Family

State Of Independence – Jon and Vangelis

Rick France 1987, 1988, 1991, 1993, 2004, Electronic, Prog Rock , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
State Of Independence
Jon and Vangelis

In 1991 my daughters, Katie and Melissa, were taking dance at Rose Barile’s Alpharetta Dance Theatre (ADT). That year for the Senior Company, which my daughters were too young for at the time, Rose had choreographed a liturgical dance to the song “State Of Independence” which I had the pleasure of watching on several occasions. Being a huge fan of Yes since the album Fragile, I recognized Jon Anderson’s voice right off the bat. Initially I thought it was from a Yes album that I might have missed, but soon discovered it was from a Jon and Vangelis album entitled The Friends of Mr Cairo. This particular song along with Rose’s dance became a staple in my life in more ways than one. As a result this song has multiple storylines as well as timelines in my life but in order to get the full story we must step back in time a bit to the time where it all began with a close family friend, Jennifer Williams, who was also dancing at ADT.

In 1987, before Kathy and I got married, I was doing a weekly Bible Study at her house with the teens from Antioch Christian Church where Kathy attended. I was in the band ForeSight and my hair was halfway down my back and permed like most any 80’s hair band guitarist of the day. My hair was as wide as my shoulders and it was BIG! I was in my second year of discipleship with Jack Vandiver and he use to crack this joke all the time about people having an attitude of “Turn or Burn, Try or Fry, Shake or Bake” that I thought was quite funny. So I had this car tag airbrushed that had a Bible in the upper left corner and flames in the lower right corner with the words “Turn or Burn”. I’m sure everyone doesn’t see the humor that I saw in this or even see any good coming from it, but one time I pulled over on I 85 to help this girl who had a flat and she told me that the only reason she let me help her was because of this tag.

Anyways, Kathy was already friends with the Williams family which consisted of Brenda and her three children Jennifer, Ben and Lindsey but the first one I met was Jen, a young teen at the time that Kathy had invited to the Bible Study. I remember when she came in she had quite an attitude and opinion already formed regarding me. She obviously did not want to be there and beyond huffing and puffing at pretty much everything I said, she did not participate in the discussion and was quick to leave as soon as the opportunity arose. Later, Kathy informed me that she was quite offended by my car tag and as a result had no interest in anything I had to say. I never told Jen this before, but I actually removed that tag because of her. I never intended to offend her or anyone else and I was not going to let a car tag cause anyone to stay away from Christ. Needless to say, I never saw her again at the Bible Study but our lives would connect again a couple of years later.

Kathy and I were married on February 13, 1988, and we still live in the same house of that Bible Study. Right before we got married, my hairdresser bride-to-be talked me into cutting my hair which endeared her to my mom for life. We were married at Promised Land Bible Church (PLBC) where I soon became the Youth Pastor and began working with the teens of LightForce. I’m not sure exactly what year the Williams family became a part of PLBC, but Ben was one of the teens that we built the youth group on. However, my relationship with Ben is a story for another day.

By 1991, Jen had become a pretty important part of our lives both at ADT where Jen, in my opinion, was an accomplished ballerina as well as at PLBC. While she did not regularly attend LightForce, most likely due to her being a Junior in High School and most the teens were Ben’s age and therefore just kids, she did attend PLBC regularly and was involved in many special events we did. One of my favorite things she did with us, which I still have on VHS, was our Youth Sunday on May 19, 1991. We reenacted an Isaac Air Freight skit named “Let’s Trade Your Salvation” and Jen played the part of Carol Barrel. The host of the show, Monty Lucifer (played by Philip Gard), would try to get Bernadette Weiser (played by Amanda Ayers) to trade her little bag of Salvation (which contained a Bible) for various prizes. At one point Jen stood beside a crock pot, in first position of course, and pointed to it while Jay Tatellyaboutit (played by Lee Stewart) said, “This is no ordinary crock pot Monty, but a Spiegel crock pot. If you want to get crocked tonight this is the pot for you. That’s Spiegel, Chicago 666, Illinois.” In hindsight, probably not the best line for a Sunday morning. Jen, or rather Carol Barrel, later modeled a mink coat for Bernadette (that wasn’t mink) while standing in third position – because you can take the ballerina out of the ballet but you can’t take the ballet out of the ballerina.

Kathy and I had season tickets to the Atlanta Ballet back then, but I mainly went to hear the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra perform. I never really appreciated ballet until we started going to watch Jen perform with ADT. She was a beautiful dancer and it was watching her perform that caught my attention and developed my appreciation for ballet and dance. Watching Jen and the work she put into it; the grace in which she danced, it was like a light came on in me. I finally saw the beauty and the art of dance all come together in her. The first time I saw her and the Senior Company perform “State Of Independence”, well that was all it took for me to be hooked once and for all. Those flowing white dresses and the precision of those young ladies as they interpreted that song was one of the most beautiful, artistic dances I have ever witnessed. Years later when I began to dream and work on my own Christmas production of “The Star”, that dance influenced the vision I had for the angels and the white flowing dresses that we used for the angels. Just as in the dance that Jen was a part of, the angels would hold the hem of their skirts and spread them out to form their wings as they would dance in “The Star”.

As with all things in life, the winds of change come and go. In 1993 this young lady spread her own wings and moved to New York City where she still lives today. The rest of her family moved to Oklahoma that same year. We remained in touch and from time to time they would come home to visit. I know it was mainly because their dad still lives here, but I like to think that they came to see us too.

By 2004, Ben was living in Tennessee, Jen was still in New York and Brenda and Lindsey were in Oklahoma, but that summer they all came to Hickory Flat at the same time for a little reunion that we got to be a part of. Our living room was packed with both families and we were laughing and reminiscing for hours on end. Jen mentioned she had just turned 30 and I was shocked because to me she was still this young teenage girl. I commented that there was no way she was “that old”. She acted like I had offended her by calling her old and played that card quite a bit that week as I recall.

The following Sunday after church we all went to Ryan’s to eat before they headed home. I was sitting directly across from Jen when she piped up and said, “Kathy, whatever happened to that long haired jerk you were dating that was doing that Bible Study at your house?” No one said a word or rather no one could even get in a word edgewise as Jen went on what seemed like a 10 minute tirade about how she couldn’t stand that jerk and how awful he was and yadda, yadda, yadda. When she finally did stop I just smiled and said, “She married him.”

Her eyes got as big as the moon. Her mouth dropped wide open and she exclaimed, “Nooooooo!”

We got a lot of stares due to the amount of laughter at our table over the next few minutes and truth be known, I am quite thankful she never realized until that moment that I was the same person. If she would have known that, I might not have ever had such a sweet friend as her for all these years. I quite possibly would not have appreciated my own daughters’ dance, and as a result I might have missed out on those early years of their dance due to my own ignorance. I might have never even thought of using dancers to portray the angels in “The Star” and that production would have fallen short of the beauty and wonder that it became. I might have never had the relationship with Ben and Brenda and Lindsey that means so much to me to this day. My life would have been a whole lot different and contained a lot less laughter and had far fewer memories to treasure without this beautiful dancer if she had put two and two together.

This song is on my phone to this day in my favorite “Prog Playlist” which I listen to more than any other play list. Every time this song comes on I envision the Senior Company and Jennifer dancing to it. I still see the white skirts flowing to the beat of the song and the exquisite performance of the routine. As I watch her dance in my mind’s eye, I lift her up in prayer every single time and the thought of her always changes my countenance for the better. You see, she still brings joy to my life as the flood of memories pass before me. I still appreciate everything about her both then and now because my life was blessed to watch this beautiful dancer grow from a young, obstinate teen into her own beautiful State Of Independence.

Rick E. France

Imagine This

Rick France 1994, Alternative, Hard Rock , , , , , ,
Imagine This

The self-titled debut of Imagine This is pretty difficult to define. Hard rock is what I generally think of first but it has an alternative feel and shades of disco and even some rap, but overall it just plain rocks. It also contains a couple of songs that were probably an attempt to get a little airplay on Christian radio. Usually when I grabbed this CD it was because I was in the mood for some good, hard rockin’ songs with catchy melodies and hooks. Most of the time when I would hit those slower, almost power ballad types of songs, I would just skip them and go on to the next track. “Bishop of Souls” was one of those songs. Little did I know that this song would become not only my favorite song on the CD, but it would be part of such a major impact on my life.

It was Thursday, September 1, 1994. I had recently been laid off from Von Roll only a month earlier and decided to start my own business. I was in my car doing something business related that I can’t recall, but I was listening to this CD when Kathy called me to let me know that her grandmother, whom I only knew as Mamaw, had passed away. She was 93 years old. As I headed back to the house I remember I first prayed for a little while but then decided to turn the music back on to distract my mind. The CD was right at the chorus of “Bishop of Souls” and the first thing I heard was this:

Oh, the Bishop of my soul is calling me home

The song instantly became real to me and over the next several weeks I listened to this song almost exclusively.

Kathy and I had only been married a little over six years at that time. Our house is on family property that Mamaw and Papaw had given her parents and they in turn gave her. I never knew Papaw personally since he passed away before I was a part of the family, but their house was just up the drive within a short walking distance and we pass by it every day. It’s a small house but full of big memories for the entire family. The Bobos are special. Mamaw and Papaw had three sons and two daughters, and I will not even attempt to tell you how many grandkids and great-grandkids. Kathy’s uncle James moved to Texas long before we were married and all of his kids were already grown and had families of their own, yet every year a good number of them would make the trek to Georgia, spread out amongst the family and we would have this huge family reunion at Mamaw’s house. Even when the Texas Bobos were not in town the Georgia Bobos would regularly get together at that little house.

We have so many pictures of the entire family sitting on that front porch; each photo revealing the family’s growth in age as well as numbers. We all could not fit in the house so that front porch and yard was our gathering place. In that yard around that big old oak tree we played wiffle ball, frisbee, passed footballs and baseballs while watching the kids play tag and other games. We ate, caught up on all the family news that we already knew anyways and just had some of the best times of our lives together. Mamaw would just sit and watch and laugh at our antics and the air was full of everyone’s laughter. The seats next to Mamaw were never vacant and on a constant rotation of family members of all ages.

Since we lived so close to Mamaw, we would visit her quite often. Kathy and the kids more than me but still I remember spending quite a bit of time with her. I really never got the chance to speak with her much because Kathy is a hair dresser so she does most the talking. Still I would watch her and listen to her. I loved to watch her play with the girls and Stephen. She had this big rubber ball that she kept and toddler Stephen would sit in the floor and pass it back and forth to her the whole time we were visiting. According to adult Stephen, he still has that ball. I also remember watching her softly applaud as Katie and Melissa would show her their latest dance moves they had learned. I found these acts pretty amazing because it was obvious to me at that time in her life that her hands were in constant pain.

From the pain, the Bishop of my soul is calling me home

What beautiful hands she had. Sure, they were old and wrinkled and as I said, I could tell by the way she would rub them and the look on her face that they were the source of much pain. Yet you could see in her hands years and years of working the land, preparing chickens from the coop to the stove to the table, dealing with James, Geneva and Harold (which was a full time job in itself from what I’ve heard), and feeding the road workers from the prison when they would stop to rest in her yard. Those hands did not have the luxuries of microwaves and instant pots. Yet those hands were so gentle with each of us. Those hands had spent hours on end flipping through one of the most well-worned bibles I have ever seen. I believe those hands had actually touched the hem of her Savior’s garment. Those hands were the hands of Jesus because she treated each and every person as if they were His hands. What Would Jesus Do? Mamaw didn’t have to ask that question; she just did.

I’d see her look at me
Her eyes were icons of a faith I’d never known

I don’t recall any particular conversation with Mamaw, but what I do remember are her eyes when she talked to me. She truly had a faith I’ve never known and you could see it in her eyes. When she talked to me it was as if she was looking way beyond me and deep into my soul. It felt like she was sitting in the lap of Jesus and in her mind she was talking to Him about me. You could feel her prayers when you were in her presence. She could be talking about anything that wasn’t even spiritual and yet I could sense God’s Spirit pricking me and encouraging me just by being there. Her eyes smiled all the time and they were the eyes of grace. No condemnation; nothing to worry about; just eyes of grace resulting from a deep seated faith. A faith that knew who she was in Christ and saw who I could be if I would just let go and take that leap of faith into His loving arms right there beside her.

Finally free from the shackles of a dying world
They say she sang with the voice of an angel that day

As I drove by her house on my way home today and I was listening to this song, as always it brought tears to my eyes. Not because of that porch sitting empty or the missing oak tree that lightning stole away from us and not because of the loss of Mamaw. She’s where we all truly long to be, with Jesus. She truly has escaped the cares and pain of this world and is singing with angels at this very moment. She is in the great cloud of witnesses right there with all our loved ones that have gone on before us cheering us on. I believe she is even still talking to Jesus about all of her family and lifting us up in supplication at this very moment. No, the tears now are because of my own shortcomings. I long to have the faith of Mamaw; I long to have the grace of Mamaw; I long to walk as close to Christ as Mamaw did. She was an example to us all of what being a Christian really is.

I have several of those grey haired ladies and men in my life with calluses on their knees from the hours they have spent in prayer and I am sure each one of you can testify to the same. Right now I ask that you think about those little ol’ prayer warriors from your past that you knew, loved and respected that have gone on before you. That one person that you knew you could go talk to about anything and you knew they meant it when they said they would pray for you. Picture that one in your mind and all the traits that influenced you when they were here with you and how they still influence you even today. Picture the Mamaw of your life. The writer of Hebrews 6:12 said to be “imitators of those who through faith and patience inherit the promises.”

Now imagine what this world would be like if you and I became imitators of “The Mamaw” you are picturing in your mind. Imagine what would happen if we began to show the love of Christ as Mamaw did. Imagine what your family would become if we began to practice the walk, the patience, the strength, the courage, the grace, the faith and the love of Mamaw. Imagine what impact the body of Christ would have on this world if we each put our faith into action like this. If we would just do this, we would probably find that it really is not that difficult to Imagine This!

Rick E. France

 

Diamond Days – Out Of The Grey

Rick France 1994, 2011, Pop Rock , ,

 

Diamond Days
Out Of The Grey

What can I say about Out Of The Grey? Smooth jazz influenced pop rock and with all due respect to Karen Carpenter, Christine Dente is my all-time favorite female vocalist. Throw in the exceptional guitar work of Scott Dente and you’ve got an artist that I never tire of listening to. I have everything from the 1991 self titled release thru the most recent 2015 release of A Little Light Left. Then there’s the solo work of Becoming and Ashton, Becker, Dente and Tumes, Ashton, Dente and Keaggy, King, Dente. Did I mention the lullaby’s with Michael Card? Let’s just say if the name Dente is on it I probably own it.

I had already become a fan of the husband and wife duo after their sophomore release of Shape Of Grace but with the release of Diamond Days I was encaptivated! Now let’s stop and think about this for a moment. I mainly listen to Prog Rock, Ambient Rock, Arena Rock, Hard Rock, Alternative Rock, Classic Rock, Rock, more Rock and don’t forget Rock. I throw in a little Jazz here and there like Miles, Metheny and Krall or the old Standards like Sinatra from time to time and even Mendelssohn and Rachmaninoff but Out Of The Grey is Pop Rock. Pop Rock? Isn’t that an oxymoron? Definately not my style of music especially in the 80’s and 90’s. But there was that little bit of jazz sound in the chord structures that caught my attention and then there was that voice. I played this CD over and over from the day I bought it.

Stephen was 5 years old at the time Diamond Days was released in 1994. I took him to his first game at Neyland Stadium only months before. I was coaching his baseball team and it was post diapers yet before he started vying for his own independence. He was my shadow. He was at that perfect age where we spent a lot of time together. According to my wife it was a perfect age because she has always claimed I act like a 5 year old.

One Saturday morning the two of us were out and about and he was sitting in the front passenger seat beside me just talking away. If that horrifies some of you I’m sorry, but back then kids did not have to or want to sit in the back – unless it was the back of a truck. Nor did they have to sit in a car seat until they got their learners permit. They didn’t even have to have seatbelts on, but we both did so maybe you can breathe a little easier.

Anyways, I put Diamond Days in as we drove and during the song “All We Need” he asked me, “Who is this?” I told him, “It’s Out Of The Grey and I just LOVE her voice and he’s an AWESOME guitar player.”

After a few moments we pulled up to a stop light and I looked over and Stephen had this big ol’ elephant tear rolling down his cheek. I asked him, “What’s wrong buddy?”

He replied, “I thought you loved mommy?”

I literally felt my heart breaking in my chest. He was sitting there thinking I had betrayed his mom, his sisters as well as himself and I felt just horrible! We use the word “love” so flippantly in our language to describe so many different things. How’s a 5 year old supposed to know the difference? Well never fear, Dad is here to straighten this out.

I said, “Buddy, there are all different kinds of love. There’s the really deep kind of love that I have for your mom and you and your sisters. And then there’s the kind of love that is really just a strong like. You love to play baseball, right?” He sniffed a little and shook his head yes. “But it’s not the same way that you love your mom is it?”

He thought about it for a few seconds and much to my relief he finally said, “No”. It was one of those three syllable nos that goes from the root to the fourth and then suddenly ends on the octave. Here in the south we start adding syllables and singing them out at a very young age.

“You love to play Nintendo, but that’s not the same kind of love you have for your sisters is it?”

He said this time in a much more energetic way and with only two syllables, “No” skipping straight to the octave.

I continued, “When I said that I love her voice that means I really like the way she sings. It’s not the same way that I love mommy. My love for mommy is way beyond a like. You understand?” And he did! No more elephant tears and that infectious smile of his was back in place. I had evidently succeeded as a Dad once again if only for a day.

That night, Kathy had gone back to his room to tuck him in and before I got back there she returned to the living room and had a really strange look on her face. When I asked her about it, she said, “Stephen just told me that he loved me, but not the same way that he loves bugs and frogs.”

Oh the mind of a 5 year old. If only we could all grasp this kind of deep theology. Maybe that is why Jesus said to come as a child.

Yet the story does not end here. Fast forward to the year 2011. Stephen is now 22 years of age and he’s playing lead guitar and singing in a band named The Refuge with the Wauford’s: Erine (lead vocals), Emily (rhythm guitar), Ryan (drums) and Jeff (bass). Over the past few years I had been helping them out with arrangements, rehearsals and gigs and all. I had made up a CD of potential cover songs to help build their repertoire. As Stephen and I were driving to a game at Neyland, I was playing the CD to see if he liked any of the songs and the Out Of The Grey song “Disappear” from the (See Inside) album came on. After listening to a bit of the song Stephen asked me, “Who is this?”

Without missing a beat all I said was, “Well buddy, I just LOVE her voice and he’s an AWESOME guitar player.” This time there were no elephant tears. Just a slight smile along with the rolling of his eyes, but it was well worth the eye roll. I mean, how often do you really get to relive a special moment in time like that?

As I listen to this CD right now, I love her voice today probably more than I did in 1994, but now her voice also reminds me about my little buddy’s traumatic brush with my love for his mommy and it brings a smile on my face every time. You see, I love his mommy much more today then I did in 1994 too, and it’s not the same way that I love bugs and frogs either.

As the Golden Years of our life draw closer and closer, it’s nice to have another chance to listen, look back and relive if only for a moment those Diamond Days.

Rick E. France

 

 

And From The (see inside) Album Also Mentioned

Can’t Stand Too Tall – Rick Cua

Rick France 1990, Rock , , , ,
Can’t Stand Too Tall
Rick Cua

While Rick Cua’s “Can’t Stand Too Tall” is a Christian album and contains some really good spiritual content, not all of my musical memories are spiritual. Some are about family. This album falls into that category because as I listen to this album it always brings me back to TGIF! Yes, Rick Cua goes hand in hand with Uncle Jesse, Urkel, Balki, Coach Lubbock and Dominos. All of these combined bring me back to those wonderful Friday nights in 1990 when my children were young and family was a new and exciting adventure for me.

Kathy and I were married in February of 1988 and Stephen was born the following February in 1989. In the spring of 1990 Katie was finishing the third grade, Melissa the first grade and Friday night had become Family TV Night thanks to the TGIF lineup on ABC. It started with “Full House”, a show that made “you got it dude” a household catchphrase. This was followed by “Family Matters” and Urkel’s “did I do that?” and then “Perfect Strangers” with Balki’s “don’t be ridiculous”. The final show in the lineup that year was “Just The Ten Of Us” which was a spinoff of “Growing Pains”. Quite funny but I can’t recall a catchphrase from it. Maybe that’s why it didn’t last but a couple of seasons. However, the aforementioned catchphrases were constantly repeated all week long in our house over and over and over . . .

With these shows came our Friday night routine. A little before the shows would start we would move all the furniture and lay a blanket out in the middle of the floor. This was Dad’s night to cook so I would call Dominos and order a couple of pizzas. At that time, the closest Dominos was in Crabapple and they would not deliver to our house across the county line so I had to meet the driver in the parking lot of Chadwick’s Hardware. Before I left for the pizza I would put Rick Cua’s “Can’t Stand Too Tall” in the CD player and queue it up to track 6, “Crash The Party”. When I returned home with the pizza, someone would start the CD and the girls would start to sing and dance!

You see, at some point Katie and Melissa had come up with their own lyrics for this song. I’m not sure if they just misunderstood the words or if they just liked their version better, but they would sing, “Piiiiiiiz-zaaa Parrrrrty!” I wish I could describe the dance, but let’s just say it was far removed from the ballet classes they so painstakingly took. Kathy and I would set the drinks out and lay the pizza boxes on the blanket all the while everyone was laughing and singing, “Piiiiiiiz-zaaa Parrrrrty!” About the time the song was winding down I would stop the music, we would hold hands and pray over our food and then start eating pizza while singing, “Whatever happened to predictability? The milkman, the paperboy, evening TV.” We had the timing down to an art form.

The night had begun. We laughed. We talked. We snuggled in the floor together. It was great! I miss those days. I’ve gotten to relive them to a degree with my grandkids from time to time mainly while watching reruns of “Full House” but those days when we were such a young family are really special to me and I must admit the memories are strongest when I listen to this particular Rick Cua CD. Especially when I am alone in the car. That’s when the theater of my mind seems to be the most active for me.

I always feel like I am almost forcing myself to listen to the first few songs of this CD because I want to get to track 6 so that the memories will come flooding in. So the easiest thing to do is to start there and then go back and listen to the rest of the CD which means I get to sing “Pizza Party” twice every time and that’s a pretty good thing in my opinion. And no, I never sing “crash the party” or even hear Cua singing it – it is always the voices of Katie and Melissa that I hear and their dance that I envision in my mind’s eye. I guess as long as I have this CD, I will always be able to relive those days with my little girls and enjoy one more time if only for a little while, our little Friday night “Piiiiiiiz-zaaa Parrrrrty!” 

As I listen right now knowing that my little girls are all grown up with children of their own, I pray that they will lock away deep in their hearts all the little things. I pray that they will not allow the world to try to drown out the joy of their time with their kids. I pray that they will remember that with all the chaos this world pours out on us, Christ will hold you up above it all and therefore you Can’t Stand Too Tall.

Rick E. France

 

In Another Land – Larry Norman

Rick France 1985, Classic Rock , , , ,
In Another Land Larry Norman
In Another Land
Larry Norman

When Ed Peace posted on Facebook the other day the information of how I turned my life over to Jesus while listening to this album, I was at first amazed that he remembered this at all. It had to be over 20 or 25 years ago that I had told him that story. The next thought was that when I got home I was going to grab that CD and listen to it again which I have done several times over the last couple of days. More times than I think Kathy can tolerate but she has not complained out loud at least.

You see, July 7, 1985 was the most important day in my life but the back story begins much earlier. First of all, I grew up in a Christian home with a mom and dad that were dedicated to living out their faith. At an early age my brother Rod introduced me to some great Christian music and Larry Norman’s In Another Land was one of the first albums I ever purchased. It reminded me of Abbey Road both stylistically as well as in the way that it used numerous songs in non-stop medley’s moving seamlessly from song to song. The songs were so well written and produced that even as a non-Christian I would listen to this album time and time again making it a staple in my life.

While I won’t go into detail of my life after I moved to Atlanta in 1983, in late March of 1985 I was arrested for a DUI. Since the statute of limitations has long passed I can admit that I was fortunate that was all I was cited for because I was wearing clothes with a lot of pockets and had an eight ball on me divided up into single gram packages. They could have easily hit me up for a lot more than a DUI. For some reason, the officers never searched me and I flushed everything down the toilet once they put me in a cell.

Within what seemed like a half hour, everyone that was in the jail that night had been bailed out except for me. I was stuck there for almost 24 hours all alone in complete silence with nothing to do but think. I honestly believe that fire and brimstone would be nothing compared to the torment of the thought for all of eternity of “How did I wind up here? I know better!” because that is all that ran through my head for the entire time and the thought haunted me relentlessly for the next few months.

Fast forward to Friday, July 5  and I decided to make the trek to the Cumberland Grove Wesleyan Campgrounds in Jamestown, TN where I went to camp meetings growing up over the 4th of July week for my entire childhood. I do not remember who the evangelist was that year. I don’t remember what he spoke on. I don’t remember what old friends I ran into and what we talked about or did. What I do remember is the drive home to Atlanta that Sunday night or at least the first part of the drive. As I headed south on Highway 127 I popped in the first cassette I laid my hands on which was Larry Norman’s In Another Land. For those of you under the age of thirty, a cassette was an ancient method for storing audio data and replaying it on your mobile device which today would be known as an iWalkman.

I probably was singing right along as I always do to “The Rock That Doesn’t Roll” but at some point I began to just listen to the words and I was relating to the lyrics in a way I never had before. I had searched all around the world to find a place of peace and there was none to be found. I had searched for a grain of truth and there was no truth in my life. I was a good person and I was a righteous rocker. After all, I listened to Christian music here and there and I went to church from time to time but without love you ain’t nothing and I was definitely without love.

Then the big bomb suddenly dropped: Now think back to when you were a child, your soul was free, your heart ran wild. Each day was different and life was a thrill. You knew tomorrow would be better still. But things have changed you’re much older now. If you’re unhappy and you don’t know how, why don’t you look into Jesus? He’s got the answer.

I had tried everything else to no avail. Why don’t you look into Jesus? I knew all about Him, but I didn’t know Him. Why don’t you look into Jesus? I could quote verses about Him, but I didn’t follow Him. I didn’t trust Him with my life. Why don’t you look into Jesus? I knew who He claimed to be but I didn’t look to Him for meaning and purpose in life. Why don’t you look into Jesus? He’s got the answer.

When the next song started, “I Am A Servant”, I broke down in tears and began to pray. I don’t remember the words I prayed. I don’t even remember driving home. The next thing I realized I was in my driveway at home in Atlanta and my life had changed. I was a new creation and for the first time in my life I knew that I was serving Jesus Christ and He was my friend and I had given Him the key to my life and that He was driving from that point forward.

While I have had the chance to meet and speak with many Christian artists through the years, I never got the opportunity to meet Larry Norman before he passed away and to tell him how instrumental he was in leading me to Christ. Still I believe that he is in heaven today and he knows the impact of his faithfulness on me that Sunday night. Oh sure, there were many others after that night in jail through that camp meeting in July that dropped seeds all around me but Larry was the one that got to bring in the harvest and as a result this album holds a special place in my heart. This album ushered me into a relationship that changed my life forever and for that I will be forever grateful to Larry Norman. Someday I’ll have the chance to thank him face to face, In Another Land.

Rick E. France

I’ve Searched All Around

Righteous Rocker #3

Deja Vu (If God Is My Father)

Deja Vu (Why Don’t You Look Into Jesus)

I Am A Servant

From The Beginning – Emerson, Lake & Palmer

Rick France Prog Rock ,
From The Beginning by Emerson, Lake & Palmer
From The Beginning
Emerson, Lake & Palmer

It was August of 2013 when I last posted on Facebook my attempt at a musical journal regarding what I was listening to that day with all the related memories, insights and whatever else seemed to creep into my mind while rocking down the highway. I was attempting to post every day and it lasted almost a full month but time eventually caused me to skip a day and a day turned into a month which somehow turned into almost two years. My thought at the time was to have some sort of time capsule of stories for my grand children to access someday revolving around the soundtrack of my life so they could have a way to know me if something unexpected happened. Needless to say, Facebook is not really setup for that (I even got a few complaints from some people) so I thought I would try doing something I never dreamed I would attempt – blogging.

What triggered this new found interest in starting this up again, albeit with no intention of doing this every day, was a combination of my recent run in with the cardiologist and a post from Ed Peace yesterday which I will talk about in my second post. For this first post though I wanted to sort of get the tape rolling, you know – From The Beginning; and yes – I was listening to the Emerson, Lake & Palmer song earlier today which is why my first post got bumped to my second post; and what an awesome song it is. One of my favorite songs to play on guitar whenever I’m just relaxing or warming up and yet when I listen to the original recording I realize just how poorly my rendition really is because I leave out notes and take little shortcuts in an attempt to cover up my lack of ability.

Lack of ability is part of what also has kept me from blogging in the past. While I am an avid reader, grammar was never one of my better subjects. Back in school, my English teachers were not usually complimentary of my work ethic or language skills. Top that off with a daughter that’s an English Prof at Brenau University and let’s just say she might not be letting my grand kids ever see this to begin with so that they don’t pick up any bad habits. Paraphrasing ELP in an attempt for a disclaimer, there might be things I miss but don’t be unkind.

Still I want to share my thoughts, my prayers and my music with all of them here From The Beginning as well as anyone else that might find a little bit of entertainment here and there. I plan to share the link on Facebook and if a story involves one of my friends I’ll tag you in the link. Oh and there might also be things I repeat from the 2013 Facebook posts so you might get tagged for something you’ve seen before but my goal is to cruise down memory lane with the stereo blasting! Sort of a musical retrospective in the key of life, From The Beginning.

Rick E. France

You See It’s All Clear
You Were Meant To Be Here
From The Beginning

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UtGjJVcrKQU