ApologetiX in Michigan and in the Studio
Fri., Aug. 3. 2001 1:16am EDT
J. Jackson, lead singer for ApologetiX (That Christian Parody Band) here.
1. Concert Tomorrow (Saturday) in Michigan
2. "Follow Up on Last Week's Concerts"
3. "Keep the Change" Recording Update
4. "Keep the Change" Songlist (Clues #5 and 6)
5. Upcoming Concerts
1. Concert Tomorrow (Saturday) in Michigan
Tomorrow, we make our first trip to Michigan since Fred's "graduation concert" in Kalamazoo this past January. Word has it our favorite Michigan-based Segar will be in attendance! Nah ... I'm talking about Kyle Segar, not Bob Seger! Don't you guys know how to spell? Then again, that comment came from the person who suggested we spell that our band name with a big old "X" on the end. Anyway, there will be a member of a classic top 40 act in the crowd. Believe it or not, it's the pastor. We'll be playing at a church pastored by Gary Cech, who used to sing with the Diamonds, the ë50's doo-wop group most famous for their hit, "Little Darlin'" (number two for eight weeks back in 1957). All in all, the Diamonds had 15 Top 40 hits, including "The Stroll" (#4) and "Silhouettes" (#10).
Sat., Aug. 4, 7 p.m.
FamFest 2001
Midland Christian Church
1264 E. Isabella Road (M-20)
Midland MI 48640
Contact: Pastor Gary A. Cech, Sr. Contact: Project Coordinator Ron Browne minister@midlandchristianchurch.com 989-631-3810
2. "Follow Up on Last Week's Concerts"
Last weekend was something else! We took off from Pittsburgh International Airport, changed flights (coming and going) in Minneapolis, flew to Sioux City, IA for a concert and got to drive through the little corner that takes you through South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa. Then it was off to San Diego, where we were picked up by our erstwhile publicist, Kathleen Burke and her family, who took us to LegoLand for our scheduled concert at Christian Family Fest.
On the way back to the airport, Kathleen let us stop and dip our toes in the Pacific Ocean, and then a big old jet airliner became our hotel for the night, since we lost three hours going back to Eastern Standard Time, and the flight took five hours. I think I saw the lights of Los Angeles not too long after we'd been in the air, and before I knew it, we were landing in Newark, NJ. While waiting for our connecting flight, we got to eat breakfast while watching the sun rise over the famous New York City skyline. Then it was back to Pittsburgh.
As far as concerts go, the response in Sioux City was great! We made many new friends, including some fans from Nashville, TN, of all places, who told us we're "big in Nashville." Also in attendance, were our dear old friends Carl and Char Scheuermann, who now hold the distinction of having seen ApologetiX in the most diverse locales, including both sides of Pennsylvania, New Jersey and Iowa (and, as mentioned before, practically in South Dakota and Nebraska, since Sioux City is where those three states converge)!
The event in San Diego didn't get nearly the turnout they expected, even with top national Christian performers like Jennifer Knapp, Stacie Orrico, Nicole C. Mullen and others on the bill. It was very strange to see, but we did have a lot of fun, and one of the people who did attend our concert was George Barna of the Barna Research Group, a name I'd come across a number of times over the years when listening to Christian radio and reading Christian publications. It seems George heard our parody "Life in the Last Days" used as segue music when he was being interviewed on the radio recently, and he said he was still laughing about it when he and the host came back on the air. We were honored that he took time out of his busy speaking and writing schedule to come see us play in concert.
We also got to meet Stacie Orrico, as we were leaving the stage and she was coming on. I couldn't resist telling Karl, "Don't look at her!" For those of you who don't know, "Don't Look at Me," was Stacie's breakthrough radio hit and the top CCM song of 2000 (It's on the WOW 2001 CD). Stacie said she'd heard and enjoyed our parody of "Push" by matchbox 20, "Put You Down in My Will." It was also cool to see our buddy, Nicole, whom we first met in Napa, who persuaded her brother and his girlfriend to drive her a bunch of hours to come see us (or was it just to see LegoLand?)
3. "Keep the Change" Recording Update
We're happy to report that Keith has completed his bass parts for our upcoming CD, "Keep the Change," due out September 25. Furthermore, Karl and Bill Hubauer are rapidly completing the guitar and keyboard parts. As a matter of fact, I was in the studio last night with Karl laying down vocal parts on three of the tracks. I'm supposed to record some more later today, and I'd be in the studio right now, but Karl's wife, Debbie, is having some problems with her asthma, so Karl is with her getting it checked by a doctor as I type this. Please keep Debbie in your prayers. She's had asthma for a long time, but lately she's been having some problems. She's a very active, very strong lady, and hopefully this won't be too serious.
We are already getting a ton of pre-orders (thousands of copies) from stores and distributors for "Keep the Change," so that's very, very encouraging. I don't think you will be disappointed. I think this is going to be our strongest effort yet, both lyrically and performance-wise. We're trying to get the word out in advance, so people are ready. We will be running full-page ads in the August/September HM Magazine and the September and October issues of CCM Magazine, plus ads in catalogs for the store affiliates of both Parable and Munce, which represent hundreds and hundreds of stores. God has blessed us in such a way that we are able to get exposure that usually is only available to bands on major labels. That's a blessing that we don't take lightly.
4. "Keep the Change" Songlist (Clues #5 and 6)
Because we add a bunch of new subscribers every week to this newsletter, we'll re-explain what this is and why we do it.
Part of the fun of putting out a new CD is having people guess what songs we're going to spoof. As we did with "Spoofernatural," we're giving giving clues about the songs on "Keep the Change," two songs per newsletter. Here are clues #5 and 6:
#5 "Be Bold Jeremiah"
Aside from the book of Psalms, Jeremiah is the longest book in the Old Testament. Isaiah has more chapters, but Jeremiah has more words, because his chapters are much longer. He also is generally credited with writing the Book of Lamentations. Despite his prolific nature, many Christians don't really know too much about him, and that's a telltale sign they haven't read the whole Bible, because Jeremiah's books contain not only prophecies, but many stories of things that happened in his life, including his personal feelings about what was going on circa 640-586 B.C. Poor Jeremiah: He loved his homeland (Judah) and his people (the Jews), and yet he was sent by God to prepare them for the Babylonian invasion that would soon come to punish them. Consequently, the people accused him of being a traitor and a false prophet. All that after Jeremiah plainly told God from the start, "Ah, Lord God! Behold, I cannot speak, for I am a youth." ( Jeremiah 1:6) The original title and main words of the song we spoofed here are actually hidden within the text of one of the previous sections of this e-mail, and it's plane to see if you look for it. It was one of the first songs I really got into when FM radio started rockin' me back in 1977, and you heard it too if you were living in the U.S.A. that summer. In fact, I went out to the record store to buy the single, but they were sold out, so I got "Nobody Does It Better" by Carly Simon instead of opting to take the money and run. Ironically, the artist who made this song a hit didn't write it, although he did write the music that got sampled for the song featured in Clue #4 last week.
#6 "Old Time Romans Road"
As many Christians know, the Romans Road to Salvation is a short series of scriptures from the book of Romans that guide you through God's plan of salvation as you turn the page. The basic stops on the road are still the same -- Romans 3:23, 5:8, 6:23 and 10:9 -- although some people also add others like Romans 3:10, 8:1 and 10:13. This parody was written as an effort to get more riders out on that road and to help all you tour guides out there remember where the stops are. It's probably pretty obvious to you what song we're spoofing here, unless you're a stranger in town. This song is the biggest jukebox hit of all time, and was released as a single in 1979 and even though it was risky business they re-released it in 1983. If you still don't know who or what we're talking about, ask our buddy Kyle from the Michigan concert we mentioned above. One last clue: The Romans Road isn't down on Main Street, and it doesn't go to Fire Lake.
5. Upcoming Concerts
Fri., Aug. 10 at 8:00 p.m.
Joyful Noise
2001 Tuscarawas County Fairgrounds
259 S. Tuscarawas Ave.
Dover OH 44622
Contact: Lisa Stilgenbauer 330-343-6011
Sat., Aug. 11 at 3:00 p.m. (Event runs 12:00-5:00 p.m.)
Youth Bash 2001
National Road
Morristown OH
Contact: Barb Guest 740-699-2599 or 304-280-3792
Sat., Aug. 11 at 7:30 p.m.
Canal Fulton Christian Fellowship
2021 Locust Street
Canal Fulton, OH 44614
Contact: Jenice McKindree 330-855-1895
Sun., Aug. 12 at 7:00 p.m. -
Free Concert!
Thorn Creek United Methodist.Church
142 Rockdale Road
Butler PA
Contact: Tom Sullivan 724-352-3091 ADLN23@aol.com
Fri., Aug. 17 at 8:00 p.m.
Carroll County Fairgrounds
106 Kenfington Rd.
NE Carrollton OH 44615
Contact: Barb Newell 330-735-2443
Sat., Aug. 18 12:00-2:30 p.m.
Bratwurst Festival
300 S. Syndusky
Bucyrus OH 44820
Contact: Barb Basore, chairperson 419-562-8908
Pastor Mike Cole 419-610-8728 (cell)
Sat. Aug. 18 at evening
(All day event but ApologetiX plays at night)
2nd Annual Spirit Train Rock of Ages Festival
Sponsored by WORD-FM and South Hills Assembly of God
Castle Shannon Trolley Park & Ride
Pittsburgh PA
Contact: Ron Felgar (412) 343-1246 (412) 835-8900
Sun., Aug. 26 at 5:00 p.m.
Crossfire kick-off weekend
Christ United Methodist Church
3300 Austin Parkway
Sugar Land TX 77479
Contact: Julie Frazier 281-980-6888 ext. 304
Wed., Aug. 29 at 6:30 p.m.
First Christian Church
710 S. Zane Highway
Martins Ferry OH 43935
Contact: Rev. Saco 740-633-3615
Sat., Sept. 1 8:00-11:00 p.m.
Cornerstone CafÈ
Elizabethtown PA
Contact: Jim Schreiber 717-367-5326 (cafÈ)
717-653-6439 (night)
Jim@pa.net
Sun., Sept. 2 at 6:00 p.m.
Uniontown High School, Football Field Uniontown PA
Sat., Sept. 8 at 7:00 p.m.
Ohio United Presbyterian Church
Longview at Maratta Road
Aliquippa PA 15001
Contact: Patty Strominger 724-378-3690 oupc@nb.net
Fri., Sept. 14 at 7:00 p.m.
A.T. Room
Adrian College
Adrian MI 49221
Contact: Jenni Duranczyk 517-893-0056 (home)
517-264-3706 (school) flawlessfoil@hotmail.com
Sat.. Sept. 15 at 3:30 p.m.
Fallout 2001
(See You at the Pole Rally) (with Five Iron Frenzy, Reliant K, Smalltown Poets John Reuben and Ace Troubleshooter) Faith Evangelical Free Church
Rt 222
Trexlertown PA
FalloutYTLV@aol.com WDunn7@aol.com
Sat., Sept. 22 at 7 p.m.
First Christian Church Freeman Lake
140 Freeman Lake Road
Elizabethtown KY 42702
Contact: Chris Kiger 270-765-4994 (Day), 270-765-2224 (Night) ACkiger@cs.com
chris.kiger@excite.com
Sat., Sept. 29, at 7 p.m.
7th Annual Barbecue on the River Foot of Broadway
(Riverfront)
Paducah KY
Contact: Pam Ward 270-415-9095 bandp@paducah.com
Fri., Oct. 5, evening
Family Christian Stores Holiday Center
3747 William Penn Highway
Monroeville, PA
Contact: Chuck Ernst, Mgr. 412-372-1610 cpernst@sgi.net
Sat., Oct. 6 at 7:30 p.m.
Christian Publications/Cornerstone Chapel
620 Route 23
North Pompton Plains NJ 07444
Contact: Emily Strunk 973-616-7080
Sat., Oct. 13 at 7:00 p.m. (Doors open at 6:00 p.m.)
Cup O' Joy Benefit Concert
Green Bay West High School
966 Shawano Ave.
Green Bay WI
Contact: Jan Oettinger 920-435-3269 (Cup O' Joy)
920-437-6694 (home)
jano@cupojoy.com www.cupojoy.com Tickets: $5 in advance plus freewill offering $6 or $7 at door
Fri., Oct. 19 at 7:00 p.m.
St. Mark's Lutheran Church
201 W. Jefferson St.
Butler PA 16001
Contact: Pastor Rich Leseganich 724-287-6741
Sat., Oct. 20 at 2:00 p.m. and 8:00 p.m.
Baptist Convention of Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey Scarlet Cord Teen Center
150 Main St.
Brookville PA
Contact: Tommy Rowe (Convention) 717-652-5856
Contact: Erik Lane (Scarlet Cord) 814-849-7659 kcmpromo@yahoo.com
Sat., Oct. 20 at 8:00 p.m.
Scarlet Cord Teen Center
150 Main St.
Brookville PA
Contact: Erik Lane (Scarlet Cord) 814-849-7659 kcmpromo@yahoo.com
Fri., Oct. 26 at 9:00 p.m.
Common Ground Beautiful Savior Lutheran
5005 Northwest Blvd.
Plymouth MN 55442
Contact: Larry Deyoe 763-550-1000 ext. 106
Sat., Oct. 27 at 8:00 p.m.
Nebraska Church of God Retreat
Rock Haven Conv. & Retreat Center
76309 Road 415
Gothenburg NE 69138
Contact: Jason Johnson 402-486-3450
Sat., Nov. 10 at 7 p.m.
Restoration 2001
White Oak ISD Campus
200 S. White Oak Rd.
White Oak, TX 75693
Contact: Mark Dickson, Millennium Missions 903-297-7185
Fri., Nov. 16 at 7:00 p.m.
FCA Benefit Poplar Bluff High School
1300 Victory Lane
Poplar Bluff MO 63901
Contact: Jim Hoyt, Cheerful Heart Ministries 573-778-0955
Sat., Nov. 17 at 7:00 p.m.
First Baptist Church
801 US Hwy 50
East Union, MO 63084
Contact: Rich Permenter 636-583-2386 oshkosh@usmo.com
Sun., Dec. 30 at 7:30 p.m. and 9:30 p.m.
Toronto 2001
NE Area Wesleyan Youth Convention
Sheraton Hotel
123 Queen St.
West Toronto, Ont. Canada
Contact: Rob MacCallum
Thanks for keeping in touch with us! Please keep us in your prayers. We want to make this next CD our best one yet! There are some incredible truths and concepts shared in the lyrics. We didn't come up with the concepts or truths ourselves, so I'm not boasting about our words, but about the topics we're writing about. Please pray that my voice will rise (literally) to the challenges posed by the excellent singers I'm trying to imitate.
Apologetically,
J.
-- J. Jackson Lead Singer/Lyricist ApologetiX (That Christian Parody Band) www.apologetix.com j@apologetix.com
Psalm 51:17
The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit, a broken and a contrite heart ó These, O God, You will not despise.
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