Crowd shot masthead ApologetiX Logo Keith Haynie plays bassBill Hubauer plays lead guitarJ. Jackson sings leadJimmy Vegas Tanner plays drums
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03.18.24Get Multiple Downloads for One Donation
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03.16.24Influential Albums: 1402-1408
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03.09.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
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03.03.24New Single: '74 Solo Smashes
03.01.24A Serious Problem We're Trying to Address
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02.22.24Wayne Is Retiring, What's Next for Him and Us?
02.22.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
02.19.24This Week's News Bulletin
02.19.24New Single: Billy & The Beach
02.16.24Influential Albums: 1374-1380
02.16.24This Week's Bible Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.16.24Remembering ApX Friend Paul "Doc" Nigh (1956-2024)
02.16.24Clues for 2024 Single #4
02.10.24Influential Albums: 1367-1373
02.10.24Fans Making Plans to Attend Our Big Show September 1
02.10.24This Week's Bible Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.10.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
02.06.24This Week's News Bulletin
02.06.24New Single: '74 & '83
02.03.24ApX Lead Singer/Lyricist Shares His Testimony 36 Years Later
02.03.24Influential Albums: 1360-1366
02.03.24This Week's Bible Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.03.24Latest CD Added to iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, Etc.
02.02.24Clues for 2024 Single #3
01.29.24This Week's News Bulletin
01.26.24Influential Albums: 1353-1359
01.26.24How to Get the ApX Library, USBs, Multiple Downloads
01.26.24This Week's Bible-Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
01.26.24Flashback: J.'s Vision for ApologetiX in 2014
01.26.24J.'s Vision for ApologetiX in 2024
01.26.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
01.24.24Checking in With ApX Alum Drummer Fred Behanna
01.22.24This Week's News Bulletin
01.22.24New Single: '70s #1 Hits That Remade '60s Top 10 Hits
01.19.24Influential Albums: 1346-1352
01.19.24Encouraging Message from Longtime Fan in Oklahoma
01.19.24This Week's Bible-Reading & Rock Thru the Bible
01.15.24This Week's News Bulletin
01.12.24Influential Albums: 1339-1346
01.12.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
01.12.24Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
01.12.24New Testament Reading Started Wednesday
01.11.24New Worship Songs Available from ApX Alum Bill Rieger
01.08.24New Single: '81 & '83
01.08.24New CD BOGO Ends Sunday
01.08.24New USB Thumb Drives on the Way
01.05.24Clues for 2024 Single #1
01.05.24Influential Albums: 1332-1338
01.05.24Have You Heard About the Other Music City Miracle?
01.05.24This Week's Bible Reading & Rock Thru the Bible
12.29.23Influential Albums: 1325-1331
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12.28.232023: A Record-Breaking Record-Making Year
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12.26.23New Single: 1974 & 2008
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12.23.23Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
12.23.23ApologetiX Updated Christmas Playlist
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12.18.23New Samson CD Mailed to Fans, New Orders Sent as They Come In
12.16.23Influential Albums: 1311-1317
12.16.23Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
12.16.23New Story
12.16.23The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
12.11.23This Week's News Bulletin
12.11.23New Single: '83 & '84
12.11.23ApX Apparel: Order by Tuesday with Express Shipping
12.07.23New ApX Apparel and More: Order Soon for Christmas
12.07.23Influential Albums: 1304-1310
12.07.23Just Reword CD Added to iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, Etc.
12.07.23Clues for 2023 Single #25
12.04.23This Week's News Bulletin
12.02.23Influential Albums: 1297-1303
12.02.23This Week's Bible Reading & Rock Thru the Bible
12.02.23The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
12.02.23New Shirts & Other ApX Merch Coming Soon
12.02.23Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
11.28.23This Week's News Bulletin
11.28.23New Christmas Single: All '80s
11.24.23Influential Albums: 1290-1296

The Stories Behind the Songs on Our 19th Single
Sat., Nov. 13. 2021 4:01pm EST

J. Jackson, lead singer and lyricist for ApologetiX here again.

Here are the stories behind the songs on our 19th single of 2021:

PLAGUES

This parody is a prequel to "Pharaoh-noid," a Black Sabbath spoof we released in 2015. "Plagues" gives Moses' perspective on God's judgments upon Egypt as they are about to happen, whereas "Pharaoh-noid" gives Pharaoh's perspective once they do happen.

We released our first ZZ Top parody, "Smart Blest Man," in 1999, and our second, "Brush," in 2014, but I actually wrote the lyrics to those two at about the same time I wrote this one. I believe it was in the winter of 1996-97. In fact, astute ApologetiX afficianados will recognize the opening lines of "Plagues" from some ad-libbing I did at the end of "Smart Blest Man." At the time, I had no idea if we'd ever get a chance to record "Plagues," let alone that we'd still be making CDs over 20 years later.

In February 2021, I asked the other guys if they'd be up for recording it at some point in the year, and they all got their parts done in October. Everything went smoothly until November 1, the day before I recorded my vocals. I'd kept the lyrics the same for a quarter century but suddenly had to rewrite the entire second verse. Here's how that happened:

I was mapping out how I was going to sing the lyrics the next day when I realized, "This verse doesn't rhyme well enough with the original," especially once I looked up ZZ Top's lyrics, which are pretty raunchy, by the way. No wonder they buried the vocals in the mix! Anyway, God gave me some great new rhymes that sounded similar to theirs but said something totally different, so it was worth the last-minute effort.

SCHOOL OF OURS

I received a text from Jimmy on December 2, 2018, asking if I had any parody ideas for "Boulevard" by Jackson Browne. He and his wife, Eve, thought it would be a fun one to spoof. I didn't have any ideas at the time ... but I already knew I wanted to spoof "Running on Empty," and I got the idea for "Romans 1:20" the same month. Consequently, I knew "Boulevard" would have to wait a while, but I never forgot their suggestion.

I finally got the idea for "School of Ours" on August 20, 2021. My family was planning to meet Keith's family at Splash Lagoon in Erie PA for a mini-vacation that day, and the words started coming to me in the morning, just before we left, even though I was supposed to be working on "Psalm 19" and "Word Of." But it was another one of those times where God seemed to have turned on a spigot, so I needed to grab a bucket.

"School of Ours" is not meant to be an indictment against the entire education system. As I've mentioned before, I come from a family of teachers, and my oldest daughter is a teacher. Furthermore, I know some wonderful ApX fans who are teachers. Rather, this is a response to a certain anti-Christian attitude that is prevalent in far too many places where they see anything that goes against the status quo as "non-critical thinking."

To help myself focus while writing this, I thought about my second-oldest daughter, who now attends the same college I did. Let's just say that a lot has changed in the past 40 years at that school of ours.