Thirty Three and a Third

Barbara's Birthday

2012-02-10T13:48:00.000-08:00

It was the end of the 1960s and while many American teens were tuning in, turning on and dropping out, nineteen year old Barbara was marrying the charismatic, romantic, hilarious Irishman she had met in High School. In 1970 the Beatles broke up and Barbara had her first baby. She also started to wake to the reality that she had married a very dangerous, if frequently likeable, sociopath.

To call the 1970s hell for her would be putting it nicely. What had started as a controlling and volatile relationship devolved into full-on abuse. And this was no run-of-the-mill alcoholic rage, mind you. This man was a pathological liar and a criminal. He conned people of their money and then disappeared in the night. Barbara provided the most loving bubble of unconditional support and affection that her growing brood of baby boys could have possibly experienced. By the end of the decade the family lived in near-hiding on a farm in central Illinois. The Man was often gone and despite poverty, isolation and near constant fear this young mother managed to build hatfuls of wonderful memories for her boys. Through the love and support of converted hippies, artists and “straights” she had come to a life-changing faith in Jesus that colored in the outlines of faith handed to her by her parents. Jesus was real in their home. You could practically see him in the corner…. crying.

By the end of that decade life had become too dangerous. One day, while attending classes at a nearby college a couple of students tentatively approached the nearly 30 year old mother of four. “We’ve never done anything like this,” was close to what they said. “We were over here praying and felt compelled to come over here and tell you that you need to be rescued from some kind of situation and we’re here to do whatever we can to help.” Within days the young mother packed up as much of their meager belongings as she could, and with the help of strangers went into hiding from The Man. The family’s first secret home was a rescue mission in inner-city Aurora Illinois called Wayside Cross Ministries. Later they moved to a summer camp for underprivileged urban kids called Riverwoods. They stayed underground for months. When it was deemed safe by the police they emerged and moved to Barbara’s parents’ home in Lombard IL, a suburb just west of Chicago.

After a traumatic and sometimes frightening transition the next decade saw this young mother finish her college education, find new love with an incredible man one year her junior named Tom, and eventually add a step-son and one more baby to her quiver. The 80s were a decade of birth and re-birth as her tribe grew in number and stature. Tom adopted her boys and gave them his name. They were never wealthy by material standards, but the love that swarmed their lives was palpable. This woman is more than a survivor. She is now “grandma” to ten grandchildren and she invests her life helping, hosting, encouraging and loving others. When I called her today to wish her a happy birthday she hadn’t even remembered that it was her big day. She was in the midst of helping her father, my incredible “Grampa Holton” with his physical therapy.

When you’re little you assume your parents have been around forever. But now when I think of my mom enduring what she had to endure at such a young age I am floored. She is a rock star. She’s a hero. She’s super-human. She’s an interminable daisy that refuses to shrink back from an impending storm. Of course I also now realize that her survival would have been impossible without the faith she found at the age of about 23. That faith has formed me and I am eternally grateful. God blessed her with a strong will, a loving heart, a joyful spirit and now a castle full of blessings. Her legacy is just getting started. There are armies of people ready to carry her blessings forward.

Thanks mom. Happy birthday from your first baby.

-John

Czech Mission 2010

2010-08-10T18:16:00.000-07:00

Thompson Mission 2010
Prague and Janske Lazne;
The Czech Republic

“If you seek your gifts, you might never find them. If you seek to serve, however, your gifts will find you.”

My boss shared this quote at a recent staff devotion and it really resonated with me. Maybe it even haunted me. I knew immediately, of course, that it was true. But beneath the surface I felt there was something I had learned in those words, and something I had yet to learn.

We recently returned from our fourth trip to the Czech Republic. Our first was in 2003 when we were invited by missionaries Tom and Elaine Sampley to bring a team of musicians (who would also serve as English teachers for teens,) to the Family English Camp they had established a couple years before. We returned in 2005 and 2007, and our oldest son Jordan went with another team in 2006 without us as we spent that summer serving The Evangelical Alliance Mission (the organization the Sampleys are affiliated with) at their All Europe Conference, again, performing concerts and working with teens. Wesley came along to help with the little kids in 2007, so this year it was Trinity’s turn. She was specifically invited to help with the little ones.

There is a strong desire to improve conversational English amongst the Czech people. Already members of the European Union, most Czechs believe that English is an important tool for their future economic progress. There is also a deep spiritual hunger amongst the Czech people. Fifty years of communist rule left the Czech Republic in a fully post-Christian state. The Sampleys established Common Grounds, an English speaking coffeehouse ministry in a small town called Revnice about 20 minutes outside of Prague. They offered English classes, youth gatherings, mothers groups and social events to the community and were quickly embraced.

The Sampleys use the Bible and other Christian materials as their curriculum. This was no bait-and-switch trick, though. They were clear that their purpose was to build long term relationships with their neighbors, with the intention of bringing a fresh awareness and understanding of the Gospel. The Czechs were not only agreeable with this approach; they welcomed it. Unlike Americans, the Czech culture is so thoroughly post-Christian that they don’t feel threatened by the Bible at all. On our first trip one of the Czech people said something like “I am happy to use the Bible as an aid for learning English. It’s not very different from using Greek mythology, the Iliad or ancient fables to learn.”

Evangelism is a slow, personal and intensely organic process in the CZ. Slowly, though, several Czechs have become believers over the years. A few years back, Common Grounds became a full-blown church. Tom and Elaine have gladly handed the reigns over to a Czech pastor, Czech elders and other Czech leaders. They gather every Sunday for a worship service and Sunday school, and throughout the week for English classes. Their vibrant congregation currently numbers in the thirties; a veritable mega-church by Czech standards. Many in the community avail themselves of the classes without becoming part of the church, though.

Each summer the staff at Common Grounds loads up a bus and heads about three hours into the Krkonoce Mountains for a week-long Family English Camp. Through classes, games, activities, music and lots of open-ended conversations the Czechs improve their English skills, and build lasting relationships with the Common Grounds staff. Teams of support people from the US also show up. They serve as teachers, kids workers, teen-staff and guest speakers. Our job has been to lead camp-songs each evening, teach the teens each day, and be available to just hang out and talk. So that’s exactly what we do. Trinity expected to be working with the children, but was re-assigned to the teens once we got there.

This year our trip was especially meaningful for us, and from what we are told, for the local Czech church. It had been three years since our last visit. Many of the folks there already knew us and had fond memories of previous weeks of camp. While there were plenty of new faces to establish friendships with, there were many familiar and enthusiastic faces waiting for us when we arrived.

Supporting The Local Church

Possibly the most exciting thing for us this year was to see that several of the camp’s leaders had been students of ours in previous years! In 2003 Tereza and Ondre were teens in our classes. Ondre was in my small group and helped as a translator. Tereza bonded with Michelle straight off. Now, seven years later, Tereza and Ondre are married, Tereza serves as a Children’s ministry leader and Ondre is an Elder at Common Grounds and made his successful debut as Camp Director this year! There are not adequate words to describe the joy in seeing this young couple serving their Czech brethren so passionately.

Another real treat was to see Ana, also a former student, who at just twenty years old, now serves as a youth leader at Common Grounds and lead the entire teen program for camp. Her debut in this role was a resounding success. She prepared reading materials out of parables, Jesus’ teachings and the account of His death and resurrection. We helped the teens write songs, create scrapbook style posters and present skits, all based on themes like “The Wise and Foolish Builders,” “Zaccheus” and “The Ungrateful Servant.” As the week wound down we discussed the crucifixion (and why it was necessary) and resurrection (and what it means.) Even the quietest kids got involved.

Building On Relationships

We also took the teens hiking up Black Mountain, (definitely the most strenuous hike we have ever experienced,) and spent hours and hours talking, singing and just having fun. On the last evening of the week our friend, and bassist, Rob Ghosh shared his life story. We talked about fears, dreams, the meaning of faith, the nature of Christ and our own personal journeys. There is no need to sneak the Gospel into conversations, or to dumb it down to formulaic or simplistic trivialities. These folks know that we truly love them, and that we really believe that God is real and that His love matters more than anything on earth. They want to talk about these things.

Having A Good Time

Our “official” job is to be the band. We play fun “camp songs” each evening after dinner, and one full-length concert during the week. We were supposed to play a long show in Revnice the night before camp, but our flight was delayed and we missed it. We also help lead worship at the morning staff meetings, and Rob and Michelle joined in with the Common Grounds worship team at the worship service after camp. Up at the camp we also added an impromptu unplugged concert at the nearby mini-golf shack and beer garden. Music, especially Americana music (country, blues and classic rock and roll) is extremely popular. While the teens bond with us through our time with them in class, many others connect with us more through the music. Our impromptu show actually allowed us to connect with several locals who were not even a part of the camp. Shop owners, hotel workers and local cooks were all in attendance, and let us know about it throughout the rest of the week.

Your Gifts Will Find You

We have been making music together for nearly twenty years. We’ve promoted ourselves, practiced, recorded and done whatever else we could think of to improve our craft and find an audience. Along the way, however, we have also been youth ministers, worship leaders and passionate small group champions. Fortunately for us, we came up in a community (church and family) that consistently modeled the importance of serving. While we were trying to build a music career, we were busy serving in other ways. Now, twenty years on, we are beyond blessed to do this same kind of work overseas. Sure, we’re pretty good as musicians. We know lots of songs and can sing them with confidence and a certain amount of charisma. But we now live in Nashville, surrounded by world-class musicians and hungry, aspiring stars. We know there are many better than us. But the unique combination of experiences God has allowed us to have, along with the basic talents He has inspired us to cultivate, has brought us to this unique place. We could spend another twenty years trying to become music stars and likely end up frustrated and discouraged. But in seeking to serve God’s people through whichever doors He opens for us, we find a level of personal and creative fulfillment that we never could have imagined.

Whatever small contributions we have made to the work of Common Grounds in the Czech Republic, I guarantee that our work with them has affected us much more. There’s just nothing like being in the right place at the right time, for God to use you to build His kingdom. Our hearts have bonded with so many of those wonderful people. We’ve had a lot of fun playing some pretty big concerts over the years, but singing for a hundred Czech folks up in the mountains eclipses them all.

They’ve already invited us back to help in 2011. Please keep the staff and congregation of Common Grounds in your prayers, and please pray that if it is God’s will for us to return next summer the resources will be there for us. Our fund-raising came up a bit short this year, no doubt do to the strain so many people are under financially. We believe in the old truism, “Where God leads, He feeds.” Right now it seems impossible that we could return next year, but miracles happen and if it’s God’s will I’m sure it will become clear to us.

Thank you so much for your support!

-John (for the team!)

Thompson Czech Mission 2010 - Volume IV

2010-06-13T19:16:00.000-07:00

This summer my wife Michelle and I, along with a small band of players from our small group who have backed us up in The Wayside, and our daughter Trinity, will return to the Czech Republic for our fourth trip in support of Tom and Elaine Sampley and the rest of the small but thriving community of faith known as Common Grounds in Revnice, just outside of Prague. We have been asked to return to this place, and these people, that have become so important to us, and we can’t wait to get there.

After generations of Soviet control, there are a few things the Czech people desire deeply. One is to sharpen their conversational English skills. The CZ has joined the European Union and most Czechs believe strong English to be crucial to their success in this new era. But in addition to English, the Czechs have a real interest in all things spiritual. Decades of government enforced atheism has left a real spiritual vacuum and lingering interest in subjects like prayer, faith and the person of Jesus.

This is no bait-and-switch trickery, or “simple answers to life’s hard questions” kind of stuff. These are real conversations based on real relationships formed over time. Our job is to entertain the 200 or so campers who journey to this week-long immersive English camp in the mountains that border the Czech Republic, Germany and Poland. We play camp music and concerts, we offer instrument and voice lessons, and we make ourselves available for group chats, film discussions, one-on-one hang times, and whatever else comes up. One of the girls we taught on our first trip in 2003, has joined the community of faith there at Common Grounds, been baptized, and is now serving as a children’s ministry leader! Several of the teens have kept in touch with us over Facebook and email, often engaging in very intense discussions. Others are elsewhere on their spiritual journeys, but by all accounts they are really looking forward to our return (our last trip was in 2007.) We got this message from Tom:

“I hope it works for you guys to come. We have told some people it may be a possibility that you can come, and they got big smiles on their faces, said ‘yes!’”

Tom and Elaine specifically asked if Trinity could come to help with the little children. Both of her older brothers have had their turns to serve in this way (and both worked incredibly hard on their trips.) Trinity is eager to serve and already thinking about those awesome little kids.

This is definitely a major leap of faith for us. Each time we have been offered the chance to serve in this way, we have been dependant upon our friends and family for their support, but we have never needed it more than now. It might seem trite, but I promise you that when we say we covet your prayers, we mean it. Our first goal in this project is to find out who wants to be kept up to date on our progress and get updates from the field. We have created a special Facebook “event” that people can join to get updates. If you would like to be added to a new email list created especially for this project please email TheOnlyJJT@Gmail.com and write “CZ Subscribe” in the subject field. We would really love to know that you’re in our corner!

Please also pray that the financial support we need to raise will come in, and if you are able to contribute any amount it will be very meaningful. The goal for our team will be around $10,000. It’s a difficult time to raise this kind of support, and with financial repercussions from my illness four years ago still crimping us, and so many dollars rightly being directed towards the flood relief efforts here in Nashville, we are definitely stepping out in faith here.

If you would like to support us financially, please send your check or money order made out to:
The Bridge-A Joseph Co. (Tax Exempt ID# 62-1751979)
(Attn John and Michelle Thompson Mission)
PO Box 120424Nashville TN 37212-0424

All donations are tax-deductible and are sincerely appreciated. We absolutely can not do this on our own. Not even close. Thank you!

So, click “attending,” on the Facebook event, (http://tinyurl.com/25mkoad) drop us an email, or write us a letter. Let us know you’re out there praying for us and supporting us as we try to serve in this special way. Thank you very, very much!

-John, Michelle and Trinity Thompson

Dana Key, Long Distance Runner, Finishes His Race (A Personal Reflection)

2010-06-07T12:23:00.000-07:00

When I was nine years old, my grandmother heard from my mother that I was starting to discover some music that was, shall we say, less than God honoring. She went to a Christian bookstore and told the clerk of her concern. “My grandson is getting interested in some pretty negative music,” I imagine her saying. “I have this list from his mother… bands like Talking Heads, The Clash, Kansas and The Who. Do you have any Christian music that sounds like that?”

“Yes,” the clerk probably said. He then sold her two cassettes for me. One was Pat Terry Group’s Heaven Ain’t All There Is; a John Denver influenced country pop tape that made very little sense to me at the time. (I later discovered that Pat Terry had made some absolutely amazing music, but this was not the record for me.) The second tape was by a band called The DeGarmo and Key Band. It was titled Straight On and featured a black and white photo of the band, very dark, but clear enough to see that they had long hair. I put that tape into my top-loading cassette player first, and it literally changed my life.

At that point in time my life was a struggle. Living under the shadow of an abusive and criminal father, it was the faith of my terrified but strong mother that defined me. I got that tape, and the tape recorder just weeks before my mother had to take my three brothers and me and go into hiding to get away from my father. Countless hours, hundreds of C-cell batteries and at least three earphones later every note and nuance of that album was burned into my mind and heart. It wasn’t my mother’s Christian music; sweet folk-pop about how wonderful life was as a Christian. This was darker, more intense, and pulled no punches. The songs told me that yes, this life was a fight, and yes, the pain and fear was real. But it also told me that walls fall down, long races are eventually finished and that we could see it ALL in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus. My faith was sparked as a defiant fist against encroaching darkness; giving me the strength to endure what would be a truly hellish few years before the clouds cleared.

The singer on that tape, Dana Key, had a world-class rock and roll voice. It was smooth, soulful and soaked in Memphis blues. He sounded like a big brother who had travelled more than me, seen things he didn’t want to see, and could maybe see a bit farther down the road than me. He was telling me it was going to be hard, but that I could make it. I discovered a live D&K record a couple years later. It was a two-record set called No Turning Back; Live and I spent all of the food money I had been given for the youth retreat I was on to buy it. I came to my own crossroads that weekend, at the ripe old age of twelve, and Dana, though those records, was my counselor. My youth leaders and family members backed it all up, fed the fire as it were, and fully encouraged my growing obsession with music that tapped into the tension, power and drive of rock music to the brutal truth about this life, its struggles and the hope of Glory. D&K led me to Servant, Resurrection Band, Daniel Amos, The 77s, Mark Heard, Larry Norman, Randy Stonehill, Petra and many others. My road lay before me.

There was a D&K concert to be held somewhere in the Chicago area shortly after that retreat, but I couldn’t get anyone to take me. I heard on the Christian radio station, though, that the band was going to be signing autographs at the Yorktown Mall in Lombard, just about five miles from where I was living at my grandparents’ house. Unable to find a ride, I grabbed my Straight On tape and started walking. When I got there the line was so long I knew I wouldn’t get to meet them. I came up with a plan B. I guessed which door they might be coming through and waited there. It worked. About an hour later a van pulled up and let a group of people that HAD to be a rock band out. I asked if they were DeGarmo and Key and they said yes. I told them in rapid-speak just how much I loved their music and about the tape recorder and earphones and living in hiding for a summer and spending my food money on a record and more. Dana smiled at me, put his arm on my shoulder and said “Thanks man, that’s really kind of you to say.” He never took off his sunglasses. That was cool. I decided I needed some sunglasses right away. He signed my tape, along with Eddie DeGarmo, Tommy Cathy and Greg Morrow. I walked with them to the spot where they had to go to sign stuff and then let them go. I still have that cassette cover and keep it here in my office.

I decided that they were the coolest people other than Johnny Cash in the whole world, the best rock band since The Rolling Stones and that I needed to make it my life’s business to make sure everyone heard of them.

Seriously.

I started thinking incessantly about why they weren’t more famous; why my friends at school didn’t talk about them alongside ZZ Top, Def Leppard and Iron Maiden. I started thinking about what it would take to turn more people on to music from them and the other bands I was uncovering. I developed a plan, and in time, I pulled it off. Well, not the part about them supplanting Def Leppard atop the rock charts, but I was on a mission.

I eventually got to see DeGarmo and Key in concert. I nagged my youth pastor into driving me all the way to Indiana to see them play and it was worth it. I hollered out song requests at every break. I tried every song from Straight On, but they weren’t going that far back for the most part. At one point, off the mic, Dana said “You’re too young to know that old stuff,” to me. He talked to me! He had heard my shouts. Actually, I’m pretty sure everyone in the Holiday Star Amphitheater heard my shouts. I know one guy did because he told me to shut up. Finally, late in the set, maybe even as an encore, they played “Jericho.” I sang along until my throat was sore. I was elated.

As I grew up and got more interested in music that was experimental, edgy and dark, D&K became more pop oriented. I detached a bit from their mid 80s records, but always saw them play when I could. I loved to hear Dana preach about holiness; about the importance of reading and studying the Bible; about being a bold but loving witness to my friends. He was a priest to me. Along with Glenn Kaiser of Rez Band, Dana challenged me, emboldened me, and helped me imagine what my life could be in God’s hands. Even when the music left me, (I actually cried when I first saw and heard the Mission of Mercy record, but that's another story,) the ministry never did.

By the early 1990s I had made myself kind of a big fish in the very small pond of Christian alternative and rock music. My plan had been fully worked out. I managed a music store, concert venue, magazine and mail order company dedicated to connecting fans with these bands. It was working. When Dana released his first solo record his people called me and asked if I would interview him for my magazine. Of course I would! He stopped by my hotel room in downtown Nashville and we talked for an hour. I don’t remember anything off the top of my head of that conversation as it related to his record. I do, however, remember the passion that he had for ministry. It was his main focus, still… all those years later. He was serving as a pastor. We talked about Glenn Kaiser and Jesus People USA and putting our money where our mouths were. He challenged me, in person this time, to keep my heart right and my priorities straight. He challenged me to use True Tunes as a tool for ministry and to shine my light bright. I was about twenty-three then, but it was just as electrifying and meaningful as when I was twelve.

A few years ago I accepted a job as the Creative Director at EMI CMG Publishing. I was “recruited” by none other than Eddie DeGarmo. In the interest of full disclosure I showed Eddie my signed cassette and told him about my childhood obsession with D&K. He had read my book (Raised By Wolves) and knew a bit about it. He has become a mentor and friend as well as a fantastic boss to work with. In ’08 I talked him into getting the band back together to play at Cornerstone. They did, and it was incredible. I got to hang with Dana a bit that day as well. I was standing with him when Glenn Kaiser walked up and wrapped him up in what seemed like a long overdue embrace. Fellow foot-soldiers, long-distance runners that had not given up on their callings. I stood nearby and prayed again, silently and for about the hundredth time, that my life would have a fraction of the impact that theirs had. (The picture here is from that show, and was originally published at CorenrstoneFestival.com)

D&K sounded amazing that night. They seemed to really enjoy themselves too. At the end of the night as they got back on their bus Dana caught my eye and said “Thanks John. This was really fun.” It was like I was twelve again, or eight, or twenty-three. In fact, I would turn thirty-eight a few days later.

I am quite sure that there is no album I have listened to more in my life than Straight On. I know it’s personal, as all great music is, but it just never gets old to me. “Long Distance Runner,” I feel that now. When I was nine I was just anxious to get out of the blocks. As a teenager I just wanted to sprint. In my twenties I wanted to get as many people in the race with me as I could and lead them down the path. Now I realize that it’s my race to run, but there are others behind me watching for an example. I’ll turn forty in a few weeks, and for all of those years there have been people like my mother and adopted father, grandparents, church family and ministry partners running their races just ahead of me, encouraging me and warning me where the pot-holes or slippery spots were. There have also been people like Dana Key, who might not have had any idea I was running in their shadow. I was just thrilled to be in the same race as Dana, Eddie, Glenn, Charlie, Steve, Terry and so many others. We each have our own race, but this is definitely a team sport.

Last weekend D&K played a biker rally. I helped them get some new T-shirts designed and printed. They’re very biker friendly shirts, including small smiling skulls. Eddie asked if I thought the skulls were OK, or too much. (A silly question if you know me.. and he does.) In a reference to all the Harley shirts out there, and a classic D&K song we added the phrase “Born To Live – Destined To Win” to the logo. He dug it. It’s all about context. To some people skulls are scary or violent. To me they are a reminder that death is not the end and is nothing to be feared. I was out of town last week and haven’t yet heard how the biker show went, but I’m sure it was great. I hope Dana liked the shirts.

This morning the news spread through our office that Dana had passed away last night of a blood clot. Unbelievable. He was 56. He was as active as ever, leading a church in Memphis and moonlighting as a rock star very rarely. I am heartbroken today. I guess we run and run, never knowing exactly when we cross the finish line.

Dana has finished his race now. He kept his eyes on the goal and he won the race. He came to run, that’s why he entered. His passing is a horrible loss for those of us behind him on the track, not to mention his friends, family and those he pastored. But he’s just doing what he has always done; leading the way.

Memorial Services for Dana Key will be held at 1pm on Thursday, June 10th at Woodland Hills. Woodland Hills is located at 10000 Woodland Hills Drive in Cordova, TN. If you have any questions, you can contact The Love of Christ Church where Dana was Senior Pastor, 901-737-8802. Pray for the Key family and our church. God bless you all!

(If you haven’t heard DeGarmo and Key check out their MySpace page for some samples http://www.myspace.com/thedegarmoandkeyband. Their first four albums, This Time Through, Stella This Ain’t Hollywood, Straight On, and No Turning Back; Live are my favorites, but arena rock fans will love D&K, Streetlight and Rock Solid; Live. Pop fans will love Mission of Mercy, Communication, Commander Sozo and Streetlight. There’s some real gems on their later records too. Most of it is available at iTunes, but for some reason Straight On is not. Believe me, I'll be looking into that. It will be up and available if I have any way to make that happen.)

Other Coverage Of Dana's Life and Passing:

Christianity Today

HM Magazine's Doug Van Pelt

My How Things Have Changed...

2010-01-09T07:59:00.000-08:00

My wife, Michelle, and I have a band. Well, actually, we are a band. We call it The Wayside and we have been making music together, with other friends, for over twenty years. We are blessed with a wide range of musically amazing friends who come alongside us to make records, perform concerts and lead worship. This week we have unveiled our first full-length studio album since our 2000 release Farm. Ten years!

A lot has changed in ten years…

Though a few of our records have come out through record labels, they have been small labels. We have always been, essentially, an independent band. When our first full length project, Play, Dreams and Imitation, came out in 1993 I happened to be running a store, mail-order company and magazine that got the news out to about 50,000 people. A label in Nashville released it in partnership with my own indie label (Etcetera Records) and promoted it to radio where we actually got some airplay. That album was recorded in a beautiful, luxurious studio in the Chicago suburbs for what I believe was a theoretical $80,000 budget. It took us two years to complete. Right as we finished mixing the studio purchased a new machine that would, amazingly, allow us to have a CD version of our album on the spot, for only $95 per disc! Amazing.

The “partner” label went under before we got paid for the 10,000 or so albums that sold. Very expensive lessons were learned.

Most of the members of that version of The Wayside then quit. It was such a frustrating experience that I’m surprised I didn’t quit. I always say that if Michelle wasn’t married to me I’m sure she would have been long gone. But one way or another, by 1995 the two of us were the only ones left. About five years later we returned with an entirely new line-up and an album recorded in a basement studio in a matter of days, for a total budget of under $5000. That record, Farm, was released by us, and then later licensed by an indie label I was working with. It got excellent reviews, and we were proud of it. Though the scale was smaller, the drill was the same; we printed a thousand CDs for ourselves and had a label take it to retail. Sales were lower, but because the costs had gone down so radically we recouped our recording budget within three months of release. Most of it was recouped at the first show! The key was that instead of $200 per hour, that little, but respectable, basement ADAT studio cost about $35 per hour. Instead of taking two years we did most of it live in the studio.

Now, ten years later, everything is different. We were able to create an eleven song album that is of remarkably higher quality, with musicians who are absolutely best-in-class, and to spend only slightly more than we did for Farm. Part of that, certainly, is because we’re in Nashville now. The creative process (thanks to co-producer, engineer, genius Stephen Leiweke and the amazing band we assembled) was amazing. After mixing and mastering we now sit with the best record we have ever made. The process of “releasing” it, however, is revealing exactly how much has changed about how we communicate over the last ten years.

I remember my old boss Phil Taschetta once, in reference to an idea I had and wanted to try, to “run it up the flagpole and see who salutes.” I love that mental picture. You just put your idea up for all to see, and the ones who click with it, who are excited about it, respond.

But what if your flagpole is just one of ten thousand flagpoles all sticking out of the same acre of land? I can run my little record up there all day long, but people can’t see it past the thousands of other records flying up on everyone else’s pole. The egalitarianism of digital technology has blessed us with the ability to create something excellent for a fraction of the old costs, but it has also done that for millions of other artists. Now, sure, I’m happy for them all, but six million “artists” on MySpace? What?! Uh-oh.

Maybe it’s not about flagpoles anymore.

I had a great flagpole back in the 90s with True Tunes. An estimated 70,000 people saw each issue of our magazine. Thousands of customers came through the doors each month. Hundreds showed up each weekend for concerts in our club. It was a great flagpole. Phil was right.

But this is no longer a flagpole environment. It’s now about two-way conversations. I used to have a mostly one-sided "conversation" with thousands of people. Now, again due to technology, I can have thousands of two-way conversations, if I have the time. So, the “release” of Spiritual Songs by The Wayside is really about sparking as many conversations as I possibly can. The challenge, is that between emails, texts, Facebook, MySpace, phone calls and old fashioned verbal conversations, where do I start?

Honestly, it’s overwhelming, but exciting. For the last ten days I have spent every available minute when I have not been at work, learning all of the Web 2.5 ways to promote a band. It’s been tiring but also really fun to connect with people I haven’t connected with in a long, long time. I’m nowhere near finished, either. In the first four days our little record has seen 2,000 “spins.” That’s exciting. During the same time period we have sold about twenty albums. That’s interesting. There’s nothing to panic about, though. The magic of this new communication reality is that IF this project is really worthy, and IF I can start the conversation with a couple thousand people, this new technology allows those people to tell their friends about it too.

So, we’re not running anything up many flagpoles. Instead, we’re handing out little flags that can, at least theoretically, reproduce indefinitely. Cool.

So, here I am, after twenty years in the music business, learning what it really means to “make it work” as an indie artist all over again. I’m happy for the opportunity as I’m sure it will make me that much better at my “day job” in music publishing, and I’m excited to see how this record might spread if it means as much to others as it does to us. It's important to us. It represents a major part of who we are. Though we love, absolutely LOVE playing in clubs and bars and making ourselves available to start conversations with folks that we know Jesus would have been talking to, we have had a special calling as worship leaders since before we were even married. Somehow we never got around to making a record that captured that essence. This one does. So, apart from sales and marketing, we really love this.

Watch this space in the coming weeks for first-hand reports on how one goes about handing out these little flags. If anyone has any ideas I’m all ears!

Hear the album (and download it if you want) HERE

Read the full new bio and see the new pics HERE

Follow The Wayside on Twitter HERE

Follow me on Twitter HERE

Find The Wayside on Facebook HERE

Thirty Three Podcast

2009-06-08T09:26:00.001-07:00

Folk,

I would like to invite you to check out the brand new Thirty Three and a Third radio show podcast. The debut episode is now available to stream, or better yet, to subscribe to. Go to www.VideoRocket.com/thirtythree to hear a rare, in-studio interview with Phil Keaggy and Randy Stonehill, along with clips of songs from throughout their three decade plus friendship, and a listen to one full track from their brand new Mystery Highway lp. This is just part one, by the way, in which the two hilariously reminisce about their storied friendship. In the next installments they will talk in detail about Mystery Highway and you'll hear a LOT of this amazing new album, and maybe some surprises as well.

By the way, it seems a little quiet on my computer. Make sure to TURN IT UP!

Thirty Three and a Third is all about taking time to listen and enjoy classic albums and brand new releases, and in-depth conversations with amazing artists. This blog will be getting much more active as well, so spread the word!
Oh, and check out www.ChristianMusicToday.com for my interview with Phil and Randy launching June 9th. (There is also a review of Mystery Highway in the current issue of Christianity Today.)

Peace
-JJT

John J Thompson Commentary Featured on ChristianMusicToday.com

2009-05-15T08:29:00.000-07:00

Please check out the Christian Music Today commentary "Secular or Sacred?" by John J Thompson.

Stanger In A Strange Land

2008-02-28T07:37:00.000-08:00

Larry Norman wrecked me. When I was just a toddler or so I heard my mother singing his songs “Sweet Sweet Song of Salvation” and “I Am a Servant.” I remember being vaguely freaked out well before my seventh birthday when the apocalyptic lyrics of “I Wish We’d All Been Ready” settled in my young, troubled ears. Other than the dark tinged fear that I might be left in a field some day when everyone else around me disappeared to be with Jesus, my early exposure to Norman’s songs were the mellow ones; the nice ones.

But sometime around the age of thirteen I discovered an underground world of edgy rock and alternative music being made by Christians. I was enthralled by the music of Resurrection Band, DeGarmo and Key, The 77s, Daniel Amos and Servant. One night, while listening to a barely tuned in radio station broadcasting a live concert by Swedish rockers Jerusalem and Canadian metal band Daniel Band, I was re-introduced to Larry Norman’s wiry and oddly compelling music. He was on stage somewhere near Chicago, those heavier bands opening for him, and I immediately wished that I was at that show. My aunt Marnie got me a Larry Norman record shortly thereafter. It was called “In Another Land” and as I let the needle scrape the wax that’s exactly where I was; another land.

In my world of alternative Christian music Larry was the odd ringleader. I read every article I could find, joined the fan club and started gathering his records wherever I could find them. I obsessed over the songs; the lyrics and even the packaging. I reveled in the secret codes and embedded messages. When he sang “The marionette grabbed my leg and said exactly eighty-nine words to me. Count ‘em,” I did. I counted them over and over. There were NINETY NINE words in that dream. What did it all mean?

In his music, and his street life, Larry was the outsider. He was the hippie in the new-wave 1980s. He was the Jesus Freak on the corner of Hollywood and Vine. He was the believer who seemed ready to take Jesus at his word when it came to the poor, the homeless and the forgotten. He was a student of Rock and Roll, often quoting the best licks and tricks of bands like The Rolling Stones, The Beatles and Neil Young and Crazy Horse. His records sounded like real-for-live rock, not watered down Christianized elevator music. Beyond it all, he seemed very human. He was paranoid; a constant victim of anti-Christian and anti-rock forces. He was misunderstood and neglected. He was a pebble in the shoe of the Church and the boot of Rock.

I wanted to be just like him.

Seriously… I wanted to be so radical in my faith that heathens and Pharisees both wanted to take me out. I wanted to write songs so deep and oblique that listeners would listen a thousand times and still wonder what I was talking about. I wanted to lay my wounds, fears and faith right out there in the light for everyone to experience. I wanted to get sideways glances on the street. I wanted people to misunderstand me. I wanted to be a legend.

Larry, along with the other bands and solo artists I had plugged into, led me down a rabbit hole into a world of faith and art that I would choose never to leave. Shortly thereafter I discovered U2 (and found out they were Larry fans too.) I followed Larry’s footprints to artists like Randy Stonehill, Mark Heard and Tom Howard. I started a band, learning Larry’s songs “Watch What You’re Doing” and “Be Careful What You Sign” before I was legal to drive. I wrote songs that were direct rip-offs of Larry’s style. I even got a job at a Christian bookstore so I could be around the music all day. I was gone.

Then I actually met him.

It’s a dangerous thing meeting your heroes. For the most part I would not recommend it. They rarely live up to our imaginations. By the time I got to meet Larry I was 19. It was Cornerstone ’89 and I was launching a magazine, mail-order company and record store devoted to nothing but the music I was baptized into. I called the place True Tunes, in no small way influenced by Larry’s concept project The Tune I had recently discovered. I wanted to sell Larry’s extremely hard to find music through my business. I approached him about it, and he forwarded me to his manager. I thanked him and then walked over to an older gentleman working Larry’s table. I told him of my undying fan-ness and asked him about some of the codes I thought I had figured out. “There’s one guy I know of that’s figured out more of that stuff than you have, kid,” Joe Norman (Larry’s father) told me. “And that guy’s sitting in jail in California.” I was creeped out and honored. Larry’s dad was his manager. He told me about his basement, a veritable treasure trove of obscure Norman rarities. I really wanted to move into that basement.

But Larry had another manager too. This guy told me he would sell me Larry’s tapes and LPs, but there was a catch; I had to buy 36 pairs of Larry Norman / Solid Rock running shorts too! Yes, running shorts. Larry autographed every pair. I still can’t believe I went along with that. I ended up donating most of the shorts to a local homeless shelter. But I made sure True Tunes had the best selection of Larry Norman music in the world. Larry was a bit aloof.

The following year Larry showed up at Cornerstone even though he wasn’t booked to play. He actually started selling his records in my True Tunes booth when I was out catching a band’s set. He was drawing the album covers with a Sharpie. I’ll admit, I was irritated.

As I got closer it became clear that Larry was, as I had previously refused to believe, a messed up human being just like me. He struggled in his interpersonal relationships and often seemed to hurt the people he wanted most to help. He had been married, and divorced twice. He seemed to get facts mixed up sometimes. He could be extremely funny one moment, and capricious the next. He was weird, but his records still spoke to me. Some people really disliked him, still smarting from bad business dealings with the iconoclast decades before. For some reason I never lost my soft spot for him. I was growing up around off-beat Christians who were artists and most of them were a bit ‘off.” I felt right at home.

As I developed as a writer and aspiring Christian Music Historian I really wanted to do a massive tell-all interview with Larry. I wanted him to have an unedited shot to explain away all the rumors. I wanted to get to the bottom of his feud with Randy Stonehill and help to bring peace there. I asked Larry several times for that interview and he always said “Sure,” but never showed up.

In 2000, back at the Cornerstone Festival where I had first met him more than a decade earlier, Larry walked into the Hotel lobby as I was checking in. We chatted for a bit and then he said “John. That interview… let’s do it. Today.” I grabbed my friend Jeremy (the engineer) and we met Larry in his darkened hotel room where we talked, and talked, and talked. The interview lasted for hours, and the conversation for weeks and months. Something had changed in Larry. It seemed he wanted out from under the weight of his own legend. He admitted to non-specific failures and expressed his deep desire to be forgiven by all those he had wounded. It was a day I will never forget.

When my book came out Larry called me and told me how much he appreciated it. He gave me a glowing endorsement and review to his fans. It meant so much to me. He called me several times, always late at night. He talked to me about writing a biography on his life.

A couple years later I was approached by Christian Musician Magazine to do the first joint interview with Larry and Randy in some twenty-one years. Both men were ready to open up as they had recently reconnected via telephone. The interview was interesting, to be sure. Larry faxed me pages upon pages of type-written quotes. He actually emailed me once to tell me he was faxing me right then. Wild stuff. I am as proud of that story as anything I have ever written.

Then there was the concert. Cornerstone wanted Larry to play the Mainstage with a full band. He did not have a full band, so I volunteered my band, The Wayside, to back him up. Somehow I talked him into it. The show was unbelievable. It was unbearably hot, “God’s Sauna” as Larry put it, and he was struggling. He had already been struggling with his heart ailments. But the band was tight and the crowd loved it. There I was, on stage with my band, my good friend Dan Michaels on sax and a few extras Larry had picked up on the road. I was Larry’s guitar player. He used my acoustic guitar to play “Song for a Small Circle of Friends.” I couldn’t believe what I was experiencing. Larry sounded great, and looked like he was having the time of his life. From what I understand, that was Larry’s last full band, full length set in the US. Larry asked if The Wayside would tour with him. “Maybe just five or ten dates” he suggested. I told him I’d think about it, but it was doubtful I could afford the time off. We talked about just doing a few shows around Chicago. Those shows never happened.

I’ve always had a high threshold for high maintenance artist types. Maybe because I hope to receive that same amount of Grace from others. What I do know is that Larry taught me a lot about God; namely that God uses the most sullied losers to accomplish His will in the world. Larry had many faults, and yet God used him in an historic way. He was a flawed vessel, a true clay pot. You could see his cracks a mile away. But despite all that, and maybe because of it, God used him.

I still believe his Big Three albums (Only Visiting This Planet, So Long Ago the Garden and In Another Land) rank as some of the most amazing music ever recorded. His indie record Something New under the Son is as raw and real and tripped out as anything I’ve ever heard. His earliest underground projects Bootleg and Street Level serve as fascinating time capsules back to the Jesus Movement of the late sixties. He never got the Rick Rubin / Johnny Cash treatment he deserved, but his music definitely stands the test of time. If you haven’t heard it you need to.

Thank you Lord for Larry Norman.

-JJT