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Jars of Clay Carry a Message of Hope As Award-Winning Band Bring Their Songs of Redemption to New York City
Jars of Clay took the stage on Sunday night opening with 'They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love' from their new CD of re-worked traditional Gospel hymns entitled, Redemption Songs. While the band is widely known as a CCM quartet they have achieved an unprecedented level of crossover success since the release of their self-titled debut in 1995. That CD featured the ubiquitous rock radio staple 'Flood', produced by Adrian Belew, which propelled sales of their initial offering to well past 2 million units. While the band has released several studio albums in between it was these two records that were prominently featured during their 90-minute set on June 12, 2005 at B.B. Kings Blues Club in New York City.
 Jars of Clay at B.B. Kings Blues Club in New York City! Jars of Clay are not only Christians, they are extremely talented musicians and their fans know that by the quality of musicianship and songwriting that the band has offered up over the past decade. J.O.C. is a pop/rock Christian band with universal appeal and a recent March, 2005 trip to the Philippines was an acknowledgment of their growing fan base worldwide. It appeared that a good 20-25% of the evening's fans who gathered in Times Square were of the Asian persuasion and that's a cultural crossover not many traditional rock bands can boast. The group is Dan Haseltine the lead vocalist and drum programmer; Charlie Lowell on keyboards, accordion and vocals; Steve Mason, guitarist and vocalist; and, Matt Odmark also on guitars and vocals. For this tour, Jars of Clay have left the bass guitar and drums at home in favor of a more stripped-down, acoustic approach. The show opened as the lights dimmed and the spotlight hit Dan Haseltine who was holding a hand-held cassette recorder. He hit the play button and a funky banjo backing track was soon heard. Haseltine sang along solo to the first verse as the other members of the band came out on stage to continue the opener with full instrumentation. The set continued with energized versions of 'Show You Love' and 'I Need You' before Mr. Haseltine thanked the enthusiastic crowd for coming out to the show. He asked the audience to sing along as he introduced "one of the first songs we wrote as a band". Charlie Lowell opened 'Like a Child' by switching to the accordion and later the full band provided an extended jam during the track with the audience handling the hook by singing along with the refrain. This fan favorite was followed by a well-executed version of 'Love Song For A Savior'.
 Jars of Clay is (l. to r.) Matt Odmark, Dan Haseltine, Steve Mason, and Charlie Lowell. Next, Jars of Clay covered America's classic 'Lonely People', which really showcased their vocals. Their strong four-part harmonies drew comparisons to another famous California band from the 70's folk-rock era, namely the Eagles. Charlie's piano work was likewise a highlight of their interpretation. 'The Valley Song' also featured beautiful singing with the hook of "hallelujah" sung with stirring emotion. The Jars of Clay set was a diverse mix of strong songs from their self-titled debut and tracks from Redemption Songs – their latest release. The concept behind the new CD is to sing traditional hymns, songs that are 300 years old or more, to accompanying contemporary music. The hymns were animated blending slow paces and building momentum to the choruses. The new songs were powerful and were well received by the crowd at B.B. Kings. Throughout the night, Jars of Clay engaged their fans by asking them to sing along even to the less familiar tunes. At times, arms were raised in praise. The new old songs included 'Nothing But the Blood' and 'God Will Lift Up Your Head'. Midway through the concert, J.O.C. pulled out 'Flood'. The ecstatic crowd was jumping and rocking. Steve Mason and Matt Odmark, both on acoustics, carried the song to the next level. They continued building on the 'Flood' energy with more smoking leads as guest percussionist and opening act, Christopher Williams on bongos, thickened the rhythms. The encouraging hook of the next song stated "praise the Lord" and "it is well with my soul".
 Steve and Dan during 'God Will Lift Up Your Head'. Dan mentioned that in the past hymns were also sung to bar songs so he suggested that if you are going to raise a pint raise it in praise. The room got rowdy as fans started calling out requests. They played a tune inspired by author C.S. Lewis which was submitted for the upcoming Chronicles of Narnia movie. They also commenced on a special song about hope called 'My Heavenly'. Dan shared that they had received a letter from a young fan who was fighting cancer who was inspired by the song. He was planning on attending one of their concerts and had requested that J.O.C. include it in their set list. They had prepared the song only to sadly find out that the boy had gone home to the Lord. They have since added the track often to their set as a tribute to their fallen comrade. The band finished their first set but forget to actually leave the stage. Dan told the audience that they had two more songs to play "so just pretend we left." Steve added that the exercise of encores is really a waste of time anyway. Before completing the night's festivities Haseltine took some time to explain their concerns about poverty in the third world. He told the audience about the Blood: Water Mission, a non-profit organization that the band is spearheading to empower communities to build wells that provide much needed clean water to people in poor areas. One U.S. dollar can provide clean water to one person in Africa for one full year. Haseltine asked people to sponsor a well that was ready to be built outside of Kenya advising fans that a collection basket would be at the exit. As promised they played two more songs and the sound was noteworthy as each instrument could be heard especially during the evening's finale of 'I'll Fly Away' which featured all four members of the band crowded around the center mic. All in all it was a spirited show full of great uplifting music and positive energy. Fans in the New York area who missed the show should rejoice. Jars of Clay will be back in the region a few more times in 2005 carrying their positive message of hope and redemption with them! The evening's opening act was special guest and New York State native Christopher Williams who has been touring with Jars of Clay for the past seven months. In fact, his latest record When I Was Everything was produced in Nashville and feature's J.O.C.'s Steve Mason as a guest-performer on several tracks. Williams opened his set with Bob Dylan's 'Gotta Serve Somebody'. He played a small drum and soulfully sang the classic. The crowd was soon clapping along before Christopher faded the song out. For the next song Williams switched to an acoustic guitar pulling out powerful chords from his instrument and using some technical tricks to add texture to his music. On the third song he managed to get a percussion sound out of the bass of his guitar as he played fat chords along with tapping the strings. Christopher rapped a spontaneous song with lyrics about playing B.B. Kings and the two screens on either side of the stage. He shared that today was his seven month wedding anniversary and mentioned that they had been on the road since that special day. Williams described it as the "power of the road trip". He went on with a rapid-fire delivery of humorous observations about life on the road. He subtlety changed his tuning to shift the mood. Christopher then invited Steve Mason on stage who was soon crafting a heavy sound on his electric guitar, utilizing a slide as Chris pounded out a powerful beat on his bongo. For the next song, Mason switched to the pedal steel as Williams clipped two capos on to his acoustic. He proceeded to sing a moving song about salvation. Williams then performed the next track acapella in an inspiring arrangement. Christopher pulled out a harmonica and played a blues piece before shifting back to the guitar to craft a lead while continuing the rhythm. The crowd clapped along as he finished the song with a swift acoustic/harmonica combination. He finished his set on the bongo with a rich vocal track. Throughout the night Christopher Williams was the de facto fifth Jar, often joining Jars of Clay on stage to add bongos, percussion and vocals to the already tight band sound. His presence subtly enhanced many songs and he looked to be having a good time being part of the group.
 Christopher Williams opened the show and played the role of the fifth Jar!
Related Links: For more information on Jars of Clay and the other organizations mentioned please visit the following links -- Jars of Clay | Blood:Water Mission | B.B. King Blues Club | Christopher Williams
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