speaker!

Next we had the only panel of the day to discuss "How big is your 'Why'?". It was all about purpose and your calling, but frankly, I'm pretty clear on that stuff, and nothing really new was said for me.

But what followed next was fantastic. Tom Jackson is a world-renowned performance coach. His speciality is developing a live show that will engage your audience and leave them changed. He didn't do any hands on work today, but he did lay out the basics of his theories, which was incredible. Took lots of notes!

At lunch, I ran into fellow Canadians Ali Matthews and Rick Francis. They're both very cool and super-talented, so that was all good.

After lunch, we started with a booking seminar with Tara Leigh Cobble. You may not have heard of Tara, but in her first year as an indie artist, she played over 200 shows. For those who are wondering, that's incredible! She is a booking machine, and she broke down her techniques and strategies into very doable pieces. She is just an absolute work horse, and reminded us that making music is 'blue collar work' - You have be prepared to work hard and get your hands dirty. Very inspiring!

Next was a workshop on using the internet. I was excited about this one, but it ended up being a thinly-veiled commercial for a company who provides internet services for artists. The one good thing was they discussed creative ways to connect with fans, so that was useful. They mentioned several times that we should all be blogging. One step ahead of you there...

We had a workshop labeled "Multiple Streams of Revenue" which sounded great and was. In addition to discussing the multiple streams, Vince Wilcox also gave a great and simple overview on money management for artists. Money is so rarely discussed in a healthy and practical way in ministry circles, so I think this was just great for everybody.

We ended the day with a short worship session with Alli Rogers. Great voice, and I think we all needed to sing a bit at that point.

At the end of the day, I met up with Tara Jackson to tell her about the workshops, go over my new bio, and to get her new CD! Yay, Tara!

Tomorrow morning starts again at 8 am... or, you know ... 8ish...

Allison Durham Speer interview day...

It's getting late and I really need to stop working if I want to get any sleep. I've been shut down lately due to allergies. I forgot how horrible they were! I had a long list of goals for last week, and the only thing I accomplished was singing in church on Sunday (which went very well). I finally got in a good work mode today, so despite the late hour, it's kind of hard to stop!

Before I forget, please check out my latest SGM Radio article, Ben Speer and the Elvis Sessions. (I can't believe I didn't post this earlier!) It was such a pleasure to tell this story!

I met with Allison Durham Speer today to interview her for next month's article. We had lunch at the fabulous, tucked away Caesar's - home style Italian food, delicious! After lunch, we chatted about her family, her constant dedication to improving her craft, and her new project, The Elijah Conference. That article will be up May 1. I promise I'll post a link sooner than mid-May!

Despite the allergy-ridden week, a few great things have happened. I've received some great feedback on Real Big Fan, including a few amazing quotes for my web site. I've also started revamping my entire press kit, including a brand new bio.

And here's the really exciting thing: I hadn't planned on attending GMA Week this year, but yesterday, I was offered a scholarship to attend Indie Impact. This is the first 2 days of GMA, focusing on the needs of the indie artist. It includes seminars, 2 worship services featuring amazing speakers and musicians, and the Songwriters Showcase (the highlight of last year's GMA Week). Even though I hadn't planned on attending, I'm really crazy excited about going. I really need something like this right now. I'll be blogging all weekend, so feel free to join in on the festivities.

Dottie Rambo at NSAI!

What a night! NSAI's Christian Writers Night is always great, but tonight, it was truly incredible: Dottie Rambo was the guest speaker!

I've been a fan of Dottie's for years. Her lyrics and melodies are inspiring and beautiful, and should be assigned homework for every Gospel songwriter. I've sung many of her songs, and "Sheltered In the Arms of God" has been particularly important for me. Monika and I have sung it together many times, and in my time of grieving, it carried me through many hard moments.

I'd never seen Dottie live, though I've heard and seen her many times on TV and CDs. I also have cassette tapes of her songwriting classes, so I've heard some of her personal stories. In person, she is very, very tiny. She wore a leather suit and full, fabulous make-up. And for those with an interest: She plays a Martin.

Guest speaker nights are organized with a one-hour interview, followed by a Q&A. We heard a lot about her childhood, including a wonderful description of her first discovery of her songwriting talents. First song at 8, touring at 12, and a publishing deal in her early twenties - what a life! She has now written over 2500 songs! It's no wonder Fanny Crosby is her hero. Who else is that prolific?

The guest speaker is always invited to play a few songs, so Dottie picked up her guitar and asked if there were any requests. Everyone else hesitated, so I called out "Sheltered in the Arms of God". She took a deep breath. Just seven months before his passing, Porter Wagoner and she recorded this song for her latest album (yes, she's still recording!). As she told the story, her voice choked up, and it became clear to me that this song has blessed the writer as much as its listeners. As she played the first verse, she forgot a few of the chords. But she was wonderful as she laughed at herself and said, "Hey Songwriters, do it this way!" She then invited us to sing along on the chorus, which was just incredible! Some people sang parts. Most of us choked back tears. What a blessing!

She had wonderful stories about the amazing people who have recorded her songs, like Whitney Houston and Elvis Presley. Apparently, Elvis was scheduled to record an entire album of her songs, but it was near the end, and his failing health prevented him from completing the project. Can you imagine Elvis doing "I Go to the Rock"? Such a loss...

Oh, and another interesting story: She wasn't allowed to record "I Go to the Rock" for four years after she wrote it! Other people could record it, but her record label wouldn't allow her to record it because it was "too rock and roll". Funny, huh?

She wrapped up the interview by leading the whole group in sing "If That Isn't Love". Wonderful!

After the formal interview, the floor was opened for questions. What I love about Dottie, besides her incredible talent, is her complete humility, and her awesome sense of humour. She doesn't take herself too seriously, and she loves a good practical joke (who knew?). She often spoke about her love of music, God, and people. She answered questions generously and with a loving spirit.

She recognizes her fame, but at the same time said, "The Lord is the star. You'd be a fool to try to outshine Him."

What an incredible, incredible night! I was talking to my aunt in Newfoundland today and telling her a little of my recent experiences. She remarked on all the amazing opportunities we're getting here in Nashville, and how we never would have had most of these experiences had we not taken the leap of faith to move here. I think tonight is the perfect example of such an experience!

I'm going to release my first single!

Yes indeed, it's a big weekend for radio around here!

First, a little Tin Pan South update: I was under the weather a few days last week, so we missed two nights of concerts. Friday we went to see "The Hit Men" - Jeffrey Steele, Bob DiPiero, Tony Mullins and my favourite, Craig Wiseman. We saw them last year and loved them, but this year's show was so poorly organized, it just wasn't enjoyable. We actually left partway through. Some stuff came up Saturday, and with the bad taste of Friday still in our mouths, we just blew off Saturday's shows. With the exception of Tuesday's outstanding show, it was a pretty disappointing week.

But of course, Friday I heard my song, which got me uber-excited, and now I'm ready to announce the next exciting thing in our lives: I'm going to release my first single!!!

I've never done this before, and I'm quickly realizing I know nothing about radio! Luckily, I'm surrounded by some gifted and trustworthy advisers. There are still lots of details to work out, so I don't want to say too much yet, but suffice to say, tune in to your radios May 1st!

Over the next month, I'll be doing a play-by-play of how this whole thing is going to come together, so check back often and join me on my learning curve.

Inspired by Tuesday's show and the excitement of my new challenge, here's the song in my head this weekend:

I'm diving in
I'm going deep
In over my head I wanna be
Caught in the rush
Lost in the flow
In over my head I wanna go
The river's deep
The river's wide
The river's water is alive
So sink or swim
I'm diving in

(by Steven Curtis Chapman)

I'm on the radio right now!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm at work by myself, so I'm listening to SGM Radio online, and they're playing my song!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm just listening, and it's all good music, and suddenly I'm hearing the clarinet and intro to DO YOU WANNA BE MY NEIGHBOUR IN GLORYLAND!!!!!

I am totally freaking out right now!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

WHOO-HOO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Tin Pan South - GMA Night

We're all set for a busy week of concerts. Tin Pan South is a nightly celebration of the songwriter and the song. We've bought passes, so we're planning on seeing one or two shows per night til Saturday.

As soon as I got the program, I knew I would have to see tonight's show at the Rutledge. GMA partnered with NSAI to present a night of Christian songwriters featuring Stephen Curtis Chapman, Billy Gaines, Ashley Cleveland, Geoff Moore, and Matthew West. In short - amazing!

Obviously, I'm well acquainted with Stephen Curtis Chapman's music. He was an excellent host, and as he and Geoff are co-writers, he often joined in on his songs too. He played his new hit, "Cinderella", which celebrates the father-daughter relationship - something that means a lot to me. He also sang his classic "I Will Be There" which I sang years ago at my cousin's wedding. Listening to it tonight, sitting next to Gerald, the whole song just took on a deeper meaning.

Geoff More has an incredible voice and great songs. My favourite was "Erase", inspired by a trip to Rwanda. It's basically a plea to erase the differences between us and Jesus so that we may see and hear and love like Him. Beautiful!

Billy Gaines has a soulful voice and a great message. His songs showed a great sense of rhythm and pocket and improvisation.

It was funny about Matthew West. I'd heard his name many times, but I didn't really how many of his songs I know and love. I found myself singing along with him all night. He debuted a incredible song about his wife's journey to God that had the whole place singing along. Gerald said he's a little like a Christian Jason Mraz. Very cool!

And Ashley Cleveland - so amazing! That huge soulful voice and great stage presence and that cool pink guitar and just rocking praise. She had this great song about prodigals called "Little Black Sheep", and every time she sang it was engaging and cool.

There was so much to love about tonight. Every song was unique and strong - not a weak one in the bunch. And every singer had great vocals and strong communication skills.

I wish critics of Christian music were there tonight. If you think Christian music is wimpy, listen to Ashley Cleveland. If you think Christian music is geeky, listen to Matthew West. And if you think people go into Christian music because they can't make it in 'real' music, well, just listen to any of them!

WAJ - Better late than never!

Yes, Write About Jesus was Saturday and it's now Tuesday, but I really haven't been on my computer all weekend. Mom and Dad left very early yesterday morning (we were all at the Cracker Barrel for breakfast at 6 am!), and I really just wanted to spend every minute with them. We didn't do a whole lot of 'activities' last week - just spending time together and chatting and going for walks and eating great food. They arrived safely home last night, and grateful prayers were raised.

I'm having my first quiet morning in weeks, and Dante is thrilled. He keeps bringing me chewed up balls and socks and other such treasures. It rained all last night, and the colours outside are cool and saturated. The air is soft and the birds are discussing the blessings of sunshine. And so, I get some quiet time to write.

Write About Jesus was an incredible day! Sue Smith does something wonderful with her workshops - she puts everyone on the same level. There is no separation of 'teacher' and 'student', or 'professional' and 'amateur'. Everyone is accessible; everyone's talent is respected. And because of that, you feel empowered and encouraged to share and learn.

This was my second workshop, so it was a bit of a reunion for me as well. Besides other WAJ people, I also met some Shoutlife and Song U folks.

My first workshop was Crafting Great Lyrics with Tony Wood, who wrote the lyric for "Shepherd of the Hills". The class was great, and after, I made a point of introducing myself. I was thrilled to hear that he was happy with my recording of "Shepherd". He said, "You were the right home for that song." How awesome is that?

Next I did Song Painting with Joel Lindsey. I'd heard great things about this class from several people, and I was not disappointed. He basically talks about using the words and notes to reflect the emotion of the song. The whole class was awesome, with detailed examples and exercises to do at home.

The class I was most excited about was Joel and Sue's Writing Musicals. It was only an hour, but I think it really could have gone on for half a day at least. There was so much information! The class was really well organized and very inspiring.

After lunch, Gerald and I hooked up and sat in on some song critiques. It's one thing to sit in on a great lecture, but it's another to watch these writers break down a song and make suggestions on improving it. The WAJ clinicians always have an eye to the market - "Where could we place this song?", "Who might record this song?" They're always open to saying, "So-and-so is looking for this kind of song right now. You should send it to...". WAJ is a great chance to get connected to the actual publishing and recording community, and I think we all appreciate that.

Our final workshop for the day was the Publisher Panel with Joel, Holly Zabka, and Rick Shelton. This was a great chance to look at the business of songwriting through the perspective of those pitching and selling the songs. Joel publishes, but as a writer, Holly is his publisher, so it was really helpful to see that writer-publisher relationship and learn more about that too.

They had 2 concerts planned for the evening, but we wanted to get in as much family time as possible, so we left early. This week is NSAI's Tin Pan South, so we'll be getting more than our fair share of concerts in the next few days!

WAJ Tomorrow

For the uninitiated, WAJ stands for Write About Jesus. WAJ is usually an awesome three day Christian songwriting workshop held in Missouri each October, but tomorrow, they're holding their first ever one day Nashville workshop. Gerald and I are both going - so excited!

I've spent the week studying the schedule and choosing my classes. At each of the seven one-hour sessions, you will be able to choose between taking a lecture or attending an open critique. There are 4-5 lectures per hour, so there's going to be lots of choice. Some of the topics are broad, like melody, lyrics, or structure, and some focus in on specific genres like Southern Gospel or country. There are also a few classes on demos and the business of songwriting.

I'm planning to attend three critiques, but I think Gerald will probably focus on this. We've spent tonight culling his 100 songs down to 20 songs and then again down to 8. We have demos, lyric sheets, and everything else you need for a good critique.

There's going to be a lecture on writing musicals, so I'll be front row for that one. Sooo looking forward to tomorrow!!!

Garage Band

Mom and Dad are here! They've come for a week, and I couldn't be more excited!

On a practical musical note, I've finally learned how to use Garage Band! I needed a demo for a co-write I did this winter. My co-writer sent me a piano track, and a friend was supposed to help me do the vocal, but things fell through at the last minute. So last night, after everyone was in bed, I stayed up til 3 in the morning learning how to use Garage Band. Every other writer in the country is able to use it, so I figured it mustn't be that hard to work it out myself. I did a test last night, and then recorded the vocal today. I'm not very techno-savvy, so I'm very proud of myself!

Write About Jesus is this Saturday, so Gerald and I want to have lots of demos ready for the critiquing sessions. Other than that, this whole week is all about family!

Good Friday...

Today was my first encounter with the traditional Anglican three hour service.

Growing up in Newfoundland, our church always had a three hour service. But, as children, Mom figured we'd never last through the whole thing. We'd attend the morning service designed for families, and in the afternoon, we'd dye Easter eggs and eat homemade macaroni and cheese. That's my memory of the three hour service, and it's a good one!

I arrived at Redeemer this morning at 11am for a rehearsal with the praise team. There were only three of us (oddly symbolic of the three hours). By noon, there were very few people in the sanctuary, and no mad rush of cars in the parking lot. On Palm Sunday, Thomas told people they were not obligated to stay for the full three hours; they could come late, leave early, or just drop by for an hour. Some people did that, but a few minutes after the service started, a decent crowd gathered and stayed for the whole time. We were all in it together.

We worshiped for three hours, from noon to 3pm, to symbolize the time Jesus hung on the cross. The theme of the service was the seven last words of Jesus. Thomas opened and closed the service, but the bulk of things were lead by various staff members. For each word, a staff member would read the Bible passage containing that word, then give their own ten minute meditation/homily/interpretation of that word. We would pray, sing a musical reflection, and then there was a long period of silence before the next word.

And let me tell you, there was a lot of silence! At first, it was a little uncomfortable. What do you do? What to think about? But after a while, you settle into contemplative worship, and the whole thing becomes quite wonderful. I thought back to the quiet day I spent at the monastery a few years ago. We live in such loud and busy times. It's good sometimes to just be still and know that He is God...

Happy Palm Sunday!

I've been a bit of a lazy blogger lately. Not because things aren't happening, but I guess because it's all little stuff, day by day. Also, I'm writing the Gospel Thoughts blog with Dad, and that's probably eating up some of my blogging energy.

First off, Happy Palm Sunday! I am so excited about this week. Holy Week is totally my favourite time in the church, possibly even more than Christmas. I love all the different services, and the theatrical part of me loves the way we tell one amazing story, day-by-day, over the course of a whole week.

I sang both services this morning at Redeemer. I brought "Go To Dark Gethsemane" to our music director, and she loved it so much she asked me to do it today and Good Friday. We just used keyboard, and the effect was simple and lovely. It went really well at both services, and the feedback was tremendous. I love that song, so the whole thing was just a joy.

And here's some updates from the last week:

- I now have 1100 CDs in my living room! The final manufacturing round was done, and we are now overflowing with boxes. Luckily, I bought a huge armoire on Friday, so things should look fairly civilized soon.

- I'm in the Gaither Homecoming Magazine! A few month's ago, Ben was interviewed for the magazine, and Rebekah and I, as school staff, sat in on the interview. I was asked about my experience at the school, and she included my story in a paragraph! Very excited! I need to find out where I can get a copy. Oh, and they spelled my name wrong. I was highly insulted, til I noticed they spelled Allison Durham Speer's name wrong too. At that point, I just figured I was in good company!

- My next SGM Radio.com article is due this week, so last week, I interviewed Ben about his experience singing with Elvis. Yes, the Elvis! What a fascinating story! I'll post a link when it's up.

- Tried setting up a SNOCAP store for digital downloads, but they take way too much per song. Going to cancel it and try something else.

- I finished reading the Bible! Yes, I know I was on a Bible-in-a-year program, but got a little behind, and I kept putting off those final few chapters. But the goal was never about timing, just to read the whole thing, cover to cover. I'm so pleased to have done it! It was incredibly inspiring, both artistically and spiritually. I'd read and studied many of the books and major stories, but this gave me a more holistic view of the whole book. I highly recommend this exercise!

- And finally, now that the manufacturing is complete, I'm finishing all my paperwork for my mechanical licenses. (Basically, that's what allows me to record someone else's songs, and how those songwriters get paid by me.) I've heard lots of people say they only want to record public domain songs because it's "so hard" to get licenses. It's not hard - it's just work. Glad to have it all wrapped up.

That's it for now. Very busy week ahead. Church every night, and lots more promo stuff to work on...

Christian DIVAs Weekend! - Gateway of Hope

We were up early today to drive out to Lebanon (pronounced LEH-beh-nin) to finally perform with the Christian DIVAs.

I was able to book us for a morning service at Gateway of Hope Christian Center. Gerald and I sang in their Christmas concert, and I felt the DIVAs would be a great fit for their community.

We were actually doing the entire service, which was a fairly new experience for me. I've lead music for a whole service before, but that's always been guided by a pastor, and it's usually been liturgical.

The pastor and praise team did open things up with a few songs and prayer, and then handed the service over to us. We opened with a praise song, where we sang our fabulous 3-part harmony and got everyone on their feet and clapping.

Leah and Beth have called their tour the "Road to Recovery Tour". The core of our service today involved 2 songs from each of us, with a 5-10 minute testimony on the theme of 'recovery'. I chose to speak about losing Steve, and my anger with God, and how letting God back into my life started my recovery from grief. It's been a while since I've spoken about it publicly. In Toronto, almost everyone who knows me knows my story. Here, it's something I tell people as I get to know them. You never want to introduce yourself to someone with the line, "Hi, let me tell you how I was crushed by suicide", and yet, I really think people don't know me until they know about that part of me.

I opened with "Do You Wanna Be My Neighbour in Gloryland", and people smiled and laughed and clapped along. It felt awesome! Next came my testimony. I was really nervous, but Gerald had reminded me just to tell the story and be honest, and that's what I did. After the service, I was blessed when several people told me how much my testimony meant to them, so for that, it was all worth it.

After my testimony, I sang "Abide With Me" as a song of comfort, and I think that really worked. As a trio, we ended our portion of the service with a praise and worship set. Again, we were able to sing in harmony, which was a wonderful blessing. I felt like I was in a girl band!

The pastor ended the service with a time of prayer (he used some of my "Neighbour" lyrics as the transition! whoo-hoo), and an incredibly joyful dismissal. That church has such a great sense of community, and it was an honour to join them today.

And happy day, we were there on Cookout Sunday! After the service, we were treated to hamburgers, hot dogs, chicken, salads, brownies, cookies... all good stuff!

All in all, I'm so happy I was a part of this DIVAs weekend. Musically, spiritually, and in relationships, I am just feeling so full and satisfied. Praise God!

Christian DIVAs Weekend! - Gig Canceled!

Well, the snow came! It actually didn't come until later in the evening, but the owner of tonight's venue figured we wouldn't get an audience with the 'storm warning', so he canceled the show. Here's how the day played out...

After posting my blog this morning, I headed out to Gallatin to pick up my CDs and tracks. As soon as I got them, I popped the tracks in the CD player. They sound amazing! It's incredible to hear these songs, especially the ones I wrote, all set up like this. It was really lovely to listen the background vocals on their own, and to really listen to the track and imagine what it will be like to sing with them this weekend! So excited!

While listening, I drove over to the hotel to finally meet the DIVAs! I joined the group last summer, and I've spoken to Leah on the phone a few times, but basically, I've only ever communicated with Leah and Beth via email. How awesome to meet them in person! There were little moments when it was almost surreal - to know some one's personality and their voice for months, and then you finally see them in front of you - it's all kind of wild.

Leah and Beth have been touring together for a few weeks, so I knew they'd already have an established routine and chemistry. I also knew that this would present a challenge for me to enter into their dynamic, not destroying the balance, but offering my gifts as would be best for the shows.

Luckily, we were all open to the process, and things fit together so beautifully! We learned about the cancellation this afternoon, so we focused on rehearsing for Sunday. We'll each do 2 solo songs plus our testimony. We'll have a group opening song, and we'll end with a worship set, with Beth on guitar. Leah has been singing a lower harmony, which leaves the upper harmony open for me. 3-part girl harmony - Love it!!

Since our night was free, we grabbed Gerald and Leah's husband, Jan, and all went to dinner at Maggiano's. We'd never been there before, but it reminded me of Papa Leoni's in Toronto (how much do I miss that place!). We ate tonnes of pasta and gorgeous desserts, and we laughed like old friends.

It's actually 1:19am as I write this, and the snow is still coming down. It's far from a 'storm', but it's definitely a legitimate snowfall. Oh, and on the way home, we had thunder and lightening - in the snow! Crazy!

Christian DIVAs Weekend! - Morning of...

I wanted to write a quick entry last night, but I was completely shut down by a terrific headache. It was horrible! I couldn't do a thing all night, and I went to bed at 10 o'clock! (Very unusual!)

So, here's what's on the go:

- This weekend is our Christian DIVAs weekend in Nashville! Whoo-hoo! Leah and Beth are here already, staying in a hotel. We're going to meet and rehearse this afternoon, and our first gig is tonight. (Assuming it doesn't get canceled on account of the "terrible" snow storm coming our way!)

- Running out to AHA Productions today to pick up 100 CDs and my mastered tracks. So excited! Can't believe I moved 150 CDs already, and I haven't even performed any songs from it yet. The big run of 1000 won't be ready til next week, which is why I needed the short run for this weekend.

- My latest SGM Article is now up! I did an interview with Charlotte Ritchie, and so far, the feedback has been very positive. And ... they put it as this month's "SGM Feature"! You can check it out here.

- Gerald and I have signed up for the Write About Jesus workshop in Nashville this month. Should be very awesome!

- I took a Song U course this week on "Releasing Your Record". Very informative, and gave me lots of great ideas for marketing Real Big Fan.

That's it! I'll post something again tonight after our gig. Now, off to stretch, warm up, and enjoy the wonders of the day!

Celtic Woman

I call her "International Amy". My friend, Amy Rivard, has literally sung and danced her way around the world. She's currently touring with the show, Celtic Woman, and gave me tickets for tonight's show in Nashville.

I had some idea what to expect, in that it was a vocal show, all female lead singers, with lots of stage flash. I don't think it was as Celtic as I thought it would be. They did a number of contemporary songs, including popera favourites like "You Raise Me Up". The percussion team was truly amazing - almost a show all by themselves. The main vocal quartet did do a really beautiful 4-part acapella version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow". Very still in places, with some unexpected harmonies. Really lovely.

I met Amy years ago through our church choir, and she sang in one (maybe 2?) of my Gospel concerts in Toronto. She truly enjoys life, and it was so awesome to see her tonight. I always feel inspired after seeing Amy!

In other news: I got 2 requests from DJs last week for Real Big Fan, so that's pretty cool. I used my GMA membership to vote on the Dove Awards today - also pretty cool. Oh, and I'm currently a Featured Product on House of Jubal- hopefully a very cool thing that will lead to some sales!

Tomorrow, I'm helping Gerald record some demos for a possible gig. Should probably think about getting some sleep soon...

Working on the dream...

I finally got to see Aaron today and put "Real Big Fan" in his hands! Obviously, he's heard it, but we haven't been able to hook up since we got back from Christmas. It was great to get his reaction on the graphics, and get his thoughts on where to go from here.

And a few bits of news:

- "Real Big Fan" is a Featured Product on HouseOfJubal.com! You can check it out here.

- I finished my article on Charlotte Ritchie for SGMRadio.com. It should be posted the first of March. I'll post a link when it's up.

- Three of the Christian DIVAs will be gathering in Nashville in March. I've just booked a church for us on the Sunday morning in Lebanon (Gerald and I did their Christmas concert in early December). We'll be doing the whole service, so it's going to be cool.

- I'm having a run of 1000 CDs manufactured. As soon as I get them, I'm going to start sending them out for reviews and radio play.

Working on the dream, one step at a time...

Writing, talking, taking it step by step...

Happy Valentine's Day! We don't do a whole lot for V-Day, as we put our big celebrations into our anniversary. However, today is also Sebastian's birthday, so that needs a little celebration!

My day started with a long-distance co-write. Kara and I are continuing to work on our Song U co-write that we started in December. After our last draft, Kara submitted the song for a critique. The feedback was very good, with a few suggestions. So today, we tweaked the lyric and made some final decisions on the song. I think it's pretty much done, which is very exciting!

Next step: Kara is going to record an instrumental track at her house and email it to me. Then, I'll record a vocal here at our place, and when that's done, we should have a good little demo. I'd like to bring it to Write About Jesus in March and see what reaction we get there.

This afternoon, I started work on my next article for SGMRadio.com. I decided I wanted to write about Charlotte Ritchie moving into solo ministry, so last week at the Gaither concert, I asked her manager for an introduction. I was hoping we could do a phone interview, but I couldn't find the right equipment to record the call. So today, I called Charlotte to re-introduce myself and chat a bit. I've emailed her 7 questions, and should get her response tomorrow. I'll have lots of time this weekend for writing the article. Well, in between NBA All Star coverage...

The rest of the day was filled with small steps necessary for achieving the bigger goals. I'm still waiting for a few cheques from Christmas, so I followed up on them. I'm getting 1000 CDs manufactured, so I connected my graphics designer with the manufacturer, and got all the required paperwork.

I also posted my House of Jubal link on my Shoutlife page. What is "House of Jubal" you say? House of Jubal is a CD store for indie CDs. It's very similar to CDBaby.com, but it's all Christian music.

Here's my page: REAL BIG FAN

I have lots of plans for getting my CD online: a Snocap store, a Paypal button on my site, CD Baby, and itunes, to name a few. It's all so much work, but I have to remember that the big goals happen by small consistent steps.

Breakout Artist Interview

A few weeks ago, I got the awesome news that Rob Patz, host of radio's "Southern Styles Show", wanted to make me the "Breakout Artist" of the month. The show is carried on 100 stations across the US and Canada. The feature involves playing a song from the CD, plus an interview. I sent Rob my CD so he could take a listen, and we did the interview over the phone today.

The whole thing was very cool! We did 8 questions. I think 6 will be on the show, and 2 will be featured on their website. Rob loves the CD, which is just awesome. He actually thought a well known writer wrote "Do You Wanna Be My Neighbour in Gloryland", so I took that as high praise.

We talked about all sorts of things in the interview - making the CD, my experience at Stamps-Baxter, how I came to learn about Southern Gospel, who inspired me to start singing, and growing up a PK (pastor's kid). We also did a Christmas moment. You know at Christmastime when they have artists talk about their favourite Christmas memory? Well, he asked me my favourite thing to eat at Christmas. My answer was "ginger snaps", which gave me the chance to talk about my family a little.

I was really nervous before the interview, but I felt very confident once we started. Rob thought I sounded very comfortable and asked if I'd done a lot of radio. The answer is "no", but I think all my improv training helps in moments like that.

The interview will either play the end of this month, or early March. I'll post more info when I know! So excited!

Happy Anniversary to us!

Today marks our second wedding anniversary! We decided to do something special, so we just got back from...

Memphis! It was our first visit, and we just loved it! We stayed at the Heartbreak Hotel - the perfect mix of music history with a hint of kitsch. We spent yesterday afternoon at Sun Records. We heard amazing stories that never make the TV documentaries. And we stood right in the Sun studio. The air changes when you walk through those doors. Music and history and life have steeped into the floors and the tiles and the dust in the corners. I held the mic that Elvis and Johnny and Jerry Lee sang into. It was truly amazing.

Last night, we hit Beale Street. It was fairly quiet (I think this is their off-season) but it was still ringing with the sound of the blues. They had all the traffic blocked off, so you could wander in safety. The bars all had open doors and windows, so the music mingled in the street. We saw a great band at an outdoor stage, and people were dancing and grooving on park benches. We wandered into A. Schwab's, the oldest general store in the South. It was like Honest Ed's, but even older, with a strange but charming time-warp appeal.

This morning, we went to Graceland, which we've learned is properly pronounced GRACE-lind. There's a fine line to be walked in Memphis - We wanted to learn about the history and touch the energy that started it all, but we didn't want to be tourists. We wanted to be inspired, but not by buying key-chains and ashtrays. So, we stood across the street from Graceland, and remembered the talent of the man, and the generosity of a son who wanted a great house for his Momma. As I looked at those famous gates and that long stone wall, I couldn't help but remember film footage of mourners lining the streets, leaving flowers and tears for the man that inspired them. We'll probably tour Graceland some time in the future, but for today, just being there was enough.

We had lunch at a Memphis institution, Corky's - without a doubt the best BBQ we have ever tasted. We thought about visiting another music museum, but what we really wanted was to feel inspired by the musical energy of the town. So we sat in a cafe, pulled out a note pad, and did some Memphis dreamin'. We talked about how we were doing with our 2008 goals. We made plans for the month and for the week. And we talked about how we could each help the other with our individual goals.

In our wedding ceremony, we both wrote vows that stated our commitment to each other, not just as people, but also as artists. I vowed to "always choose the dream over the comfortable". For some people, making a "to do list" might be a weird way to spend their anniversary, but for us, it was the perfect way to celebrate our partnership and love for one another.

I'm entering the week feeling strong and inspired, and that's always a good thing.

On a quick side note, I want to applaud the Grammies for having such a great presentation of Gospel music. In those 5 minutes, the Gospel was preached to millions of people around the world. In a city ruled by money, power, and the gods of fame, the name of Jesus was lifted up and praised and blessed. Amen to that!

Booking 101 Dinner

We spent time with Tara and Kyle Jackson today, to pick their brains about the ins and outs of booking in the Southern Gospel world. They were a good match for teaching - Tara could speak from the artist point of view, and Kyle from the management side. Like us, they are on the newer side of the industry, so they're hungry to sing and minister. They're neither jaded nor naive. They still care about reaching people, and they know that a bus may eventually be a necessity, but it is never the goal.

We talked a lot about practical things, like travel fees, love offerings, contracts, and festivals. We talked about press kits and bios and websites. Allison Durham Speer always teaches that you enter a church as a servant - Besides serving God and the Gospel, you are there to serve that specific church and their ministry. So one of our biggest topics today was maintaining an authentic and sincere approach to ministry.

At one point, I tentatively suggested that, when Tara releases her CD, perhaps we could do a joint concert? Well, that lead into a huge discussion, and we are now looking at touring together over the next year, including a possible trip to Newfoundland!

Gerald and I left with brains chock-full of information, but mostly, we left inspired and excited about all the opportunities before us.

My SGM Radio article!

My SGM Radio article is up! Check it out here.

So excited! I didn't know it would be a feature. They included all the photos I sent, and I just think the whole thing looks great!

Soooo excited!!!!!!!

(Our Booking 101 dinner has been postponed, so I'll write about that tomorrow.)

Sooooo excited!!!!!!

Exciting Days!

So, as a quick catch up: The last 2 days have been very busy with working stuff. I finally got everything booked for Music on the Hill and all the grant info submitted - yay! I dropped my CD off at NSAI for Sheree, the membership coordinator who has been incredibly supportive. And I've been chatting with a Canadian singer-songwriter about how to get an O1 Visa.

I spent a good part of the day working on a new song. Actually, it's only really "new" in that it's not finished yet. I started it last summer. I'm really struggling with it, but I'm so confident in the idea and the chorus that I still think it's worth working on (dangling preposition, I know!) It's my first praise and worship song, and even though I've had a few people look at it, I think I need to get a praise writer to take a look and give me their thoughts.

But here's the exciting stuff: I don't know if I mentioned this before, but a few months ago, I was asked to write an article for SGMRadio.com about my experience with the Stamps-Baxter School. Well, they liked it so much that they've asked me to become a monthly contributor! Sooo excited! I still need to find out some details, but Tara writes every month, and she gets thousands of hits each time. I'll post a link when the first article comes out.

And speaking of Tara, we had a very exciting phone call yesterday. SGMRadio.com is going to feature me as a "Breakout Artist", and they also want me to submit my CD for review. Again, I still don't have all the details on the Breakout Artist thing, but I know it involves an interview, and radio play for my CD. Sooo excited!

Tomorrow, we're going out with Tara and Kyle for our Booking 101 dinner. Toronto and the surrounding area is so dense that you really don't need to travel far to find dates. We rarely drove more than an hour to a gig, and we worked different places all the time. Here in Nashville, and especially in SG, touring is the norm, and things are done very differently than they are in Toronto. So tomorrow night, we're going to pick those JMA brains to figure out how to book and tour and all that other cool stuff!

Feeling very positive and excited! Already making headway into my 2008 Goals and Resolutions! Yay!

ps - Can you figure out who just learned how to add links to her blog? Cool, wha?

Back to the Bridge

I was back at the Bridge Ministry again tonight. Thunder storms were in the forecast, so the volunteer turnout was much smaller than last time.

I was put to work tonight, singing with the praise team. I didn't know most of the songs, but praise songs are meant to be singable, so it was pretty easy to pick them up as we went along. After the music, we had the message from a preacher who is also on the city's Homeless Commission (I think I have that right?). He spoke on Jeremiah 29:11 - "For I know the plans I have for you,' declares the LORD, 'plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future." He was great in speaking to the homeless about how this passage applies to them; how even in this time of difficulty and brokenness, God still has a plan, and is watching over each of them.

To be honest, it was a message I needed to hear too. As we enter 2008, we are facing some financial challenges. The limits of our visa are making it very hard to support ourselves. Don't get me wrong - We are incredibly thankful for our visa! But it's difficult to support a family on one income, especially while also paying for studio time, demos, songwriting workshops, etc. I know God brought us here to Nashville, and I know He didn't bring us here to abandon us. And again, I don't want to sound ungrateful for the opportunities we're being given. It's just difficult. If things don't change soon, it may limit our time here, and I hate that thought. It's also difficult, and a little embarrassing, to admit that we're having financial difficulties. (When I started this blog, I promised myself I'd always be honest in it. Some days, that's easier said than done. Right now, I'm trying to decide if I should delete this whole entry!) We're far from bankrupt, and when I see the people I saw tonight, I know we're very blessed indeed. We're not seeking riches, just stability. It would take so much pressure off my head.

In light of those thoughts ... Positive blessings of the day:

- Today was a day off, and it was too rainy to go outside, so Gerald, the puppies, and I got to spend some much needed family time together.

- I'm putting my CDs up for sale on HouseOfJubal.com. Today, I got all the info loaded on the site, and I've mailed them product, so it should be up and running very soon.

- I had great conversations with my parents and my father-in-law.

- I learned about DPD licenses, which are required to sell songs digitally.

- Kara and I got feedback on "Diamond Horizon", the song we wrote over the phone. The feedback was very positive, and suggested that, after a few tweaks, we should demo and pitch it.

- I am 99% finished booking and collecting grant info for Music on the Hill.

- I'm working Gordon Mote's table next week at a Homecoming concert.

- Tara may have a possible booking for me.

When people attend the Bridge, they receive a meal and clothes, and if they stay til the end, they are entered into a drawing to win a large item, like a bike or tent. But the focus of the night is the worship service. There's lots of inspiring music, a short but Biblical message, an altar call, and prayer. They feed the body, but it is also a reminder that, more than anything, we need to feed the soul. Instead of dieting to starve ourselves, we need to stuff ourselves full with music, love, and Jesus!

Getting things done...

It's been a mixed kind of weekend - My first real quiet days in ages, while also trying to catch up on a backlog of administrative stuff.

I'm sending out copies of Real Big Fan to all our songwriters, as well as to some people who've been very supportive of me since coming to Nashville. Still have a few more addresses to collect, but I got most of that done.

I've been asked to write an article about the Stamps-Baxter School for sgmradio.com. It was due today, so this weekend was about getting the opinions of the 'trusted few' and making all those final tweaks. I think it might be out next month?

I'm still on as Artistic Director of Music on the Hill, the lunchtime concert series at St. John's York Mills Church. Our grant application is due a month earlier than expected, so I'm having to rush things a little. I have 18 concerts to book. Most of them are in place, but it's always finicky having to balance the different shows, and then collecting all the info needed for the grant application. I love doing this; it just requires a lot of work.

The Christian DIVAs are taking on a group project: a compilation CD. We each gave in 2 songs, and we're each paying a little for mastering and manufacturing. It's the first time the group has done anything like this, and I'm so happy my new songs were done in time to be included.

This week, I have a few large goals (including finishing the Music on the Hill booking):
- I need to set up Real Big Fan for online sales.
- Gerald and I need to have a meeting so we can decide how we're going to approach booking.
- I need to set up the large run of 1000 CDs.

I also want to start sending out press releases about the new CD. I've compiled a list of Southern Gospel news websites, so now I'll just need to work on the content of the actual release. I've been studying different articles, etc, for several months, and I have some people I can go to for advice.

The other thing I need to start working on is finding some creative time! In the last few months, every second of creativity went into the CD (as it should!). But now, I want to make time for writing and painting and all that good stuff that will 'fill the well'. I want to take Song U courses and visit the Frist and paint the living room. Very excited about all of it!

Steve Seskin, in concert.

Gerald is doing a workshop this weekend with country songwriter, Steve Seskin. I think this is going to be great for him. Gerald is too advanced for most workshops. He doesn't need to hear the basics of rhyme schemes and song structures. He needs mentoring. This weekend will be a small group, and, on Monday, he'll have a one-on-one with Steve Seskin himself. Awesome!

Tonight, Steve did a solo show at Douglas Corner, a small club just south of downtown. (At least, I think that's where it is. I'm still trying to navigate this city!) You usually only see rounds in songwriter clubs, so this was a real treat. He did 2 60-minute sets, with nothing but a guitar. He took requests from the audience, and told the story behind each song.

There were 2 things that I loved about tonight:

#1. The songs were very positive, very encouraging. He has this one song called "Use Mine" - A little boy wants a bike; the Dad can't afford it so he gives his bike to his son saying "Use mine"; later, the Dad is ill and has no strength, so the son says, "Use mine". Oh! Just broke my heart. And other great song was about how everyone has mountains to climb, but some people's mountains "are steeper than mine". And then were was "Don't Laugh at Me", which has become an anti-bullying anthem. Loved it!

And #2. Every time Steve sang a song, he just opened his heart to the audience. He sang like his life depended on it - passionate, immediate, generous. He doesn't have a perfect voice, but he was just so authentic you couldn't help but listen to the stories he sang.

Tonight was great! We've made a New Year's Resolution to go out and hear live music at least once a week. We were doing it for a while, but then I started working and making the CD, so staying in at night became a better option.

Now that our first year has flown by, I am more conscious than ever of our very short visa. "Green cards" is also on that list of Resolutions. Start praying for us!

Catching Up, and the Bridge Ministry

Yes, we're back in Nashville! I have a bit of back-blogging to do. I had this great intention of writing every day of the 12 days of Christmas. Then, on January 2nd, we lost our internet! Dad and Gerald spent hours and hours trying to fix it, but it didn't get restored til after we got back to Nashville. (I'm sure those points aren't related.) I came home to over 325 emails in my inbox. Needless to say, it's taking me a while to catch up.

Since getting back, I'm back to working for Ben. We're gearing up for the 20th anniversary year of the Stamps-Baxter School, and it's going to be a great.

This afternoon, Kara and I finished our long distance, Song U co-write. We still want to do a bit of tweaking on the song, but we finished enough of a draft to submit to the site. If we posted our song by today, we won 25 points. Those points are collected, and can eventually be turned in for free song evaluations.

My friend, Tara, listened to my CD today. I was sort of freaking out - this was the first time a SG peer has listened to it. She loved it! I was very excited! She really loves the mix of jazz with Southern Gospel, so that was all very satisfying.

Gerald and I are planning on sitting down soon and making up our New Year's goals and resolutions. I really don't want to rush this process. There's a lot for us to do in 2008. Now that we're one year into our visa, I'm becoming aware that our time is very limited. We're still interested in green cards, so that may be a goal for the year. I'm also looking at making resolutions around spending more time and energy on outreach and charity work, and that lead to tonight's activity...

Tonight, I visited the Bridge Ministry. Tara, is very involved in it, and I've been interested in visiting for a while. Every Tuesday night, a group of people gather under a downtown bridge to minister to Nashville's homeless. They serve a hot meal, give out clothing, and lead an informal, but spirit-filled, worship service.

Tonight was close to freezing, but there was still a crowd of people, both on the giving and receiving end of things. In some ways, it was what I expected - great people doing great work. And in other ways, it was all a little surreal. Volunteers set up chairs, lights and a sound system. Professional singers give their gifts of song. A crowd forms an orderly line to accept a hot meal, and then receive food for the soul. The whole thing is like the warm, generous oasis, pitched against the chilling backdrop of a concrete bridge and freezing temperatures.

Two things really jumped out at me tonight: One: Candy Christmas (the Gaither artist who founded the Bridge) welcomed the crowd by saying, "I love you. If no one has said it to you today, let me be the first. I love you." Isn't this something most of us take for granted? I am never very far away from someone who is willing to tell me they love me. But there were people gathered tonight who probably only hear "I love you" on Tuesday nights. Such a simple thing, but it's like breath to our souls.

And two: Tonight was freezing, but I got to go home to a warm house with happy puppies and extra blankets for my bed. For some of these people, the Bridge was probably the warmest part of their night.

I know I'm not saying anything profound or new. But I think we lose perspective. It's one thing to see homeless people on TV, or to give them a nod as a political issue. It's another thing to look into some one's eyes, and realize that you are looking into the eyes of another child of God.

Stay on good terms with each other, held together by love. Be ready with a meal or a bed when it's needed. Why, some have extended hospitality to angels without ever knowing it!
(Hebrews 13:1-2, The Message)

The 12 Blogs of Christmas - Day 7

HAPPY 2008!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We all started the year on a quiet note. There are now 6 of us in the house, and 2 of us are healthy. Colds, stomach bugs, coughing, sneezing ... you name it, someone has it. So the day was somewhat lazy and very, very soft.

The afternoon was spent watching "Flags of Our Fathers" - fantastic, but disturbing. Meals took hours, as we'd sit around the table taking in long courses and even longer conversations. There were many cups of tea, and a few cat naps as well.

I spent an hour working on my Song U co-write. I'm finding it a bit of a struggle, but given the strangeness of writing with someone you've never met in person, I guess that's kind of normal. We're scheduled for our next phone call tomorrow, so I'm hoping that goes okay.

Last New Year's Eve, we all wrote predictions for 2007. Tonight, we opened the sealed envelopes and read them aloud. Most were very silly, but a few were interesting. For my "outlandish" sports prediction, I said Steve Nash would win his third MVP award, and this year, he was second in the running. Dad predicted he would start working as a writer and photographer, and that came true. Gerald predicted his first Nashville cut, and he received 2 indie cuts last year. I predicted Mom would win Longo's Most Valuable Customer... no word on that one yet.

But Dad and I both predicted that, in 2007, I would record my first Nashville CD, and that indeed came true!

I think all the family, and most of our close friends (at least here in Canada) have heard the CD, and their reviews are very positive. Yes, they are biased. But after a while, you learn to decipher "That sounds like my daughter/niece/cousin singing" from "I'm going to play this on my next road trip". Gerald and I are so excited about how things turned out, and it's great to hear that excitement from other people now too.

I haven't written any resolutions yet for 2008. I have lots of goals in mind, but I need a few quiet moments to really set things down. We've been so lucky to have worked so much in the last month, but with the exception of the odd day off, I really feel like I haven't had much of a break yet. There's been no feeling of 'vacation'. Maybe a-week-in-Mexico should be on that list of resolutions?