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Day 3

Morning worship with 10th Avenue North. Young guys with a passion for worship…

The morning session was led by cre:ate creator, Randy Elrod. Let me just say this talk wonderfully ruined me. Probably one of the best talks I’ve EVER heard on leadership. My big takeaway again, much like Ian’s talk the day before, was not so much what Randy said, but what he modeled: in order to speak into people’s lives, you have to go deep with God. Randy lives a deeply “inventoried” life. I will no doubt do a blog series on it in the near future. Wowsers…

Lunch was my favorite meal of the week: cajun-boiled shrimp, onions + summer sausage, red potatoes, + salad.

The afternoon session was led by comedian Ken Davis. We cried and laughed at the same time. My big takeaway is that God loves me. Sounds simple but I needed to hear it. Ken is a master communicator. As Randy has said, comedy is one of the highest art forms and Ken has the gift.

The afternoon was closed out with the most impacting Eucharist I’ve ever been a part of. Ian led us in a modern liturgy and communion. His insights on the subtleties of this time was priceless. My new friend, Mark Roach, who is worship pastor at Fellowship in O’Fallon, MO, literally right down the road from me (I’m looking forward to hooking up with him back in St. Louis), led the worship and did a phenomenal job.

Sidenote: I’ve heard people say that as you get older, the more you walk with Jesus, the less you feel you know about Him. He becomes more mysterious and Other, which I think is actually a really good thing because He is. The more I think about worship – I teach it after all – I realize that I have less figured out than I think. This is a interesting time of convergence with the continuing influence of the modern worship music industry, the resurgence of the liturgical, the glocalization of the world via the internet, etc. My mind is racing with possibilities. I am a futurist. It’s a blessing and a curse.

The conference day was closed out with dinner at Saffire at The Factory in Franklin. Had the best prime rib I’ve ever had in my life. We were led in concert by Carl Cartee, Travis Cottrell, + Chris Sligh.

The highlight of Day 3 happened at the very end of the day. Randy and his wife, Chris, invited me over to their house to take part in a scotch “tour,” led by the venerable John Voelz, a new friend I’ve followed virtually for a while (he is the Coriolis:Experience leader @ Westwinds Church in Jackson, MI). John walked us through three different types of scotch: 1) the Glenlivet – mild, approachable, honey-tinged, 2) the Talisker – smokey, peaty, and 3) the Balrenie – a desert scotch. Not sure I’ll become a scotch connoisseur but I could do the Talisker again. What a great time of fellowship! Thanks John for teaching me about a finer thing in life!

At the Elrod’s, I spent a lot of my time hanging with Matthew Ward, who I mentioned yesterday is a huge pioneer of the CCM industry with 2nd Chapter of Acts. He shared with me about his favorite session players, studios, producers, and solo albums from his past. Matthew may come and speak at MBU sometime soon. How cool would that be?

Day 3 was the highlight of the week for me. Touched beyond measure…

Day 4

Morning worship was led by one of Sparrow’s new signees, Sarah Reeves. Genuine heart and great songs…

The morning session was led by Anne Jackson, author of Mad Church Disease and blogger at flowerdust.net. She shared her testimony of how her father’s burnout in ministry led her to think about what the church asks of people. The book is a reflection of this journey for her. Great session. Authentic and real…

Lunch was at Stoveworks at The Factory. Southern cooking at its finest: chicken in a cream sauce over cornbread and apple cobbler…

I had to steal away for the afternoon to meet with my friend and missional crony, Ed Stetzer. We are conspiring on a couple of big projects connected to the current missional conversation that I am really excited about. Stay tuned…

I actually was so bushed from the week, I decided to spend the evening with my wife. I had missed Lost the night before so we chilled, reconnected, and got our Lost on…

Day 5

Yesterday morning, I joined about 40 other songwriters at EMI/CMG Publishing Company in Brentwood for a great time of conversation on the issue of worship songwriting. We heard from staff writer Audray Assad and again from the Sparrow roster, Sarah Reeves, as well as a forum of some of the EMI/CMG music publishing staff on the 5/5: the five elements of a great song and the five traps for songwriters…

It was a bit surreal because we met in a room right next to a rehearsal room that I played my original music for Brad O’Donnell of Sparrow Records, which ultimately led to a showcase a local club called The Basement in June of 2002. It was cool to be back there and reminisce. I definitely got the itch to start writing again. Yikes…

We had lunch catered in and before I left, I had the chance to speak with Randy and tell him about his influence on my life and what this week meant to me. It was a sweet time of conversation…

In all, this was such a refreshing week for my soul….


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It’s two days late but here was my Day 2 at cre:ate:

Morning W\worship with a genuine, humble dude named Carl Cartee. He has a new album coming out in March. Check it out. He is the real deal. Reminds me of a young Paul Baloche with more grovel…

Profound session with Ian Morgan Cron, author of Chasing Francis, on the mystic-artist. Can’t begin to say how cool it was to hear from Ian’s heart. My big takeaway was something he didn’t even talk about per se, but modeled: God has made us a certain way so we must find our voice – and that voice won’t be like anyone else’s. Ian is an artist at heart even though he is a pastor, author, blogger, etc. His presentation was heady, artsy, rich, serious, clever, humorous. I’m an artist through and through too. He gave me permission to be an “artsy” communicator…

After Ian’s session, we had the first of many surprises of the week. I thought I had seen this guy at the conference but wasn’t sure. Randy brought up Matthew Ward, formerly of 2nd Chapter of Acts, and Billy Ray Hearn, EMI Christian Music Group founder, who discovered 2nd Chapter before there was such a thing as CCM. They reminisced on their relationship and Matthew closed the time by singing “The Lord’s Prayer.” It was truly an anointed time. Matthew is one of my all time favorite singers…

Lunch was at the Boxwood Bistro here at the Factory. Jasmine salmon with white rice as a main entree. Yummy. Met and sat with uber-blogger and great guy, Carlos Whitaker and his wife, Heather. Also, had the priveledge to have lunch with Ian. Asked Ian alot of questions about his pastoring role in southern Connecticut. He started a church that has grown to 700 folks and he feels that his time to be the “lead” guy may have come to an end and hand it over to someone else. He shared his frustration of the slow shift from mission to maintenance. Also shared a vision he has for what he calls the “atomized” church. If I remember, I’ll try to unpack this later for you. In all, another providential time to connect with an anointed man who spoke truth into my life. [There was also a surprise visit by Stu G, the electric guitarist from Delirious?. Fun stuff...]

After lunch, we had our second surprise of the day. Billy and Cindy Foote, writers of songs like “You Are My King (Amazing Love)” and “Sing to the King,” led us in a mini-worship session. What a sweet time of worship! God manifested Himself in a powerful way…

Afternoon session with Steve Guthrie, assistant professor of theology @ Belmont University. The highlight was his “exegesis” of book 10, chapter 32 of Augustine’s Confessions. Awesome stuff…

Supper was at Harpeth Community Church here in Franklin. Great food and even better music. I got my nostalgia on. Michael W. Smith led us in an intimate time of worship. Just Smitty and a piano. Check out his song “Highly Favoured” on the new album, CompassionArt…

Tomorrow I hope to recap day 3 & 4 for you…


It’s been a while since I’ve done one of these. I really need to get back in the swing of these…

1. For some reason I resonate with the guilty pleasure of this too.

2. The blogosphere has been abuzz by the announcement that CCM will no longer be a print mag. I thought the best reaction to this came from David Sessions of PatrolMag.com, but Charlie Peacock raised him by talking about the future of CCM. Wowsers. Makes me want to go back and read At the Crossroads again.

3. Alan Hirsch prophetically speaks life into what has become a church program in malaise: small groups.

4. Plant churches or make disciples? Challenging thoughts from Bob Roberts. Check Aaron Snow’s challenge in the comments section. Deep stuff.

5. Keller once again – albeit inadvertently – covers the balanced, middle ground via Christianity Today’s Colin Hansen in regards to Dever’s recent talk at T4G in the challenge of making the gospel ‘public’ rather than staying focused on its core message. Hansen rightly highlights that protecting the gospel can turn into neglecting the implications of the gospel… as though calling certain things “implications” makes those things optional. [HT: Kevin Larson]

6. Great thoughts on incarnational church planting from Hugh Halter of Adullam, one of the authors of a new book I’m hoping to get in the mail this week, The Tangible Kingdom: Creating Incarnational Community.

7. Sobering posts from uber-missiologist, Ed Stetzer on moral protection. See here and here.


delirious? kingdom of comfort giveaway

If you’ve followed the contemporary worship resurgence in the last 10 years or so, you know the conversation would not be complete without including the uber-band Delirious?. We all know their song, “I Could Sing of Your Love Forever,” but their humble beginnings as a worship band for a youth outreach event called “Cutting Edge” in Littlehampton, West Sussex, England, has been the true catalyst and heart behind the humble longevity of their career.

Though they’ve straddled the line between the mainstream and Christian music industry – see Audio Lessonover? – they have maintained a position as one of the most relevant and important bands in Christian music history.

On April 1st, Delirious? released their seventh full-length studio album, Kingdom of Comfort. I have one CD – compliments of EMI/CMG – to give away. So we are going to have a little contest here on relevintage. If you would like to win the CD, here is what you have to do:

1) You must tell me what impact Delirious? has had on you as a believer, a worshipper, a worship leader, etc.

2) You must elaborate on a song or songs that have ministered to you or the congregations you lead.

3) You must post the Delirious? widget below – promoting their new album – on your blog’s sidebar for two months.

Place This on your web siteBuy USABuy UKDelirious

Please send your responses to my email: andrews.bradleyd at gmail.com. I look forward to hearing from you! The deadline for the giveaway is Friday, April 18. Be looking for a forthcoming review of the CD coming soon on relevintage.


hymns.jpg

Stuck in a moment

I used to write music a lot. Even post-Nashville, I was writing on a fairly frequent basis. But slowly by surely, the vigor for songwriting has been absorbed by many things, including this blog.

But there have been moments over the past few years where that ‘loving feeling’ has returned and I’ve been inspired to put together a concept album of some kind. I’m in the middle of one of those moments right now.

This ain’t your grandma’s hymns

I am so grateful for the resurgence of hymns. They ain’t your grandma’s hymns for sure, but a necessary reintroduction into the repertoire of churches all over the world. And I’ve seen a continuum over the last decade of where the reawakening has taken us.

First, for example, you have Passion and Caedmon’s Call musically updating hymns that we all know and love and at times, adding a new chorus that brings into the current praise and worship realm. They aren’t musically that radical.

Second, you have folks like Mars Hill Church who are updating hymns we all know and love but they are so radically progressive musically, they don’t sound like the same hymns. But they are…

Third, you have Sojourn, Indelible Grace, Red Mountain Music doing some of this as well, but also going back into the ‘vault’ and reclaiming lesser known hymns and updating the music.

Fourth, you have folks like Stuart Townend and Keith Getty who are differentiating themselves from the praise and worship industry by writing what many consider modern day hymns. New lyrics, new tunes, all hearkening back to that vintage art form.

Overindulging ourselves with vanilla

As with any rebirth of any kind, there is always the possibility of overexposure. Some great things start out innocently and then become monsters that are almost unmanageable. CCM is a good example of this…

I’ve seen a proliferation of the repackaged hymns idea – the hymn’s original lyrics and melody with updated music – for some time now. To be honest, I’m growing weary. How many arrangements of Amazing Grace can we come up with? Don’t hear what I’m not saying. I’m not saying we are over satiated with the worth of hymns. I think we’ve overindulged ourselves a bit with the endless vanilla repackaging of those hymns.

Theology married to context

If you listen long enough to people talk about the church reclaiming the arts, you hear the value of indigenous art sprouting up from within the community of artists in a church. But the reality is that we are light years away from this being a common thread that is woven through the church. I’m afraid with the recontexted hymn, we are actually not being as creative as God has called us to be.

I believe the next great wave of church music will be the fourth group I mentioned above. Those of the Townend/Getty ilk. Individuals who are writing brand new lyrics with overtly strong theological moorings married to the contextualized sounds of community a church is situated in. How beautiful would it be if the very thing that the contemporary worship movement abandoned for the sake of accessibility became the catalyst to birth an indigenous music crusade?

Unsticking the moment

So it’s time to start writing again. Specifically, new hymns with new lyrics and melodies that read like old hymns but sound like something that lives in the 21st century. That’s the plan. I don’t know much beyond that at this point other than I need to go dust off my old hymnology books and study me some Newton. I’ll keep you posted on the progress of the project…


music review: better questions by todd agnew

todd-agnew-better-questions.jpg“I’ve got better questions than I have answers…”

This first line of Todd Agnew’s prelude to his Better Questions album is the coal-and-ice of his fourth Ardent studio release. Answers are only as good as the questions are better. And sometimes answers are seemingly the more elusive the better the questions are.

In his 17-song opus, Agnew ventures into parabolic territory, raising inquest after inquest, hoping to find resolution to the paradoxes of life. Especially, the paradoxes of life in Christ. And musically, Agnew leaves no stone unturned in his most eclectic album to date.

The albums first full track, “Still Has a Hold,” kicks off with a nod to St. Benadictine. Straight from the monastery, the chant of monks eases us into a nu-gospel country, replete with a double-time outro that could be heard in any downtown Memphis church – Agnew’s hometown. And lyrically, “Still” could have been written by any of the great gospel writers of the last centuries. “Sometimes I’m in the valley/I let go long ago/My hand is weak and tired/But Your hand still has a hold.” This is the kind of song Johnny Cash would be recording if he were still alive.

“Last of These” find Agnew channeling his inner Soundgarden. This is the first of one of Agnew’s musical themes on “Better Questions”: modern 90′s grunge a la Alice in Chains and Stone Temple Pilots and focuses us in on the unnoticed in our society who God says to heed. “If You Wanted Me” brings us to a more subdued Agnew with an Edge-flavored guitar and a djembe loop. In one of his most poignant lines of the album, Agnew asks, “And if You wanted me to be like You/Why’d You make me like me?”

The 6/8 lilter “Our Great God” is one of the peaks of Better Questions. Originally recorded by Fernando Ortega and Mac Powell of Third Day, the violin and acoustic guitar worship song finds its vim and vigor in a duet w/Rebecca St. James “When the Lord of all is the Lord of each/And I love you like He loves me/There might be…” is one of the closing lines of “Peace On Earth,” the Bob Marley/Stone Temple Pilots-infused sermonette.

It is hard not to hear Brad Roberts booming baritione of the Crash Test Dummies when Agnew sings, “So before you spout out your most recent thoughts/Just remember who you’re speaking for/Or don’t say anything at all” on “Don’t Say a Word.” There is a slight Beatles sophistication on this tune, but the immediate context is to preach the gospel at all times and if necessary, use words. Lyrically hearkening back to the Apostle Paul and his conundrum of not doing what he knows he should and doing what he knows he shouldn’t, the downtuned “War Inside” recalls Hinder with its huge electric guitar hooks.

“On a Corner in Memphis” paints a picture of how church can be anywhere, even in the midst of pain on the Mississippi river town’s Beale Street. The bluesy tune, teeming with B-3 and upright piano sings “What if their heart-breaking cries of pain/Are the first hymns of tomorrow’s saints?” The Rich Mullins, “Can I Be With You,” features a simplistic grunge guitar and gravelly vocals. This isn’t your mother’s Rich.

The bonus track on Better Questions, “Glorious Day” is actually its highlight. This repackaged hymn soars with a great melody, instrumentation, and space. In many ways, it showcases the best of Agnew and the deficit in some of his other songs – lackluster hooks and esoteric instrumentation.

Lurking beneath the surface of each of Agnew’s anthems is the reality that we aren’t asking the right questions. Or better, we’re afraid to ask them at all. And as Agnew shows, Better questions begat better answers. And questions never asked leave answers never unearthed.


extract’d

derekwebb2.jpg

…you see few Christian artists really working hard enough and doing good enough art to be in that bigger worldview conversation that’s happening. Instead you see them sort of relegated to this kind of meaningless little Christian chart, well it’s like since we’re not good enough to compete with the real music, the real general market music, the big worldview discussions happening. We’re going to have our own awards ceremonies, the Dove Awards, or our little radio stations, our own little charts, and our own little world to make ourselves feel significant because ultimately the art we’re making just isn’t earning ourselves a seat at the table to really communicate what we believe by way of great art.

-Derek Webb, from Patrol Magazine’s “The Derek Webb Interview Part II“


“ardent” reviewer

ardent-records-logo.jpgAh, the power of the blogosphere…

Much like uber-reviewers like Scot, T-Wax, Bob, and A.J., I have entered the realm of receiving free stuff to review, albeit music not books – although I hope that soon changes. I can’t attest this to any other reason than the mostly music and sometimes book reviews on relevintage.

I was contacted last week by Ardent Records to review new albums by those on their artist roster. Once a much bigger label, they have streamlined – much like the rest of the Christian music industry – to include artists Todd Agnew, Skillet, and Joy Whitlock.

Here is a little background on Ardent via Wikipedia:

…often shortened to “Ardent,” is a Memphis record label founded by John Fry in 1959. Ardent of the 1960s and 1970s featured pop music acts and was distributed by Stax Records from 1972 until 1975. It is best remembered today for Big Star, whose first two albums, released in 1972 and 1974, helped define the style known as power pop. The label was initially an attempt by the R&B-focused Stax to move into rock music, but distribution problems prevented any releases from succeeding. Big Star became widely known through 80s reissues and the long delayed first release of Big Star III, recorded in 1976.

The label was revived in the 1990s with two divisions: Alternative Mainstream and Contemporary Christian. Former Big Star guitarist Alex Chilton released recordings on the Ardent mainstream division, which also released recordings by bands such as Spot, Jolene, Two Minutes Hate, The Idlewilds, Neighborhood Texture Jam, and Techno-Squid Eats Parliament. The mainstream division of Ardent Records was closed in the mid-1990s.

Ardent’s Christian label issued its first Christian releases in 1995. Initial projects included albums from Big Tent Revival, Skillet, and Smalltown Poets. To date, Ardent Records has released more than 35 albums by artists such as Skillet, Todd Agnew, Jonah33, Smalltown Poets, Satellite Soul, Clear, All Together Separate, Brother’s Keeper, Justifide, Before You Breathe, NonFiction and Joy Whitlock. In 2005, Ardent inked a deal with INO Records, a division of Integrity Media, to distribute and market its entire roster.

Stay tuned for the first review of Todd Agnew’s 2007 album, Better Questions…


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Husband and father of four, university instructor, seminarian, church planter, and conference architect.

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