About Me

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Stoke on Trent, Staffordshire, United Kingdom
Broadcaster, musician, song writer, tea drinker and curry lover.

Thursday, January 3, 2008

My 5 Life-changing moments - Part 2

We're up to the third in my 5 life-changing moments, and this one was in 1985, during an event that Steve Chalke (see 2) had enlisted me in, the annual Spring Harvest conference, held in April in various holiday camp sites around the UK.

As part of Steve's fringe media team I was also hawking tapes by the band I'd joined (my first), the script-rock (sic.) band The S.T.A.T.E.S. (stands for Sharper Than Any Two Edged Sword - Hebrews 4:12) to some of the well-known British worship leaders who were there. I had already given a tape to Graham Kendrick (who is a big deal in the annals of UK worship) when the weather took a turn for the worse, and the 5,000 seater big top tent, which is a signature part of Spring Harvest and the place where all the main adult meetings are held, was blown down. This left Spring Harvest looking for extra venues, and extra musicians to play in these venues for the worship meetings.

Graham must have remembered the tape, becuause I got a call from HIS bass player Les Moir, who is now a friend and still involved in the UK Christian music scene, asking if I played worship, and would I like to try out?

The rest, as they say is history. I played for a pickup worship band, got asked to tour with the leader, Ian Traynar, at other events, would up joining Youth For Christ's itinerant schools' band "TVB" for 2 years in 1993-5, was a founder member of the Saltmine Trust's band "Audacity" from 1996-98, and have toured all over the world, led worship in all manner of places and settings, appeared on a number of live worship albums, written countless songs, and worked with worship leaders and evangelists like Dave Pope, Graham Kendrick, Sue Rinaldi, Noel Richards, Chris Eaton, Luis Palau, Don Moen, Robin Mark and Calvin Hollingworth.

All because it got a bit windy back on an April day in Minehead!

Now onto 4, and for this we switch to my college years at Kingston Polytechnic (as it was known before it became a University) in 1985 - again!

I was there to study teaching, and in my first year I met a girl called Laura, who was not a Christian, but at that stage I wasn't going to let that get in the way of some fun. Plus she was absolutely gorgeous!

After 6 months together, we drifted apart, but I didn't take it well. One night after spending my time in the Union bar downing vodka and blackcurrant juice, I went up to my room and emptied a bottle of aspirin down my throat and went to bed, imagining I would not wake up the next morning.

For what happened next, stay tuned....

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