David Bruce Murray

2006 Singing News Fan Award Ballot

The March 2006 issue of Singing News comes to subscribers with the "Official Nominating Ballot" for the 36th Annual Singing News Fan Awards bound between pages 50 and 51.

Here's who is getting my votes this year:
Female Singer: Lauren Talley
Male Singer: Arthur Rice
Alto: Susan Jackson
Soprano: Charlotte Ritchie
Album: Anything But Ordinary, Everything But Typical (Dove Brothers)
Song: "He Saw It All" (Booth Brothers)
Horizon Individual: Jeremy Lile (Crystal River Quartet)
Horizon Group: Crystal River
Tenor: John Rulapaugh
Lead: Arthur Rice
Baritone: Mark Trammell
Bass: David Hester
Band: Crabb Family
Songwriter: Joel Lindsey
Traditional Quartet: Dove Brothers
Mixed Quartet: Perrys
Trio: Mark Trammell Trio
Soloist: Mark Lowry
Young Artist: Scott Inman
Zip Code: 28018...OK, that was a joke...but it's on the form as if it's a category.

I'm also voting for:
Musician: Doug Riley
Pianist: Anthony Burger

I don't know if other fans will do what I'm doing on those last two categories or not, but I wouldn't be surprised at all if they did. Call it a "sympathy vote" or whatever you want, but I think a Fan Award given posthumously would be a tremendous way to honor the accomplishments of these two men. If these awards were based on outstanding accomplishments over the past year rather than being fan favorites, I might vote differently, but I think these are the two guys fans are going to be remembering most fondly for the next little while.

I'm not voting in the large or medium market DJ categories since I don't get a chance to hear any of them, but I'm voting in the small market for the one guy I hear with any regularity. By the way, if you're keeping score, the categories for Syndicated Radio Show and Video are GONE. One new category this year is for Artist Website. My votes in these categories go to:
Artist Website: www.hopescall.com
Small Market DJ: James Metcalf, WJFJ, Columbus, NC
Posted on Feb 25, 2006 - 08:30 PM | [0] Comments | Southern Gospel Music | Permalink

Movie Review: The Second Chance

RATING: 3 1/2 Stars

The Second Chance stars Michael W. Smith in his first feature film role. Steve Taylor is also taking his first turn (after many years of anticipation) as the director and co-writer of a major motion picture. Jeff Obafemi Carr is Smith's co-star in this movie. He's a newcomer as well.

Smith's character is Ethan Jenkins, a former rock star and drug addict who is now a prodigal returned home. As the movie opens, Jenkins is being groomed to replace his father as head of a mega-church called "The Rock." Carr plays Jake Sanders, a black preacher leading an inner city church whose property and leaders are financed as an outreach project of The Rock. Jenkins and Sanders are thrown together after the church's board members grow restless with both men for failing to toe the line.

I'm always worried about "Christian Movies." Much like some Christian music CDs, Christian movies tend to be overly hyped regardless of quality and mostly made by amateurs. There have been a few exceptions like The Apostle, The Passion Of Christ, and Luther, but the Christian marketplace has had more than it's share of dogs...partly because the money hasn't been there to make good quality films in the past, but moreso because these films lack compelling plots.

The Second Chance is a step in the right direction. There's background on the key characters and we see how they change in relation to each other over the course of the film. I liked the fact that the even the villain seemed to believe his own motivations were in the best interest of the kingdom of God. That was refreshing. I also thought it was great that we were left hanging on some issues of the story.

Was the acting that great? No, not particularly. Smith did better than I expected, but it's clear he isn't a seasoned actor. He does pretty good conveying emotions, but his biggest fault is that he tends to rush his lines. Carr is the better actor of the two, but you can also sense he's new at this. Taylor's directing is good overall, but the camera work is shaky at times (perhaps intentionally), sometimes zooming in way too close for no particular stylistic reason. In general, the look of the film wasn't all that compelling or consistent. Taylor got some moving performances out of the supporting cast, though. I think he has really excelled in this area.

Smith's score is fairly effective, but other musical cues felt uneven. For example, there's a church choir that can't sing on key or with any decent rhythm until Smith sits down at the piano, and suddenly they sound like Nashville's finest studio singers (probably because they are).

I believe The Second Chance succeeds where other Christian movies have failed due to the quality of Taylor's story. If a character initially seems to be there merely for comic relief or as a victim who needs saving, you may be surprised at how that character is used later in the movie. It's also a tribute to the writers that each character in the film has an interesting back story and evident flaws. Jenkins has his presumptions, for example, while Sanders is arrogant and sometimes given to swearing. In other words, the characters have been fleshed out with believeable and realistic motivations.

That being said, one aspect of the film that seems to fly in the face of the movie's message is one of the ways it is being promoted. If you take fifty people to see the film, you can win an appearance by Michael W. Smith at your own church...but you must prove you took fifty people and you aren't allowed to publicize that he's coming if you win. There's a big drawing at the movie's official website. Now in contrast, the "bad guy" in the film is the big church acting at the expense of the hurting people who need the individual, personal touch. In the real world of marketing by Provident Films, we ain't gonna send Michael W. Smith out to your church for free unless you pay to bring at least fifty people to see our film.

My cynicism aside, one fan described the film as a wake up call to the church rather than an evangelistic film. That's an accurate description, and I think that's another reason this movie succeeds. When you have a movie that focuses on extended expostions about becoming a Christian, you generally have a poor movie. Why? Because the film claims to be telling a story about this or that, but is in reality just an extended presentation of the plan of salvation with a bit of a story tacked on. Most Christian movies come across as having all the answers, but The Second Chance isn't presumptous. For all of the areas where it could have been improved, The Second Chance has successfully avoided that stigma, and for that I'm grateful.
Posted on Feb 23, 2006 - 12:57 AM | [0] Comments | Misc | Permalink

CD Alert: Blur The Lines (Crabb Family)

I've just heard the tracks for the upcoming release by the Crabb Family titled Blur The Lines. It's due to release on March 28. Like the Brian Free release I blogged about last week, I heard these songs over an internet connection.

This recording certainly lives up to its name. It draws from black gospel, praise music, and contemporary Christian pop music sources. There's also a couple of hymns. The first track on the recording, "Friend Of God," is repeated at the end of the recording in Spanish ("Amigo De Dios"). Counting the repeated track, there are 13 songs in all.

None of the songs on Blur The Lines are original tracks, but that doesn't matter. The Crabb Family gives each song a unique Crabb touch, which is what I wish all artists would do when they do re-makes. The music tracks are mostly in the vein of the original versions of these songs (with the hymns being exceptions, of course), but the Crabbs make each track their own vocally.

Look for a full length review of this CD once I get a copy. My primal reaction is that it's:
A) Very good and
B) Sure to tick off a lot of Southern Gospel fans.
Posted on Feb 13, 2006 - 10:20 PM | [2] Comments | Southern Gospel Music | Permalink

1940 Stamps-Baxter Groups

A friend of mine who frequently checks out flea markets and yard sales recently found a booklet showing photos of Stamps-Baxter groups from 1940. He gave it to me, so I thought I'd share it with you.

You will recognize some of these names if you study Southern Gospel history.

Click HERE to view the booklet.
Posted on Feb 07, 2006 - 09:00 PM | [1] Comments | Southern Gospel Music | Permalink

Two degrees of seperation from the GVB

Click HERE and take a listen.

That's me playing a Kawai baby grand at my church as Carl Cartee sings "Great Is Thy Faithfulness." I recorded a CD of myself and various friends a few years ago around the same time I was editing a concert video for Carl. He was gracious enough to play guitar on a couple of songs for me. Then he sang this old hymn, and did an excellent job as you can hear. I tried my best to do what a good accompanist ought to do...stay out of the singer's way.

Now, fast forward to 2006. When you break open the latest Gaither Vocal Band CD, you'll see Carl's name listed as a co-writer of the song "Glorious Impossible." He recorded the song last year on a CD by the same title for the Spring Hill Worship label. He also joined the Spring Hill Worship roster of recording artists not long ago, and has a new CD coming out March 28 May 23 titled Unfailing.
Posted on Feb 04, 2006 - 12:38 AM | [2] Comments | Personal | Permalink

Michael English: “I Bowed On My Knees And Cried Holy”

DS writes:
Hello. I am looking for a song I heard years ago from the Singing Americans I think the title was ..... I Get Down on My Knees and Cry HOLY. It is a beautiful song and I would really love to get it. This may sound morbid but my husband and I would both like this played at our funerals. If you know of where I could find this please let me know.

I get these types of questions from time to time, so I thought I'd provide the answer here on my blog. Interestingly enough, I watched a video earlier today that had this very song on it, sung by the lead singer who recorded it with the Singing Americans.

I'll answer your specific question first before I mention the video title, though. The Singing Americans version of this song was first released on a project titled Live And Alive on the Riversong label. The release date was 1984, and it has been out of print for a long time. Your best bet is to check auction listings at eBay or with a dealer who stocks out of print Gospel LPs and cassettes.

The lead singer who recorded "I Bowed On My Knees And Cried Holy" (which is the proper title) with the Singing Americans was Michael English. See his entire discography by clicking HERE. English has recorded six different versions of the song over the years, not counting video versions. Some of these can still be purchased...click the titles with links to order them from Christian Book Distributors.

1. With the Happy Goodmans - Chosen
2. With the Singing Americans - Live And Alive
3. With the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir - Live...Again
4. With the Gaither Vocal Band - Southern Classics (The same version is also on Best Of The Gaither Vocal Band, which released in 2004.)
5. As a soloist - Gospel
6. As a soloist on a rare cassette single. This was offered free by mail to people who purchased his full length self-titled solo recording Michael English. This was in 1991.

There is also a recording releasing on 2/22/2006 called In Christ Alone: Greatest Hits that will include "I Bowed On My Knees And Cried Holy." I suspect the version on this CD will be the same as the version on Gospel.

Video versions of "I Bowed On My Knees And Cried Holy" are numerous. The latest release to feature Michael English singing his signature song is just days old at the time of this writing. It's titled Live From Toronto, and features English backed by the current Gaither Vocal Band. Click the title, or look for it at your local Christian bookstore under Gaither Homecoming videos. Live From Toronto is also available as a CD.

IMAGE SOURCE: Live From Toronto screen capture
Posted on Feb 03, 2006 - 12:14 AM | [3] Comments | Southern Gospel Music | Permalink

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