Newsboys welcome Michael Tait as new singer
By now, I’m sure you heard that Michael Tait is replacing Peter Furler as lead singer of the Newsboys. You can find the official press release here.
One of the cool things about being in radio is being able to follow a story like this from a rumor, all the way until the story was confirmed by way of message boards and mailing lists that I belong to and getting the official press release. Some of the people on these boards are pretty funny.
One guy pulled a pretty funny prank on one of the boards and posted the story below. It is actually the exact press release that Newsboys sent out, only the names have been changed…
I don’t know if you all saw the other news that broke today, here’s the info from the press release:
STEVEN PAGE JOINS AEROSMITH
After 39 years and more than 4000 shows, Aerosmith frontman Steven Tyler will no longer front the band in concert. Steven Page, formerly of Barenaked Ladies, will be touring with the band as lead singer with Tyler making special appearances throughout the year.
Tyler will continue with the band and his trademark songwriting and production will remain as he focuses his professional career toward future Aerosmith recordings.
Steven Page has been on the road with the band over the past weeks working alongside Tyler in what has been a positive and enjoyable experience for both parties. It has been a graceful process that both Page and Tyler have worked through as they prepare to make the change in the coming weeks.
Tyler states, “Aerosmith to me has always been about Rock and Roll, and I entrust Steven, Joe, Brad, Tom and Joey to continue all that is in store for us as a band. I’m looking forward to focusing on the band’s studio career and spending time in my own bed after many years in a tour bus and hundreds of thousands of miles on the road.”
Illeana Douglas, who played Aerosmith’s manager on Disney’s Rockin’ Roller Coaster, explains, “Whilst the decision to replace Tyler on the road was a painstaking one, when the idea of Barenaked Ladies vocalist Steven Page was presented, it was a no-brainer to all of us. No one can replace Tyler, but we know Page will bring a new attitude, energy and vocal style that might thrill our audience. To be able to continue a world class show and still have Tyler behind the scenes guiding the career and making of Aerosmith music is a huge opportunity for all of us. It’s amazing that after once being at the same festival with Barenaked Ladies in the 1990’s, that in 2009 our paths would cross once again. It’s an exciting time for all of us.”
In the coming days, Steven Tyler will be releasing a personal statement on the band’s website in more detail.
New Candy Cane Holiday “Flava”
While people were up many hours before dawn to get in line waiting for sales in preparation for the Christmas shopping season, I was sleeping in and getting ready for work, and adding a new touch to the design here at Cross Driven Radio.
One of the things I enjoy about the holiday season is the candy. One of my favorites is the candy cane. Depending who (or what website) you believe, there are varying stories about the history of the candy cane.
One story talks about the history dating back to the Christmas celebrations at the Cologne Catherdral where the choirmaster had bent sticks of candy in the shape of a shepherd’s crook and passed them out to the children, which became a popular tradition which spread throughout Europe.
Another story talks about a candy maker that wanted to make a candy that could be a reminder of Jesus Christ, so he made the Christmas candy cane. He started off with a stick of pure white hard candy. The white color symbolized the virgin birth and the sinless nature of Jesus, and the hard candy symbolized the solid rock which was the foundation of the church, and firmness of the promises of God.
The candy maker made the candy in the form of a J, which represented the name of Jesus and the staff of the Good Shepherds. He then stained it with three stripes which showed the scourging Jesus received, and symbolized the blood shed by Christ on the cross. When you break the cane, it reminds us that Jesus’ body was broken for us.
This website allegedly proves both of those stories as urban legend, and that it has become fashionable to claim that the candy cane was not only designed to be fraught with Christian symbolism, but that it was created as a means of communication between persecuted Christians.
Enough about that! Did you know that:
- There are 45 calories in the Candy Cane.
- Candy Canes are fat and cholesterol free?
- Spangler , my CC of choice, makes 2.7 million candy canes per day?
- Candy Canes make great promotional items?
- The worlds largest candy cane is 36 ft long?
And, that varieties include:
- Traditional peppermint
- Disney
- Jelly Belly
- Sour Punch Kids
- Smarties
- Dum-Dums
You can find a tour of the making of a cane here. OK, you have had enough history, now what is your favorite Cane?
I Love September!
I love September! It is the best month of the year for me. Granted, she will always be a little tattered since the events of 7 years ago today. (Did you know that I actually felt the impact of when the plane hit the Pentagon?)
I love September because like spring, it is a time for things new, new tv shows, new football season, new school year. The 2 biggest reasons I love September are:
- My WEDDING ANNIVERSARY ( It will be 13 years on September 28 )
- AWAKENING FEST
I love this month because it is a time where God reminds me that as much as I love my wife (and my daughter, it goes beyond words) and as much as I can’t imagine living my life without them, that is but a drop in the bucket of how much God loves both you and me. Also, I love Awakening Fest, not just because of the great people and the awesome music, although that is a huge part of it, It is because for 1 weekend, an out of shape ex roadie like myself can dust off those skills gained long ago and put them to work for the Lord’s kingdom. Its pretty awesome!!
Speaking of awesome, the headliners this year are a little band you may have heard of..
[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tkMH-94nwM&feature=related]
