Last Sunday,  I had the great  opportunity  and pleasure  to present a new musical  "The Life and Ministry of Jesus, In Song"  to two United Methodist Churches in Circleville.  Both Calvary and Good Shepherd allowed me to minister in dialogue and song. I was blessed to be able to "stretch" what I normally do, and add some dialogue and scripture to the program. My thanks to Carolyn Cupp at Calvary, and Cindi Lutz at Good Shepherd for sitting it all up for me.

Spent 6 wonderful days in the state of Florida last week. Flew into Ft. Lauderdale and got in  some much  needed beach time.  Then drove the  three hour  drive to Orlando,  and visited with my good friend,  Diane  Green  and  checked  out  the  Broadway  Across America's  production  of  "Ghost - the Musical".  The story  was engaging and the  production  was  top notch.  Overnight stay in Orlando,  then northward to Jacksonville. Have to admit J'ville is becoming  a favorite  destination  of mine.  The  city is similar to Columbus  except there's an ocean nearby.  Met up with school friend Donna McRay Whitley  and her  husband Hal.  Wonderful lunch with these two! In the evening, enjoyed the amazing Gladys Knight, whose  voice  and  looks  are  still  on  top  of  the  game. From my second row seat, I enjoyed Ms. Knight's timeless music and warmth and charm. Overnight in J'ville, then drove the 5 hour drive back to Lauderdale. What a blessing this vacay was! 

Last Friday and Saturday evenings  I had back to back,  Mother & Daughter banquets. Friday night, I sang for over 100  ladies at the Village Chapel  UM  Church in Ashville.  I understand,  a one-time appearance  from  Justin  Bieber  Sr.  was  there.  LOL ! Then, on Saturday night,  over 100 women from the First Baptist Church of Ashville  gathered in  Circleville  for their banquet.  Both evenings were a real blessing to me. Got to meet up with some folks I haven't seen in quite a while that were connected to one of the churches. Thank You, Ladies!!

Had  a great time  today  singing at  the Baltimore  Senior  Citizens luncheon over in Fairfield County. They are a happy bunch of folks who really appreciate all kinds of music!  I sang some of the songs from my latest CD, "The Blood Bought Church", but then I added in some classics songs by some of the music world's greats. Folks like Frank Sinatra, Louis Armstrong, Nat King Cole, Ray Price, George Jones and several others. Friends, I WAS WORN OUT by the time I was  done!!  The headline is a running joke around town here,  and among my friends who refer to me as the "Justin Beiber for Seniors"!  I don't know...with his  reputation  lately,  might not be a good thing! Thanks again to the Baltimore Senior's for making my day, a fun day!

I don't often take the opportunity to do worship leading as much as I used to. However, this Sunday I had the great pleasure of filling in at the Driven By Purpose Ministries worship service. I love the old-time Pentecostal music and service,  and that's what these  folks do!  I'm reminded  once again how  important the  anointing is,  and what an awesome  responsibility  to  lead  the  congregation  into  the  very presence of God! Thank you Lord, for your precious anointing!

I want to send a shout out and big thank you to the St. Paul Lutheran Church of Ashville,  for giving me the opportunity to minister in song this  morning!  Loved  meeting all the  great folks that go there, and enjoyed   Pastor  Jay  Jackson's message as well! It's been over 12 years since I've sung there! Great to be back!

Caught 60s and 70s phenom, Engelbert Humperdinck in concert at the Florida Theater in downtown Jacksonville while on vacation. Now 77 years old, Humperdinck can still sing and perform flawlessly. At first I thought he had gone "country" with so many classic country songs in his live performance catalog.  Songs like "Release Me", "Welcome to My World',  "There Goes My Everything"   and  "Am  I That Easy  to Forget" all had a country flair.  Throw in his other hits like  "After the Lovin'",  "This Moment  in  Time",  "A Man Without Love"  "Quando, Quando, Quando" and "The Last Waltz" and the audience was easily won over the whole night.

Two night later, 70s and 80s icon,  Barry Manilow brought his amazing show to the Jacksonville Arena. Manilow along with 10 piece band and 3 vocalists  dazzled fo r over 90 minutes.  Blasting through hit after hit, including "Even Now",  "Looks Like We Made It", "Can't Smile Without You",  "It's  A  Miracle",  "Could  It  Be  Magic"...uh YOU  GET  THE PICTURE!!  Other highlights  included an engaging  segment where a very  young  Barry  was  unsuccessfully  encouraged  to  sing  for  his grandfather  at a  little recording  shop. Glitzy show numbers like "Jump, Shout, Boogie" and a closer featuring three classics, "Mandy", "At the Copa"  and  "I  Write  the  Songs".  Much  has  been  written  about Manilow's  personal  appearance,  however  the  reason  his  mouth doesn't  open  as  wide as normal is due to a couple of jaw surgeries, not  too  many facelifts! LOL  This show was better than the show he did in Las Vegas that I saw 2 years ago.

The big hit movie of the 1980's has found its' way  back to the public conscience, this time in the form  of a  Broadway  Musical. While the story and  dialogue  follow  the movie script pretty accurately, it's the music that has  been  changed. Five of the original songs were kept, including "What A Feeling"  and "Gloria"  but most of the songs were especially written for the stage. It's  the  new  songs,  and  there  are many, where things tend to get bogged down.  In fact, the show runs pretty long at nearly 2 hours 15  minutes plus  intermission. Overall, I enjoyed the show.  The  dancers  were  good,  the  lead  actress was adequate, and gave it her all, and she was pretty worn out by the last scene! Two friends of mine, who attend shows regularly, both dissed it terribly. Is it "The Lion King"  caliber?  Hardly. But, for  a  night  on the town in Columbus. Not bad.

Had the rare opportunity  to see comic icon Bill Cosby at the Palace Theater last Friday night.  At  76  years  old,  Mr.  Cosby  is still making   us   laugh,   without   the   use   of obscenities! Drawing on his many years and experiences  of  life,  The  Cos   draws  the audience in,  and  you  feel  like  your  best buds sitting  in his living room!  Wearing an Ohio State t-shirt, Mr. Cosby entertained for over  2  hours.  The  near  capacity  crowd roared  with laughter through out the night!