Life has a way of teaching us valuable lessons and sometimes they aren’t all spread out like I think they should be; but instead they come like final exams . . . all at the same time. I feel humbled and blessed with the emotions and sympathies that I have had the opportunity of experiencing lately. We had a ward campout a couple of weeks ago out by the lake, and I was surprised at how much love I felt for the people in my ward (home congregation) here in Franklin, TN. Sitting around singing old-time songs with ten or twelve people playing instruments and countless others singing and talking around a large fire made me thing of memorable times surely had by early Saints along the pioneer trek. I love my peeps in my ward more than ever for that simple time we spent enjoying each other’s company outside of our usual “Sunday best” routine. I shot some footage of that experience and you can check it out HERE.
I took a moment recently to do something I have not done in years. The experience, as simple as it was, was like someone pushed the “refresh” button on my soul. As a kid I used to wander for hours and hours up and down the banks of the south Canadian River near my home in Oklahoma. One of my favorite things to do was to lay down along the riverbank under any number of towering giant cottonwood trees and I look up at the blue Oklahoma sky through thousands of silver-dollar-sized green leaves that softly rattled out a boy’s salvation when the wind blew through them. My dog Gabe would catch a nap snuggled up next to me and during those lazy summer days I learned early in life what “bliss” was. I’m pretty sure that heaven will feel something like that used to make me feel. Last weekend I suddenly go the out of the blue urge and laid down on my back with my two kids and together we looked up through a Tennessee river willow at a crystal blue Saturday sky. I think I may have heard the sound of my childhood whisper to me as a soft breeze made its way through willow leaves above me. iPhone in hand, I took a picture to remember it:
You may have seen a FaceBook post I made about my family attending a funeral procession through our little town of Franklin last weekend. Townspeople were invited to show up on Saturday afternoon and pick up U.S. flag poles at the high school to hold along Hillsboro Road as the body of one of our hometown boys, 22 year old Jason Edens, was carried in a hearse with a parade of local motorcycle veteran groups and emergency vehicles reverently following. My heart was moved by the turn out on a 89 degree, extremely humid Tennessee afternoon. I was softened with compassion as many of my fellow people lined the streets silently holding their left hands on a US flag pole and their right hands over their hearts in patriotic respect for a fallen hero who lost his life in Afghanistan. While my heart broke for the tearful faces of the soldier’s family and loved ones as they drove by, I was at the same time extremely grateful for the opportunity that my family had to feel the sobering humility of the price paid for freedom and to know the surge of patriotism that rises in the soul as the costs of liberty became a reality before our eyes. Here are a few pics:
The hearse passing Franklin High School
My boy J Davis proudly holding his flag
Jason Eden's young widow as his body arrived home
I have had the pleasure of watching my three children play numerous soccer, volleyball and baseball games this spring. I love athletics. I love seeing kids learn the thrill of giving it their all and being pushed to their limits as they experience the valuable lessons of victory and defeat. I thought I’d include a short clip of my little man last week, no bigger than a minute, smacking an opposite field single and rounding first with the energy and swagger of a mini Derek Jeter. I love the game of baseball. I love that kid. Therefore I love little moments like this: CLICK HERE
And one more thing before I make a point of all of this. Early this morning I walked outside and just happened to notice the morning dew shining like tiny diamonds on a beautiful bunch of yellow day lilies that just seemed to shout to the world “Good Morning!”. I took a pic.
"Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: And yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these" (Matthew 6;28-29)
You may wonder why I am taking the time to tell you about these “little moments” that I have recently had. The reason is because I have felt a need in the last several months to slow down; to stop, to look, to listen. To see the sun rise. To see the sun set. And let me tell you the good stuff is in the small stuff. I count each experience that i have described above, as insignificant in the universe as they might seem to many, as precious portions of a collective personal testimony that God is alive and well, and his love and influence can be felt by his sons and daughters when we take the time to soak it in, like we did when we were children (Matthew 18:3); to see, smell, touch, taste and respect the little things all around us. Confucious said, “Tell me and I will forget. Show me and I will remember. Involve me and I will understand.” Being involved in the little stuff is to understand this life experience.
OK, now that I got all of that off of my chest, its time for NTB to HIT THE ROAD!
Jump in my truck and ride with me a minute:
We are announcing a new show every Wednesday during the month of May, so be sure you check in on our Facebook page or here on the website.
For the shows that have been announced thus far, go to our “Shows” page or click HERE.
In other NTB News:
- Due West’s brand new single “Things You Can’t Do In A Car” will be released by their label Black River Entertainment to country radio on Tuesday, May 14th! You can check them out on Facebook or their Website. The new single should be available for purchase through iTunes on the 14th as well.
- Katherine Nelson is giving away a FREE song download of her new single “Beautiful” at Katherinenelson.com. Her long awaited new album Born Brave will be out later this summer. It is an awesome piece of estrogen YEE-HAW!
- Keep up on Dan Truman and his Grammy Award-Winning band Diamond Rio’s summer happenings at DiamondRio.com.
- Our very own Grammy nominated and Emmy Award winning Ron Saltmarsh is relieved to have graded the last of his semester papers at BYU in the past few days. Ron runs the Media, Music & Sound Recording Department at BYU. He will jump in with us when we head out to do shows in a few weeks, but I am guessing that he will be somewhere calm, quiet and hard to reach until then.
One last thing! Please “LIKE” us on Facebook. We like to be liked and we love to see your faces on our Facebook page!
I can’t begin to tell all of you how much joy summertime means to all NTB’ers. Along with shorts, flip flops, sunglasses and rising temperatures comes more and more shows on our NTB calendar. ”On the road again . . . the life I love is making music with my friends” (Thank you Willie . . . no one could say it better). The best news is that we will be announcing a new Nashville Tribute Band show EVERY Wednesday in May. Posts will be added to the website, Facebook page and will be sent out via email, so make sure you are signed up on one or all of those lists to get the latest news.
Secondly, a new video about the beginnings of NTB and how it all got started has been finished by our fabulous media team. I think they did a superb job, so please take a minute and check it out.
Let me start today’s blog by saying . . . I’m no political expert. In fact, the subject of politics is low on my brain’s totem pole. There are many people much smarter than me who live and breathe this stuff. For the most part, I’ll stick to music. I was once in DC having lunch at a hip little restaurant and I suddenly had the realization that everyone in the entire establishment was talking about politics. No one was talking about this new artist or that publisher, or this songwriter or that new album. I was not in Nashville, for sure. Those people might as well have been speaking Chinese. I was a fish out of water. However, this is a political year and I believe that Mormons should be thinking about a few things. I will not express my political preferences here, for that is not the point.
And then there were two . . . Obama vs Romney. I am not sure that members of the LDS Church fully realize the heat that soon could be placed on our religion by the world media. Sure we have seen a little here with the Olympics and a little there with Prop 8, but not the inferno that may be on it’s way in the coming months. The Obama camp, and Obama ally’s in the media, will certainly do all that they can to attack everything about Mitt Romney. Romney’s record, his views and certainly his religion’s views on every sensitive subject that could sway public views.
My prayer is that we as members of the Church stand firm in our faith, with a sure knowledge that such silver-tongued scrutiny and persecutions are nothing new to believers; King Mosiah faced such opposition, the Apostles of Christ faced it, Alma faced it, the early Saints certainly faced it, our missionaries on the streets of the world today face it and we too will face our share. What do we do? We testify and we pray and we surrender our will to be instruments in the hands of God, however He may need us. What better time than now to get our houses in order, to live sinless lives, to charge forward in our faith and be obedient to the will of our Father. These are exciting times! Opposition always brings to light everlasting truth. And truth always prevails. We can shrink and cower, avoiding any conversations that are difficult. OR, we can be honest and truthful and testify of the things we know to be true. And if there are things that we do not know, we simply say, “I don’t know, but let me see if I can help us find an answer and get right back to you.” Honesty always has been, is and will always be the best policy.
A few things that I have found to be helpful:
The Book Of Mormon - No better resource in times like these. It’s pages are filled with examples of how to triumph in times of opposition.
The Gainsayers - A book by a former anti-Mormon who was converted and discusses some common anti-Mormon tactics and ways that we can handle those seemingly difficult subjects when they come up. My favorite advice in the book is to NEVER bash, for “He that hath the spirit of contention is not of me, but is of the devil” (3 Nephi 11:29). Always be willing to discuss a subject, but only one subject at a time, with the rule set forth up front that the discussion will not move on to another subject until both parties have agreed that they are done discussing the subject at hand. This eliminates the frustrated ping-ponging of subjects that so many will try. At any rate, I find THIS BOOK interesting.
The PBS Special on Mormons - I have heard some say that they didn’t like this series. I LOVED it. I thought that for the most part that both sides of most issues were very well covered. Some of the most sensitive issues in LDS history are discussed. I love to pay particular attention to the way the brethren handle themselves when questioned about these sensitive issues. As always, they are stellar examples. You can view some of the footage here: Interviews or The Entire PBS Special
I am as thankful as ever that I am a member of The Church Of Jesus Christ of Latter-DaySaints. There is nothing that I love more than gathering with others who share my convictions; at conference, at church at an NTB show or wherever we find ourselves. The truth we share is a beautiful thing! Let us all stay anxiously engaged in THE WORK!
Mothers of children with talent are among the most persistent people that I have ever met. They are convinced that their children’s talent is unique and must be heard by the masses. Mother’s are always right in that their children are wonderful and unique . . . but sometimes they are wrong about them needing to be heard by the masses. But . . . sometimes they are right about it all.
There is a mother in Highland, UT who persistently encouraged me on Facebook for almost four years to give her three children a listen. She used what I call TRT (tactful relentless tenacity), with emphasis on “tactful”. I liked the respective way she patiently operated. Finally I invited them to come to an NTB show in Logan in October of 2010. I told them if they wouldn’t mind waiting until after the show that I would be happy to hear them perform a song or two. That night, at almost midnight, then 14 year old Mady, 15 year old Tiann and 17 year old Tel (known as Dyer Highway) stood on the back of that stage and made me smile. They were good . . . and they would get better.
I talked to them outside for a while after the show. I believed that I could record them and get them a record deal. I said to Tel, “What about a mission? What if . . . well, what about a mission?” Tel looked at me straight in the eye and said, “Jason, no record producer, label or record deal could stop me from turning in my papers the day I turn 19.” His two sisters looked at me with proud smiles on their faces. I was in. Those were the kind of kids I wanted to hang around. We went on to record a six song EP that they could sell until Tel left on his mission and while he was gone. Upon Tel’s return, then we could get really serious. In the mean time, you can learn more about Dyer Highway and purchase their music HERE.
Tel received his mission call and entered the Mission Training Center in February of 2012 where he is now preparing for his mission to Korea. His sisters cried the day he walked away from them through the front doors of the MTC, but they too are confident as they are firmly invested in their testimonies and know of a surety that their talents will provide better instruments in the hands of their Father in Heaven when Tel returns.
On March 31st, Elder Tel Dyer stood with an army of MTC warriors who sang at the top of their lungs at the 182 Annual General Conference of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.
I felt like a proud musical papa seeing him on the screen doing THE WORK! I can only imagine how his own family felt seeing him there. May God continue to bless the wonderful missionaries of the world and may He forever bless THE WORK they do!
Thank you so much for your continued support of The Nashville Tribute Band. I sincerely feel it an honor to be able to do what we do with the support of so many people. We’ve got some big show announcements coming up in 2 weeks. In the mean time, dont hesitate to help spread the word of NTB and follow us on Facebook or by signing up on the Email List.
No season is more beautiful then spring in Nashville. The blooming dogwoods, redbuds and delicate flowers . . . the warm days and cool evenings . . . the magical sunsets and rumbling thunderstorms that have an eerie beauty to them. The world is fresh and new.
It’s also the time of the year when the music industry comes alive. For many, new music has been created over the winter months, new albums are being released and the tour buses are warmed up to hit the road. Well, for NTB, we are more mini-van kind of folks, but we too are warming those up.
Our album The Work: A Nashville Tribute To The Missionaries is just a few months old and there are still so many who have not yet heard this music and we are anxious to continue singing about and honoring our great missionaries around the world.
We are truly sorry for the cancellation of our last run of shows through Beaver and Cedar City, UT as well as Show Low and Safford, AZ. We are still in the process of rescheduling those and will make an announcement as soon as that is confirmed.
Two of our biggest shows of the year have been scheduled and those include a performance on August 25th at the Sandy Amphitheater. This seems to be turning into an annual event, as this will be our 3rd Annual performance at this venue. Tickets go on sale May 7th and are available HERE.
ALSO, southern Utah look out! We are excited to once again be performing at the Tuacahn Amphitheater in St. George, UT on November 9th. These tickets are on sale already and can be purchased HERE. Likely the most breathtaking venue in the state of Utah. We are excited to be back with our friends beneath the red rocks!
In other news . . . We are so incredibly proud of our Due West boys. They have just recently finished recording four brand new songs, one of which will be released to major market country radio late in April. They have been hard at work touring the ENTIRE United States on a bus visiting major radio stations and promoting the new material. So, keep your ears open for new music coming from them later in April. Hopefully we can talk them into playing a new song or two on the road with us this summer!
Katherine Nelson continues to work on the release of her new album Born Brave. The music is done, the artwork is done . . . we are simply finishing up some final touches on things and hope to be announcing a release date in the coming weeks. The new music coming from her is beyond incredible and will touch the hearts of all those that listen, specifically women. Don’t worry guys, you will probably find yourself jammin’ to it as well!
As for myself, I’ve been working hard in Nashville writing and recording. Very excited to be producing a new album on the incomparable Taylor Hicks. There is a reason why he won American Idol. The boy can SING. Plus he is a great guy! I’m honored to be working on his project . . .
We love you guys and hope to see you soon! Until the next blog post . . . Thanks for your continued support and don’t forget to “Like” us on our Facebook page if you haven’t already!
Dear Friends,
We love all of you in Beaver and Cedar City, Utah and in Safford and Show Low, Arizona so much. We so wanted to come and play for you in a few days! We are truly sorry that circumstances will not allow us to be with you but we will do our best to get the shows rescheduled as soon as possible.
Jason Deere – Nashville Tribute Band
_____________________________________
Here is the official press release from the tour promotion company:
Media Alert
For Immediate Release:
February 27, 2012
R Legacy Entertainment is canceling the spring 2012 Nashville Tribute Band concert tour to Southern Utah and Northern Arizona due to unforeseen circumstances.
In announcing the tour cancellation, Jeremy Barron, director of Artist Management for R Legacy Entertainment, said “we regret that the Nashville Tribute Band tour has been cancelled and especially want to offer our sincere apologies to the band, all the fans and friends of NTB. Both parties did everything to avoid this outcome.”
All credit card ticket purchases will be automatically refunded to the credit card they were purchased on. Tickets purchased by cash or check may be refunded at the location they were purchased at prior to the night of the scheduled concert, or by appearing at the concert venue the scheduled night of the show. NTB was scheduled to appear in Beaver, Utah Feb. 29, Cedar City, Utah March 1, Show Low, Arizona, March 2 and Safford, Arizona, March 3.
