Prince Covers Christian Song from Renowned writer Nicole Nordeman

I'll NEVER be the type of man who tells a Christian artist that they would be leaving behind their roots if they were to branch out and write/perform in the secular industry.  Frankly, that's a total load of something stinky.  Why would God, who is the most creative being in all the universe, create you in His image, as a creative being yourself, and then say, "Oh, well about that artsy thing you do... You can only do it in the church."  Riiiiiiiiiight (insert sarcastic vocal inflection and eye roll here).  God never designed our gifts to be used strictly inside the church.

That being said, I just listened to a very interesting song that I heard years ago from a fantastic writer named Nicole Nordeman.  You've probably heard of her as she's been on the Christian music scene for years and had her hands on many different projects.  Well kids, you'll never guess who picked up one of her tracks.... Prince.  Yep!  Good ol' Prince grabbed Nordeman's tune, What If, and produced his own, rock tinged, take on the ditty.

What did I think of it?  Well first of all, let me say that I LOVE hearing about circumstances like this both because of the creativity that goes in to taking someone's song and making it your own with your own spices and flavors added in.  And secondly, it's a song that was written with a Jesus centered core and has been picked up by someone playing in the secular industry. 

As far as the new sound Prince has given the song, I thought it was good, but I actually like Nordeman's original version much better.  I'm a big Prince fan, have always loved his music, so I was kind of surprised when I responded with a "meh".  Anyway, I'll let you be the judge.  Here is the original version from Nicole.  I did some digging to try and find an audio file I could post for Prince's version, but he's rather finicky about having his music available online.  So enjoy the original, and the Easter egg hunt you'll be on looking for Prince's version. (It's funny cuz it's almost Easter.  See what I did there!? *Awkward laugh wheeze*)






Here's a great article from Billboard briefly talking about the new release.

Throwback Thursday: Woo Hoo

Back in the day, when I was an awkward little band kid, with no wife to help him make better fashion choices, I was introduced to a little band called The Newsboys. To be totally honest I'm not the biggest fan of their more recent stuff but I continue to love their older tunes.  I was given this album by a middle school youth group buddy of mine and I pretty much played the ol' compact disc until it literally wouldn't play anymore.  I used to take this album along with me in my trusty Discman as I went rollerblading around my old neighborhood.  Oh yeah, 1998 was a good year, frosted tips and all.  Oh, and we had this----------->

So kids, in honor of throwback Thursday, here is "Woo Hoo" from the Newsboys 1998 album "Step Up to the Microphone".





What are, for those of you folks who have all the rad memories from our glory days, some of your favorite hits from 98?

Throwback Thursday: The O.C. Supertones

I was one of those kids who listened to things that most other kids my age didn't really dig all that much.  I remember bringing a Clark Terry record in to a jazz band rehearsal in middle school, so excited to share his "mumbles" style of scat with everyone.  When they heard it, I felt like I was being stared down by a Muppet.

 

While my band mates didnt get it, I still knew in my gut that I was falling more and more in love with Jazz.  As I continued my ravenous hunt for more musical deliciousness, I was introduced to a sound that combined some interesting things.  An old buddy of mine described it as Reggae being smashed together with Rock, and Funk.  He called it "Ska".  When I heard that, I'm sure I looked similar to a skeptical dog that was just invited to eat the left overs off your plate.

 

Needless to say, I had to listen, and when I did, my face about melted off from all the joy that was blasting my ears.

So here's to you O.C. Supertones.  I'm sad you guys aren't doing much these days but I've LOVED the incredible music you've given all of us. 

Here's my favorite album:

Elevated

Sometimes songs dont need to have huge lyrical substance to be fun or even considered good songs.  My hope is that this song actually does fall under the "good" category at least, though I would love it to be "great".
I recorded this live at a church I was a part of back in 2009.  I plan on bringing this little ditty back, revamped, and better than ever in the near future.  For now please enjoy the live version of "Elevated".