SOUL SURMISE

STOCKI'S PLAYLIST OF COVERS OF GEORGE HARRISON SONGS

 

HERE COMES THE SUN - STEVE HARLEY & COCKNEY REBEL

(from Love's a Prima Donna)

 

GIVE ME LOVE - RON SEXSMITH

(from Mojo Presents Harrison Covered)

 

GOT MY MIND SET ON ME - BRANDON FLOWERS

(from George Fest - A Night To Celebrate The Music of George Harrison

 

YOUR LOVE IS FOREVER - BAND OF HORSES

( from Tributo A George Harrison)

 

BEHIND THAT LOCKED DOOR - NORAH JONES

(from George Fest - A Night To Celebrate The Music Of George Harrison)

 

TAXMAN - TOM PETTY & THE HEARTBREAKERS

(from Concert For George) 

 

TRY SOME BUY SOME - DAVID BOWIE

(from Reality)

 

LOVE COMES TO EVERYONE - ERIC CLAPTON

(from Back Home)

 

BEWARE OF DARKNESS - LEON RUSSELL

( from Leon Russell and the Shelter People)

 

ISN’T IT A PITY - COWBOY JUNKIES

(from Early 21st Century Blues)

 

I WANT TO TELL YOU - JEFF LYNNE

(from Concert For George)

 

THINK FOR YOURSELF - PETER BRUNTNELL

(from Mojo Presents Harrison Covered)

 

WITHIN YOU, WITHOUT YOU - PATTI SMITH

(from Twelve)

 

MY SWEET LORD - YIM YAMES

(from A Tribute...)

 

HANDLE WITH CARE - JENNY LEWIS & THE WATSON TWINS

(from Rabbit Fur Coat) 

 

WHAT IS LIFE - SHAWN MULLINS

(from Big Daddy Soundtrack)

 

SAVOY SHUFFLE - ELLA FITZGERALD

(from Glass Onion: Songs Of The Beatles)

 

SOMETHING - ELVIS PRESLEY

( from Aloha From Hawaii)  

 

ALL THINGS MUST PASS - THE WATERBOYS

(from Everybody Takes A Tumble single)

 

THE DAY THE WORLD GETS ROUND - KLAUS VOORMAN (with YUSUF ISLAM)

(from Sideman’s Journey)

THE HEAD AND THE HEART - LIVING MIRAGE

Five years ago in the Calvin College Sports Centre, The Head and the Heart wowed me and I fell in love with their melodies, harmonies and poetry. I ate up their first two records, the eponymous debut and the follow up Let’s Be Still. I don’t think they weren’t trying to be spiritual but they were to me.

Signs Of Light was the first record they released with me as a fan. I was eager for it and though I wouldn’t say that it was a bad record it didn’t live up to the first two. There was something too major label, too contrived for sales about it.

Living Mirage hits the spot again. It has enough dollops of their more organic first two records to blend more perfectly with the more commercial rhythms and beats of Signs of Light. They get it just right this time.

The tinkling piano underpin of Saving Grace. The downbeat People Need A Melody with the shifting lead voices. The whistle and strum start to the closing lo-fi Glory of Music.

The Head and the Heart’s strength is their unique melodies, original without going quirky, and the layered harmonies that soar in the most organic of ways. On this fourth record they bring all of that to the pop driven shiny beats of See You Through My Eyes, Missed Connection Honeybee and Running Through Hell effortlessly. I Found Love is the perfect blend.

I Found Love might also be the lyrical mission statement:

 

I found out

It's not the love that's in your mind

It's the love that you might find

 

With best west coast philosophy The Head and the Heart is looking for a love as authentic as the music. In the world we are currently living in it might be our Saving Grace along with music (People Need A Melody and Glory of Music). 

In the end they almost confess to be the modern version of Fleetwood Mac by sneaking the word Mirage in to the album title. The musical intrigue of a Lindsay Buckingham and the multiple vocalists make for a good argument. It has the sunny day soundtrack feel of Rumours or Tango In The Night for sure. Maybe in the end, their strongest album to date!

File under West Coast Pop/Rock Glorious!

GOD OF JUDGEMENT OR GOD OF LOVE; A SURMISE ON 40 YEARS OF FOLLOWING JESUS

I preached on Sunday on the 40th Anniversary of the night that I made a leap of faith, deciding not only that God existed but that he was interested in me. As soon as I
that God existed it was a no brainer to commit to connecting. Imagine knowing God exists and not being on God’s side or not having God on yours!

I was 17 at the time and for a few years The Beatles had been my gurus, shaping my world view. I have often said that The Beatles led me to Jesus. They asked the questions that I found the answers to in Jesus.

Indeed, for this sermon I was able to compare John, Paul, George and Ringo with Matthew, Mark, Luke and John. Indeed the two Johns had a lot in common. Both where convinced that love could change the world!

John Lennon sang, “All you need is love.”

The apostle John suggest that Jesus was convinced about the power of love too. Among his most popular verses:

 

John 3:16 

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life.

 

1 John 3: 1

See what great love the Father has lavished on us, that we should be called children of God! And that is what we are!

 

1 John 4:16

And so we know and rely on the love God has for us.

God is love. Whoever lives in love lives in God, and God in them.

 

The context for the main verse in todays’ sermon is fascinating. Jesus is sharing last thoughts and prayers with his disciples before he dies. When he gives them a new commandment to love one another we shouldn’t be surprised that it comes after his washing of the disciples feet.

BUT… we maybe should be shocked that it comes after he has declared Judas as his betrayer and Judas has just left to do that dirty deed. In the emotional  intensity of these moments you could understand Jesus talking about vengeance and judgement but instead this is the time he says:

 

“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another. By this everyone will know that you are my disciples, if you love one another.” (John 13: 34 & 35)

 

It gives us a clue to the kind of love Jesus is commanding. This is not a be nice to people kind of love. This is love in the midst of betrayal. This is loving those who do you harm. It is upside down love, sacrificial love, servanthood love.

It is the kind of love that proclaims the Gospel. It does that better than words. It is a love that will shock, intrigue and draw people into another way to live, not like the world but with the power of God’s Holy Spirit connecting neighbours and enemies. Indeed it has such force that neighbours and enemies will blur together!

What I have never understood in my 40 years following Jesus is how can Christians living by this new commandment of Jesus be so unloving, exclusive and judgemental. So many people are damaged by people claiming to live by this command to love. Ot at least claiming to follow the Jesus who said it.

I have surmised for sometime that the key to the difference between a judgemental Christianity and a Divine loving practice of a Jesus follower is whether your premier belief is that God is Judge or God is love.

When we make God first and foremost a Judge and concentrate on his justice we will be cold, harsh, excluders, hurting already and tender and damaged souls. God is love as our most passionate mantra and we will look at people’s situations and flood them with grace, this God breathed unmerited favour. We will be more compassionate, patient and forgiving. We will be more Jesus than the Pharisees.

40 years ago I got blessed. It was Jesus that I connected with that May evening. It wasn’t the gigantic structural religion of Christianity. Oh that structure has encrusted me down the years but I have always sought to avoid the human made darkness of the world and the human made light of the Church to keep as focused as I can on the Jesus of the Gospels in my fallen heart, mind and soul.

God is love. He’s left a new commandment. The world will decide on Jesus by how well his followers live the Commandment! How are we doing?

CITY TIL I DIE (50 YEARS OF SUPPORTING MANCHESTER CITY)

50 years ago

In the school playground

In the blink of an eye

Without much thought

Or was there

Had it been frog-spawning

In the pond of Uncle Jimmy’s constant naming

Of Bell and Lee and Summerbee

Becoming tadpoles in the peer pressure 

Of Derek Cunningham wearing the kit

Sky blue and white, claret trim on the socks

To the jumping frog 

Of changing sides in the lunchtime game

From United to City

To even up the teams

Stephen Martin, I see your sneaky face

 

There was no turning back

I became City 'til I die

And soon we were dying

It wasn’t fun for a while

If a while can be 35 years

Excruciatingly painful actually

For decades I wanted to find Derek Cunnigham

And tell him that I resented him

That he ruined my life!

 

But today Derek Cunningham

I could kiss you

Thank you

Today we won the FA Cup

To clinch The Double

That was a holy grail

But not just The Double

The Domestic Treble

That no one ever thought about

Dreamed about

Or have ever won before

For my 50 year anniversary

We won everything!

 

There will be begrudgers

They will talk about the money

And I wish this could be done without the money

But it’s not 50 years ago

So if you want to play 

Like that

Fast 

Furious 

Freewheeling

Perfect footballing poetry

Then this is the way.

 

So, 50 years

Of low lights

And even darker

(Macclesfield away in the League!)

There have at last been highlights

But the years and years of deepest gloom

Have made these bright days brighter

All the more joyous

Like the Promised Land after wandering in the wilderness.

 

It would all have been worth it 

For just that one moment

“Agueroooooooo…”

As The Sawdoctors songs goes

“To win just once

That would be enough”

The rest is showing off

Constant laps of honour

Still, I will always remind myself

Where I was for that Sergio injury time winner

That snatched the title from Sir Alex’s pesky grasp

I had lost faith, given up and left

To face my hurt 

In the garden

Missing the very greatest moment of the 50 years.

 

That moment about sums up these 50 years

But here I am

In my City shirt and tracksuit bottoms

And there is the Premiership trophy

With The FA Cup

And the League Cup

All in City’s trophy cabinet.

Blue Moon

Wonderwall

Na na na, City!

TOMORROW IN FITZROY - 19.5.19

Tomorrow morning (11am) in Fitzroy, I am excited to be preaching on the 40th anniversary of my decision to follow this Jesus of Nazareth. On the day after my wedding anniversary I will be preaching on love! The Lectionary reading is Jesus New Commandment. How is it new and in the light of Jesus love what does authentic love look like. It is a challenging love, a courageous love, a sacrificial love, a world transforming love. All wrapped up in vibrant worship from our youngest Sunday band.

In the evening (7pm) we are excited to be helping Jim Deeds and Brendan McManus launch their new book Deeper In The Mess; Praying Through Tough Times. It's a spiritual gem of a resource to help us indeed face tough times and find God in our deepest mess. As well as reflections, poems and songs, including a guest appearance by Beki Hemingway, I will be interviewing the boys about their faith and writing. Come prepared to buy...