Music from my past

10/08/2011 DATELINE: London, Ontario-  Friday night I went to see an old friend, oh, he's not a personal friend, he's a man who influenced my life via the vinyl records of my past, but because of him (in part) I made a choice to believe in Jesus Christ, because of him I went to the Country of Haiti when I was 21 years old,

 

because of him I value artistry and songmanship (is that a word?)

His name is RANDY STONEHILL, I first heard Randy when I was 9 years old, I purchased his record "Welcome to paradise" and the songs blew me away, "king of hearts" was my favorite...listen to these lyrics:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xDJOZEN3HUo&feature=related 

Randy had a unique comedic approach to faith, he didn't slam it down your throat and he basically said to be a Christian "the least of these" must come first, you can't "brag" about being a follower of Jesus if you don't reach out to the hungry and downtrodden, Loving those in need begins the journey...another lesson Randy taught me was that sincereity and transparency are crucial elements to integrity and representing your Faith. sadly I placed folks like Randy on a pedastal back then and as I began to work in Christian radio I witnessed my musical heroes failing, falling or freaking out and not one of them today is on my manmade pedastal, but I must tell you that Randy Stonehills recent visit to London, Ontario did my soul a world of good, you see, Randy played to about 40 people! a far cry from opening for Petra in 1985 at Pine knob to about 9,000 of us...yet he was gracious, he performed many songs from his huge catalogue from all four decades, he even did an encore of one of his first recordings from back in 1971 (called "I Love you")  he hung around after the concert to discuss anythinig and everything from his career to his wonderful wife, he just treated all of us with respect and humility. WOW! was that refreshing. it gave me hope for this Christian music industry again, perhaps they could learn some things from pioneers like Randy Stonehill. never forget why you do this, never forget Who you do this for and most importantly, never forget how blessed you are to still be doing it. Godspeed Uncle Rand. the new album "Spirit walk" is spectacular and your voice is still in fine form. now let the world tour begin again :)

Randy's "Wild frontier" cover AARP edition

http://www.randystonehill.com/ 

MY TOP TEN STONEHILL SONGS

1. Thankful
2. Light of the world
3. King of hearts
4. Hymn
5. Keep me Runnin
6. Life is tough, God is good
7. Celebrate this heartbeat
8. Christmas at Denny's
9. When I look to the Mountains
10. That's why we don't love God

Dan Peek, Singer Songwriter and co-founder of the band AMERICA

I was saddened to read today that DAN PEEK, the singer-songwriter who co-founded the folk rock band AMERICA had passed away at the age of 60 on July, 24th..I met Dan a few times, the first time was when I was 17 in Canada at a music festival, he was a very kind, friendly and soft spoken artist, he performed with his brother Tom Peek and included several of the AMERICA songs in his set, he was proud of the association he had with the band AMERICA but he was most proud of his association with his Christian faith.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Dan Peek (November 1, 1950, Panama City, Florida – July 24, 2011) was a former member of the rock band, America from 1970 to 1977, together with Gerry Beckley and Dewey Bunnell. He contributed lead and backing vocals, guitars, bass, keyboards, and harmonica to their recordings during his tenure in the band. As a member of America, Peek contributed with four Top 100 singles: "Don't Cross The River" (#35), his most successful single "Lonely People" hit (#5), "Woman Tonight" (#44), and "Today's the Day" (#23). "Lonely People" and "Today's the Day" also hit number 1 on the Billboard AC charts.
Peek left America shortly after the February 1977 release of the Harbor album. He renewed his Christian faith after years of unhappy recreational drug use and a fast lifestyle, and had begun to seek a different artistic direction than Beckley or Bunnell. He went on to sign with Pat Boone's Lamb & Lion Records, and found success as a pioneering artist in the emerging Christian pop music genre. Outside of rejoining Beckley and Bunnell on stage on one spontaneous occasion several years after, Peek has not reunited with America, contrary to various inaccurate reports which have arisen over the years. Chris Christian co-wrote, produced, and contributed backing vocals on Peek's debut solo album, All Things Are Possible, in 1979, but that was in the context of Peek's solo career, and not as America. This was the first Contemporary Christian Hit to reach the Billboard charts, reaching the Top 10 in the A/C Billboard chart. Gerry and Dewey sang on "Love Was Just Another Word" written by Steve Kipner and Chris Christian in LA which was the last time the three original members of "America" recorded together. Peek followed "All Things Are Possible" with "Doer of the Word". "Doer of the Word" was a Christian hit and Gerry Beckley sang background vocals on the record, but he did the recording at Chris Christian's studio in Dallas and Dan was not present.
Peek would later release an autobiography entitled An American Band, based on America's most successful period, and his own spiritual journey.^[1]
Peek's first album and single became big hits on contemporary Christian music (CCM) radio stations and charts. The single "All Things Are Possible" not only hit number 1 on the CCM singles chart, it also crossed over to the Billboard singles and adult contemporary charts, becoming one of the earliest CCM's crossover hits.
Peek lost much of the momentum gained by the success of his initial hit by not releasing a second album for five years, 1984's Doer of the Word. While several of his songs would make the CCM charts, none crossed over to the Pop or Adult Contemporary charts. The delay really may have cost Peek in that regard with the title track, "Doer of the Word", which was an upbeat, very "America-like" song that was backed by Beckley. It hit number 2 on the CCM charts. 1986 saw the release of his Electrovoice album, again to the CCM market, which included a remake of "Lonely People", featuring a very similar lead vocal treatment and overall arrangement that was done on the original America version years prior. He changed some of the song's lyrics to reflect his Christian faith, for example the lines "And ride that highway in the sky" and "You never know until you try" became "And give your heart to Jesus Christ."
Peek spent much of the 1990s in semi-retirement, occasionally recording music at his home in the Cayman Islands. He released several solo projects and collaborated with Ken Marvin and Brian Gentry as "Peace" on three albums. In recent years, before his death in 2011, Peek released music via his web page.^[1]

^{here's a link to a Dan peek interview from 2007  http://www.drewmarshall.ca/listen2007.html#071110}

AN EVENING WITH CHARLIE PEACOCK, APRIL 26TH, 2008

none of us who took our seats at a few minutes after 8pm this particular Saturday night knew what was in store from the alternative, imaginative mind of Mr. Charlie Peacock. but he proceeded to blow us away with his passionate vocals and remarkable piano percussion. Charlie started with a piece entitled "Beauty left the room" that drew me in as if this small theatre venue in Livonia, Michigan had magically turned into this smoke filled cigar bar sensation that belonged on the docks of San Francisco. a couple songs later he tells us that he is interpreting songs with an older, Sadder ear, and his version of "In the light" certainly did that. Up next was "Only you can" a lyric dripping with honesty & agony which became the theme of the evening. with thoughtful songs like "monkeys at the zoo", "Kite in a tree" and "insult like the Truth" I came away with that clean, purged, merciful "thank God he accepts me for who I am" feeling. although this reviewer wanted "almost threw it all away", "When I stand with you" and of course "One thing" This particular show gets a solid A+ for sound quality, Charlie's effort, Charlie's setlist and for the very special result. a night out without cheap ploys to buy product, long sermons about nothing or even the hint of a phoney faith at work. not even a cheap attempt at a praise chorus was heard. God Bless you Charlie...and if he's coming near you hometown don't even think about missing him. he's a gem amongst cubic zirconias.Charlie visiting Detroit's Auto show in 1991