Delirious?

Tonight saw the last ever Delirious? gig in London at the Hammersmith Apollo. There will be many gushing tributes and a bucket load of hyperbole about what they have done as 'History Makers' - it can be difficult not to get too sentimental at such times - and in that regard I have no idea how one ministry contributes to the Kingdom of God in comparison to any other, but I can tell you some of the ways this incredible band have influenced me...

"Cutting Edge 3" - I had heard a lot of the songs from Cutting Edge 1 & 2, a number of them had quickly become church favourites - 'Lord You have my heart'; 'Thankyou for saving me'; the hoedown of the 'Happy song' - the songs were amazing but the recordings were a little too, well, happy-clappy-folky for a boy who was into Nirvana and Blur and the Stone Roses. But then came Cutting Edge 3. It is hard to imagine that there was a time when worship bands didn't sound like U2, but Martin Smith was the first to write these epic songs, with huge guitars and big themes. The scope of the record was hugely impressive; 'Did you feel the Mountains Tremble' is still the bench mark for epic worship songs and 'Oh Lead me' is achingly, spine tinglingly beautiful, whilst 'I'm not Ashamed' is as raw and unabashed and unafraid as any popular worship song since. On 6 track cassettes, self funded and produced, they pioneered it all.

"Live & in the Can" - I remember first seeing that cool looking can in the London branch of Wesley Owen, off Oxford Street behind Selfridges, and I can remember exactly where I was when I first heard it. That is how important this album was for me. It opened my eyes and ears to what could be done on a worship album. The riff driven 'Come Like You promise', the fragile intimacy of 'What a friend' the thundering desire of 'Obsession' - here were a band (their first album as 'Delirious?' in fact) utterly passionate and full of a revolutionary hunger - when you play this album you feel that change is imminent, the Kingdom is coming and God is with us. Alongside that year's Soul Survivor album (1996 - on which they featured) , 'Live & in the Can' represents all that is good (and now sadly lost) about live worship albums. You could feel the hunger, you could sense the Presence. There is no higher accolade than that.

"Draw Me Near" - I'm sure Martin can't even remember how it goes, but this is a song I wrote when I was 15 that he ended up singing on 'The People's Album' when I was 16. I was so delighted - and still am.

"Deeper" - When this hit the charts (even if it was only number 20) it felt like a landmark. Think about it - a song about going deeper into God, knowing Him more, loving Him deeper, was in the top 20. Remarkable.

"And the wonder of it all is that I'm living just to fall more in love with You"

"Glo" - They had two great stabs at infecting the charts (King of Fools & Mezzamorphis) which were packed full of great songs, some with explicit references to God, but largely had more ambiguous lyrics of searching and desire. I bought all the singles (including Deeper again as an EP) and was fully behind their chart assault. Then came 'Glo' and suddenly we all got a glimpse of what we were missing. 'God's Romance'; 'Investigate'; 'My Glorious'; 'What would I have done' and the brilliant 'Jesus Blood'. My head said 'Go for the Charts!' but my heart said 'I want more songs like these!' - This is a GREAT worship album - 'Audio Lessonover' didn't stand a chance.

"World Service" - By the time this album came around in 2003 the Americans had got very good at copying Delirious. (Well, we all had). Rather than churn out a worship album straight down the MOR route of Nashville they reminded everyone that not every song had to be mid-tempo or cliche ridden. The highlight of this album, 'Majesty' was probably their last great contribution to the wider church's song canon (apart from the 'Our God reigns' chorus - can 7 simple words ever have so much impact). A worship band once more - 'To God in Heaven/Be the Glory".

So thank you Martin, Stu, Tim, Jon and Stew (and lately Paul) for all you gave us. For all your songs meant and still mean to me. For writing from the depths and singing it with all your hearts.

I thank God for Delirious. I really do.

dg

Sponging off the State

Don't you just hate people that sponge off the state?

Who don't need to do a day's work because of our taxes...

Who spend our money on things they don't need...

Who have no intention of getting out of their state dependance...

Who produce generation after generation of people who do the same...

Whose kids get drunk...

Whose elders have careless racist attitudes...

Who swan around like they own the place...

Who expect to be respected yet do not offer the same respect to others...

Who live charmed, lazy lives...

So who is with me...? Down with the Royal Family!

dg

Playlist - November 2.0

I enjoyed doing last weeks playlist so much - and apparently some of you did as well... so here is another one of stuff I've listened to this week and enjoyed!

NOVEMBER 2.0

Black Rainbow by St. Vincent - Actor

First it Giveth by Queens of the Stone Age - Songs of the Deaf

Seven by Fever Ray - Fever Ray

Nature Boy by David Bowie & Massive Attack - Moulin Rouge Collectors Edition (!)

Toes by Errors - It's not Something but it is Like Whatever

Time of the Season (mono) by The Zombies - The Original Studio Recordings

Je t'aime by Staff Benda Bilili - Tres Tres Fort

Black & Blue by Miike Snow - Miike Snow

Some Velvet Morning by Nancy Sinatra & Lee Hazelwood - Nancy & Lee

Chemtrails by Beck - Modern Guilt

EnJOY!

dg

2012

At last! I've been looking forward to the end of the world for ages!

November Playlist

In a (hopefully, if I remember) new feature I'm going to post some Spotify playlists of stuff I've been listening to recently to share the love.... the great thing about Spotify is that it makes it darn easy to find and share new music. Hoo-blooming-ray!

Click on the link below to go straight there....

2000007 by Modeselektor & TTC - Happy Birthday!

The Dancing by Remember Remember - Remember Remember

I'm All Over It by Jamie Cullum - The Pursuit

When David Heard by Oxford Camerata & Thomas Weelkes - Weelkes: Anthems

Gila by Beach House - Devotion

Innocence by Bjork (Alva Noto Remix) - Voltaic

Gloomy Sunday by Billie Holiday - Blue Billie

Easier by Grizzly Bear - Yellow House

Gold Digger by Kanye West & Jamie Foxx - Late Registration

Clowns by Goldfrapp - Seventh Tree

November 2009

hope you enjoy it....

dg

Self Promotion: Good, Bad or Ugly?

I've done it. Many times. Advertised and publicised things I'm doing or records I've made or talks I've given etc....

But I know one thing:

I have always felt like an idiot doing it - I've never been comfortable with any aspect of it. Whether that is a personality thing or that I have a sense of it being 'wrong' or 'disobedient' in anyway, I'm not sure. I don't know.

So I've either not done it at all or done it a way I don't like or done it in a way that undermines itself with overly depreciative tones

Though it seems now to be a normal part of having a 21st Century ministry - websites, facebook fan pages, MySpace, street teams, publicity, tours etc. etc. etc.

Whatever I've not been able to reconcile, a lot of other people seem totally OK with.

I know I'm an idealist - I'd greatly prefer others to lift me up; advocates who will believe in me and what I do - and for word of mouth to do any 'promotional' work that needs doing.

And because I see everyone else running ahead and promoting their stuff left, right and centre, I often feel a little left behind - because what I'm doing is not packaged and presented and publicised in the very intentional way others are doing it - my stuff certainly doesn't reach everyone it could - but does it reach everyone that it 'should'? That is the question I cannot answer.

I don't think my problem is a lack of confidence or self confidence, in fact if anything the opposite is the problem - it is more likely pride than an absence of self belief. (I pretty much believe my songs to be as good as anyone else's - no existential angst here!).

Also my problem isn't that I am so very humble that I don't promote myself - I guess true humility wouldn't think about it all, and certainly wouldn't be writing this blog post.

My problem is that I don't like promoting myself, not one bit.

In thinking and wrestling this I've found two verses that have really helped

He must become greater; I must become less. (John 3:30)

and

Humble yourselves, therefore, under God's mighty hand, that he may lift you up in due time. Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you. (1 Peter 5:6-7)

So I want your help and thoughts. Self promotion, do you think it is:

Good - a normal, natural thing. Highlighting the good things God has given us and offering them up to the wider Church in order that it may be blessed.

Bad - an unnatural, ungodly approach. Full of pride, self interest and ultimately harmful for the Church and an unhealthy distraction - even as far as creating idols of people and their gifts.

Ugly - there is nothing 'wrong' with it but it is a little tasteless and crass.

all your comments are greatly appreciated - I'd love to have a good discussion on this issue...

dg

Twitter....

Hey blog readers!

One of the things I used to do a lot on this blog was to highlight articles I've read or other interesting, inspiring and time wasting stuff I've found on the web..... most of that stuff I now direct to Twitter.....

Now I can understand your hesitance at joining Twitter - there are many people who spend all day telling you what meals they're eating and what their cats doing and what the weather is like and that is about as interesting and revealing as watching one of those Piers Morgan interviews that come on after X-Factor.....

What Twitter is great for is the sharing of info/articles/inspiring stuff and seems to be a little more light hearted than the weightiness that a blog implies - plus it is a quicker, easier format than doing a whole blog post just to highlight something i read on the Guardian website - which keeps this blog more for proper posts, videos, images and lyrics......

sign up here http://twitter.com

follow me here http://twitter.com/davidgate

i will do the decent thing and follow you too - until you start tweeting about your cats then i will unfollow you.

sweet

dg

Destiny Found

The Sun (We Love It)

Thirsty Love

Something's brewing in this gloomy sky
And I could use a lift
What with all this humid weather
Something's got to give
Then the thunder breaks the silence
Like a blessing from above
As the rain falls on our thirsty love
Thirsty love

Something's moving in the wounded eyes
And now I feel a chill
Rising through this moody silence
When you say I love you still
Composure now collapsing
'Neath the weight of all our sighs
As the tears fall from our thirsty eyes
Thirsty eyes

There must be a reason
For the dreams that come and go
Maybe something bigger is pulling on the strings
For all we know
And the thunder breaks the silence
Like a blessing from above
As the rain falls on our thirsty love
Thirsty love.

Too true

from nothingiswritten

If only the problem were consumerism....

It is the commonly held wisdom that one of the central problems with today's church is that Christians too often approach church as a 'consumer'; the people don't come to give, but simply to be entertained.

I can see how that would fit. Rampant consumerism is one of the less desirable traits of our wider culture. Yet as I watch the gatherings of consumers at football grounds, U2 concerts and the audiences of X-Factor what I see is dramatically different to what I witness at gatherings of Christians:

Shared communal enthusiasm
Passionate exuberance.
A freedom of inhibition
Willingness to self express
And of course, excitement verging on (and frequently achieving) hysteria.

When the consumers meet to consume this is what we see. When the Christians meet to consume... this is what we don't see. Not usually anyway.

In fact, I don't even agree that consumption is wrong in church:

"Taste and see that the Lord is good"

"Come!" Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life."

"Blessed is the man who will eat at the feast in the kingdom of God."

"...so that you may eat and drink at my table in my kingdom and sit on thrones"

We like to call 'consumption' other things when we meet together; empowerment; receiving; blessing; anointing; impartation..... you know the type of thing, words that make us feel virtuous.

The problem is not consumption or consumers.

The problem is a lack of consumption.

And a lack of giving.

In fact, it is a lack of engagement in general, perhaps best described as 'apathy'.

I really wouldn't mind if the problem in our church was consumption. People who receive and receive and receive at least get half of what its about - they just need to give more. The people who stand there with their hands in their pockets with their mouths shut wearing the expression of a droopy haddock are not even half the way there.

Oh how I would love to see our church with a consumption problem - receiving and enjoying and engaging - if it were only that then at least we would have some passion to work with, some shared experiences, some willingness to engage.

Alas, the consumer is not the millstone around the neck of the 21st Century church, it is the apathetic, the disinterested and the passive.

When what is 'consumed' is God (rather than a good show and a clever preach) then that 'consumption' compels the 'consumer' to give, to share and to love.

I for one intend to consume as much as I can.

dg

Blackest Night