Sitting At The Top
Hey, so check it out. Today I was checking out some iTunes charts and notices that SkörInc’s own Amy Grant and MercyMe are sitting at the top of both the Album & Song’s charts. Pretty cool eh?
I was thinking about it the other day, and was blown away at the talented folks I get to work with. Obviously these two are no exception. Both pioneers in the industry and it’s an honor to be a small part of their amazing careers.
And if you haven’t go check them both out on iTunes and pick up MercyMe’s “All of Creation” and Amy Grant’s “Somewhere Down The Road”
And speaking of iTunes, we’ve got a couple other things going on too. Phil Wickham’s “Heaven & Earth” and Fee’s “Hope Rising” are currently on sale this week only for $7.
The Bird Photographer
It happens every now and then. Sometimes when I’m on the road for long periods of time, sometimes when I’m tired, or sometimes when everything is fine. I get in this funk that for some reason I can’t shake. Call it a depression, call it being moody, call it what you want, but I think we all go through it occasionally…. At least I hope. These last few days have been a little like that but different…. and this time it’s starting to jack with me a little.
I literally just got back from walking down the street to a Starbucks in Spokane, Washington. The venue we are at is on the other side of the river and there’s this pretty amazing walk across a bridge and through a downtown area. There was a carousel with music and all sorts of people enjoying their day.
Walking back I noticed a guy sitting on the bridge with a massive camera taking pictures of, I assume, the birds as they dove down into the water. He looked pretty involved in what he was doing, wearing headphones and clearly ‘somewhere else’. Instantly, my mind went to this place of “what’s the point?” ”Why would you take the time to go to some bridge to take pictures of birds? Seems pointless to me. It’s not benefitting anything. What’s he going to do with 100 pictures of birds?”
What?!?
Who’s in my head, and how did you get there? I used to take pictures of birds. I used to appreciate art. I’m usually blown away by music. I’m fascinated by photography. Is the concept of ‘art’ slowly becoming meaningless to me? Maybe it’s because I’m working so much. Maybe it’s because I’m simply too busy to enjoy the artistry of the things around me. Maybe it’s because I have to pretend to be a “business owner” all the time studying statistics and all that junk. If anything, I hope I’m not turning into ‘that guy’.
Now this isn’t one of those posts where I have some answer or ‘solution’ on how I “got over it”. This is just the only thing I could think about writing when I got back from seeing the bird photographer. Maybe I need more sleep, or a day off, or to see my family. Who knows. I just know there’s going to need to be a conscious effort in noticing the art.
Anyone else fall into this every once in a while? Any suggestions?
Earth Hour 2010
Last year I was in Las Vegas for Earth Hour. This year, Spokane, WA. Unfortunately I’m not thinking that this year we will be able to shut down the show in the middle, but I do remember last year was pretty amazing. I remember climbing up on top of the bus and watching as nearly all of Las Vegas slowly turned out their lights. Pretty impressive to see for sure.
Now, I know there’s all sorts of folks out there that are going to make fun of this, especially out here on the road, and to be honest, I’m sure there are conflicting stories on what good it really does, but in situations like this, I can’t help but ask, what’s the harm? I mean, can it really hurt to conserve that much power for an hour?
So let’s hear it. Will you be turning your lights out for an hour? Thoughts on the whole thing?
Portland
Today we’re in the my favorite city on Earth. Okay, so maybe not Earth, but it’s at least top 2 or so.
Now here’s the problem with being in your favorite city on a tour though. I most likely will spend my day underground at the Rose Garden (Rose Quarter… whatever you call it), unless I can talk someone into taking me on a run to the bank and maybe a cup of coffee.
Anyway… Kristin and the boys are still pretty sick at home. 3 cases of strep throat and Kristin with a sinus infection. I hate that I’m not home to be able to help out with that, but hopefully all the medications kick in quickly and knock this stuff out. If you’re a praying person, if you could keep them in your prayers, that would be awesome.
I’m off to change my socks and see about that bank runner. Have a great Saturday.
Welcome Stephen Mansfield To The Bunch
It’s that time again. Time to welcome another member of the SkörInc family. This time it’s a little different though. This time we’re welcoming New York Times Best Selling Author, Stephen Mansfield to the bunch. Stephen has written several books including, The Faith of George W. Bush, The Faith of the American Soldier, Benedict XVI: His Life and Mission, The Faith of Barack Obama, and his most recent, The Search for God and Guinness. Yeah, so he’s no joke.
Stephen and his wife Beverly live in Nashville and we’ve been talking for a long time about this site, so I’m excited to get it launched and going. Look for tons of info and blogging from this guy. He’s a mass of knowledge and obviously a brilliant writer. Make sure you head over to say hi, check out the site and let me know what you think.
Colorado Springs Today
I love Colorado Springs. It’s seriously one of my favorite places to come. The picture above has nothing to do with Colorado Springs, but we are here today and I thought this was a cool picture. And speaking of this picture, it’s fun to be out with the Crowder boys again. This is my third tour with them, and I’m still not sick of watching their show. The energy, the emotion, and the skill. Blows my mind every time.
Hey, it’s time for “Tour Church” so I’m gonna run. Sorry these posts are so spastic, but it’s a little crazy.
The Roadshow Has Begun
So, The Roadshow is officially off to the races. I forgot how much stuff there was to think about on this thing. Currently I am standing in an Apple store in Madison Wisconsin waiting for my appointment to get my laptop looked at. Yep, I’m blogging on one of their demo computers. This one is nice. Macbook Pro 13-inch, 2.53 GHz Intel Core 2 Duo for $1499. You should check it out.
Anyway, wanted to stop in and give a little ‘hello’ while I was waiting, but I really should get back to waiting in line. I’ll try to get some pictures up here a little later today.
Welcome Mrs. Amy Grant To The Family
Well, it’s that time again. To welcome another talented musician to the SkörInc family. Funny thing is, this next artist was one of the originals. One of the people who laid the foundation for what we know as the Christian Music Industry. Everyone please welcome Mrs. Amy Grant to the family. Now, obviously this is a pretty cool thing. I grew up listening to Amy Grant, and to be able to work with her and her team is an honor.
The SkörInc team took this one to a new level. Every site we launch I am more and more impressed with the guys that I get to work with. The creativity, the design and functionality. It’s above my head, but I’m glad they know about that stuff.
So anyway, take a second and go check out the brand new AmyGrant.com and let me know what you think. And, as always, if you see anything weird, or something that needs to be changed, let me know here in the comments.
Favorite Amy Grant song? Ready? Go.
MUSE
Kristin got me tickets for my birthday and last night it was awesome to get out on a date with her before I’m about to head out for a month. And dang. That show was insane. Now, this obviously isn’t the Nashville show we went to last night. This is however, the same intro to the night and it’s the best video I could find. Okay, first, how ridiculous is that stage? I was completely blown away the entire night.
I’ve been thinking of trying to describe the way they did things, but there’s really no way to explain all the different things they did with their production. There were camera guys hanging from the lights, pieces of the stage moving around, lasers, you name it, they were doing it. Seriously something you need to check out if possible.
It’s Finished!
Alright folks. This is it. The packaging for MercyMe’s ‘The Generous Mr. Lovewell’ is officially done. It was a long (last minute) process, but it’s all done and sent to the printers. Ben at Mellowtown did a great job taking the ideas that the band and I had and really translating them to this thing. I can’t wait for you all to see it.
Now, to get ready for MUSE tonight!!
