Tuesday's Here!!!! Time for today's exploration into the galaxy of musicology...or for short Tuesday's Musical Notes!!!
The album cover was iconic. In fact, were it not for the video, the band would have probably faded into the annals of the musical unknowns. There stands a costumed girl, waiting in anticipation to perform for the audience. She does a short but well executed tap dance in her yellow and black wings and waits for the audience to break into thunderous applause..... To her horror, just the opposite occurs.....well you can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qVPNONdF58&ob=av2e
You could say the little "bee girl" as she came to be known was going through a bit of a dry spell until she met the group of people who were similar to herself. Then she no longer worried about the fact that there had been "No Rain."
The brief success of the band Blind Melon, mirrors so many pop groups in that tragedy struck just after the "rain" of success was beginning to happen for them. Blind Melon began in 1989, signed with Capitol Records in 1991, hit with "No Rain" in 1993 causing their debut album Blind Melon to go multi platinum, released their second album Soup, and then the rain became a hazy mist.
Like so many bands, the lead vocalist in Blind Melon was the driving force and in many ways the more recognizable of the band members. You may not recognize the name Shannon Hoon, but his vocals are instantly associated with Blind Melon. In 1991 he caught a break by providing backing vocals on Guns 'N Roses smash hit album Use Your Illusion. The success with Blind Melon then came and as with so many instant stars, so did the temptations that can easily derail a career. 13 weeks after his daughter Nico was born, Hoon was found dead of a cocaine induced heart attack aboard the tour bus the band utilized for the Soup tour. Hoon's trademark vocals were found to be so irreplaceable that it caused the band to break up and reunite many times since 1995. With each reunion they have difficulty trying to recapture the success of their earlier efforts.
In the Bible, rain has been used as a tool of punishment for wickedness (go to a children's Sunday School class some time and ask about Noah's ark). It is also given as a promise for obedience,
Leviticus 26:3-5
The album cover was iconic. In fact, were it not for the video, the band would have probably faded into the annals of the musical unknowns. There stands a costumed girl, waiting in anticipation to perform for the audience. She does a short but well executed tap dance in her yellow and black wings and waits for the audience to break into thunderous applause..... To her horror, just the opposite occurs.....well you can watch it here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3qVPNONdF58&ob=av2e
You could say the little "bee girl" as she came to be known was going through a bit of a dry spell until she met the group of people who were similar to herself. Then she no longer worried about the fact that there had been "No Rain."
The brief success of the band Blind Melon, mirrors so many pop groups in that tragedy struck just after the "rain" of success was beginning to happen for them. Blind Melon began in 1989, signed with Capitol Records in 1991, hit with "No Rain" in 1993 causing their debut album Blind Melon to go multi platinum, released their second album Soup, and then the rain became a hazy mist.
Like so many bands, the lead vocalist in Blind Melon was the driving force and in many ways the more recognizable of the band members. You may not recognize the name Shannon Hoon, but his vocals are instantly associated with Blind Melon. In 1991 he caught a break by providing backing vocals on Guns 'N Roses smash hit album Use Your Illusion. The success with Blind Melon then came and as with so many instant stars, so did the temptations that can easily derail a career. 13 weeks after his daughter Nico was born, Hoon was found dead of a cocaine induced heart attack aboard the tour bus the band utilized for the Soup tour. Hoon's trademark vocals were found to be so irreplaceable that it caused the band to break up and reunite many times since 1995. With each reunion they have difficulty trying to recapture the success of their earlier efforts.
In the Bible, rain has been used as a tool of punishment for wickedness (go to a children's Sunday School class some time and ask about Noah's ark). It is also given as a promise for obedience,
Leviticus 26:3-5
Moses applied rain in the scriptures as a metaphor:
Deuteronomy 32
Holman Christian Standard Bible (HCSB)
Song of Moses
32 Pay attention, heavens, and I will speak;
listen, earth, to the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching fall like rain
and my word settle like dew,
like gentle rain on new grass
and showers on tender plants.
3 For I will proclaim Yahweh’s name.
Declare the greatness of our God!
4 The Rock—His work is perfect;
all His ways are entirely just.
A faithful God, without prejudice,
He is righteous and true.
listen, earth, to the words of my mouth.
2 Let my teaching fall like rain
and my word settle like dew,
like gentle rain on new grass
and showers on tender plants.
3 For I will proclaim Yahweh’s name.
Declare the greatness of our God!
4 The Rock—His work is perfect;
all His ways are entirely just.
A faithful God, without prejudice,
He is righteous and true.
In this text, Moses is nearing the end of his life. He has given
Joshua the leadership responsibility for the Israelites, and wants to
leave the nation with words of wisdom. Notice the vehicle he employs is
a song. The entire chapter of Deuteronomy 32 is that song. You can find it here: http://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Deuteronomy+32&version=HCSB
Moses
goes on in chapter 33 and blesses the Israelites by tribe. In chapter
34, Moses' death is recorded. The priorities of his final breaths are
to praise God and ask for blessings on his friends. Jesus echoed these
sentiments when He said that these were the 2 greatest commandments,
love God and love your fellow man.
You may have noticed in chapter 32 the passage that reads, "let my
teaching fall like rain and my words settle like dew." Moses is using
rain as a metaphor here instructing us to allowing scripture to soak
into our lives. Many of us have had dry periods in our lives where we
don't feel a closeness to God or our fellow man. We are just "out of
sorts". Theologians, Christian Counselors, Psychologists and
Psychiatrists have for many years advised people during these times.
Sometimes they hit on just the right phrase or treatment to relieve the
doldrums of ones' life. However, their prescriptions are not permanent
cures. As we live in this world, we all will have those times. Being
around like minded people is a really good cure for these days. Just
like the "bee girl", we tend to be more engaged in life when we are
around people in which we have much to agree.
Church can be the facilitator for that interaction. Did you realize
that you are a blessing to others with your very presence at your local
church? The tabernacle in the day of Moses was the place the children
of Israel worshiped daily. In Jesus time, the synagogue was the meeting
place. The Bible records Jesus being in the synagogue many times. The
tradition at that time was to go daily as well. The modern established
practice seems to emphasize that 1 morning a week is sufficient to get
our worship quotient in. Congregational worship is a Biblical practice
that dates back to the tabernacle which was done on a daily basis, at
least twice a day. The passage in Leviticus reminds us that to get the
rain to produce our crops we must "follow My statutes and faithfully
observe My commands." I was raised Sunday
morning, Sunday night, and Wednesday night are the times that were set
aside to learn about God's statues and understand how to better
faithfully observe His commands. Perhaps you were raised differently.
Maybe church attendance wasn't part of your younger years. Please don't
think that attending a church equates with going to heaven. The Bible
never says that. However, our time on earth is made easier by having
others in which we can rely when there is no rain in our lives. It is
an instructional tool on God's precepts and allows us the opportunity to
be discipled as well as disciple others. God wants us to meet with Him
individually. But He also understood what we gain when we worship Him
collectively. We have the ability to share in the dry spells of our
fellow worshipers and perhaps provide what they need to see the
beneficial rain of His teaching. Whatever the worship tradition of the
church you are attending or considering attending, make sure you are
there every time the doors are open. You will receive encouragement and
help from others and can relay the same to them.
As you make plans for this Memorial Day weekend, include the time you
need to meet with other people who love Jesus and want to see His
Kingdom increased. You never know, they may be wearing bee suits
too.....
'Til Tuesday,
Loving HIM by loving you,
Randy
No comments:
Post a Comment