Jim Murray – Terry Blackwood

January 24 2019

David’s Psalm

Derek SimonisTerry Blackwood Blog 1976, Blog 64, Bonn, David's Psalm, Europe, Germany, Heavenly Father, James Burton, Jim Murray, Our new tenor Will Shaw, Psalm 27, Terry Blackwood, The Imperials History, The Journey CD, Vienna, Will Shaw

It’s Tuesday, January 22, and I’m in my hotel room, having just gotten back from breakfast. The weekend was amazing! If you’ve been on Facebook, you’ve seen shots and videos that will show you how wonderful it was. We introduced our new tenor, Will Shaw, and featured him on a song from The Journey CD, David’s Psalm. The song was taken from Psalm 27 and expanded into a beautiful narrative of dependence and reliance on God for all we have. The lyrics are:

“The Lord is my light and my salvation; whom shall I fear? The Lord is my strength and my Redeemer; whom shall I fear? If God is for us, who can be against us, for He, the Lord, is with us!”

We had recorded that song many years ago, around 1976, and at the time, Jim Murray sang it beautifully. Will is still learning our songs and blend but he has grabbed this song and claimed it as his own. The video sounds are not professional and yet I think you can see and hear the potential we have. We have introduced new material this year and will continue to do so in the months ahead.

We are past the halfway point in our stay in Europe and from Vienna we make our way to Bonn, Germany on Thursday. We covet your prayers for safety there. I know Germany is relatively safe and yet, there are stories coming out that are of concern.

Tomorrow is picture day as we will need to update our banner and promotional pictures. We will get shots with James Burton too, as we hope to get an invitation to a very special venue in the next month. I will keep you informed on it. James has become a dear friend, and his wife, Louise, is one of our biggest fans. She and James secured our visit on the Mike Huckabee Show on January 3, and it was beyond our wildest dreams for success. We cherish their friendship and realize what an international star James is. We NEVER take advantage of that but we do enjoy his company. I have never heard James say an unkind word to anyone. Some interrupt him in the middle of a meal, but he’s always very gracious to them. We Christians are commanded to do the same. All are equal at the foot of the cross. There are no rich, no poor, but all bought with the precious blood of Jesus Christ. If you are a child of God, remember how blessed you really are! Many are called but few are chosen. I’m so thankful that God chose me. Did He choose you? By accepting Jesus as Lord, you have been chosen and are accepted in the beloved and destined for eternity with God, your Heavenly Father.

January 11 2018

The First Jesus Festival

Derek SimonisTerry Blackwood Blog Andre Crouch, Blog 15, Christian music fans, Disciples, Elvis, GMCSceniccruiser, Jesus Festival, Jim Murray, Jimmy Dean, Joe Moscheo, Keith Green, Larry Norman, Nancy Honeytree, Randy Stonehill, The Imperials, Wayne Coombs

During those first three years with the Imperials, many doors were opened for us. Joe Moscheo had gotten acquainted with Wayne Coombs, who managed several different artists outside our industry. He wanted to take us on and manage the Imperials. Since we weren’t strictly “southern gospel” he wanted to try to branch out and put us in venues that were a bit different. We were working with Elvis, with Jimmy Dean, and we were also striking out into new directions with music that might appeal to a wider audience. One of the first attempts was to place us at the very first “Jesus Festival” in Dallas, TX. We were doing a three-week stint at the Fairmont Hotel in Dallas with Jimmy, and the festival occurred during that time frame. It was around 1971, in the summer, and we had a huge GMC Double Decker Scenic Cruiser bus with a double axle in the back. Jim Murray was driving and he pulled into the entrance of the luxurious Fairmont Hotel with our bus. There was a dip from the street to the hotel entrance and we got that bus stuck on concrete! That dip in the pavement was just enough, that we got the front of the bus in fine, but the dip just happened to occur on the wheels that we needed for traction. The back end of the bus hit the pavement in the street and there we were – STUCK! The wheels that we needed for traction were unable to help us because we were dragging on the rear end. We had to get a tow truck to pull us out of the entrance of that hotel! How embarrassing!

The “Jesus Festival” was a huge success. It was an outdoor concert, much like a Christian Woodstock without the drugs. There were thousands of kids sitting on the ground enjoying the music. We were a headliner along with the likes of Andre Crouch and the Disciples, Larry Norman, Randy Stonehill, Nancy Honeytree, Keith Green, and many others. I will never forget seeing Larry Norman come on stage dressed in his tie-dyed t-shirt and funky tennis shoes, singing “I Wish We’d All Been Ready”. It was a world all its own and we were experiencing that world with the younger, next generation of Christian music fans.