Date: 06 July 1997
To: RichMailList
From: scatcat@kidbrothers.net (Danl Blackwood)
Subject: [RichMailList 142]: Birmingham, AL 06/27 review

From: Martia Wilson
Subject: Rich in Birmingham 6/27
Date: Mon, 30 Jun 97 21:06:51 PDT

Hi Daniel,

Just dropping a line to report on Rich's show in Birmingham Friday 6/30, 
as promised.  

The concert was held in 16th St. Baptist Church.  This was the church
which was bombed in 1963 during the civil rights era, and 4 little girls
lost their lives.  I got a chance to ask Gay how she managed to book
Rich in there.  I told her that as far as I knew, he is the only
recording artist who is not African-American to ever to play there.  
She told me that she had come to Birmingham prior to this to attend a special
memorial event commemorating that horrible event, and discovered that
not much racial healing has occurred since then, and she decided then &
there to have Rich come play for them. Altho neither one of them would
like it said, I will.  After all the word says in Proverbs to "let
another praise you, not your own mouth; a stranger, not your own lips". 
I am sure that both Rich & Gay consider the gesture unimportant, but I
just want to comment that it is a sad commentary/indictment on the
Contemporary Christian industry that no other Caucasian artist has
reached out to this body of believers in love in the entire interim
between now and the tragedy of 1963.  Conversely, it is a positive
example of the love of Christ crossing manmade barriers made of skin.

Mitch of course, opened the show.  I missed all but his last two songs
waiting for my son to show (never did - sigh).  Then Rich did a
compressed set, introduced This Train, and then returned for the
duration of the evening.  The usual:  a 3-1/4 hour show.  He talked at
length, not only of Compassion's domestic work, but spoke prophetically
to people in the audience--words of comfort and exhortation that we ARE
loved, God hasn't forgotten us, and prayers will be answered, one way or
another.  He encouraged folks to remain faithful even if the answers
given are not the ones we want.

One thing admirable about Rich is he is continually breathing new life
into his pieces; most often by adapting arrangements to new
instrumentation.  This time:  dual hammer dulcimers, upright bass, a
cello player (not Rich tho--I really wish he felt "ready" to perform
this instrument publicly.  I understand he is also studying viola (an
instrument I studied myself once) as well).  And the musical dessert of
the evening was, for me, the rendition of "While the Nations Rage", with
a marimba (wooden xylophone) carrying the riff that Reed Arvin played on
the Synclavier ("Winds of Heaven" project). This train's drummer Michael
is phenomenal; it was he who played 2nd hammer dulcimer as well as
marimba with Rich.

Love to all in Christ.

Martia

PS  Rich said on the radio interview the day of the show that both he
and Mitch will be doing new albums in the fall.  Stay tuned!