I'm sure you are wondering what exactly this is all about, so let me take a minute to explain. At my grandparent's 60th wedding anniversary celebration dinner, Aunt DaVonne approached me with the thought to start a little blog where I would write about Southern Gospel Music up-dates and any interesting information about the artists. When she proposed the idea, something about it just seemed neat and downright fun. So, here I am a few months later attempting to give it a whirl! :)
Katie and Priscilla came up for a visit this past week-end and did we ever have a great time! We started off their visit by having a campfire BBQ with hot dogs and all. We were thoroughly enjoying our dinner when Bruiser, our Doberman, decided that he was going to impress our guests by extracting a gopher about 2 yards from where we were sitting and torment it while we ate... Bless his heart.
Saturday we began the morning by doing hair and then continued into the next part of the day with a bang. Literally. Jonathan took Katie and Priscilla into the backyard where they proceeded to learn how to shoot guns. Lots of guns. Let me just say that being on their good side is a good thing because their aim is none too shabby... ;) That evening we met Braden and Jessica for dinner, then ended the night with 2 games of bowling. Braden did what he dubbed a 'Flintstone move'. He wound that ball up good and tight and let it fly... right into the next lane. I think Jessica disappeared under her seat somewhere. A video could only do that one justice!
I'm sure you're wondering what all of this has to do with music. Well, here it is! Sunday afternoon rolled around and Katie, Cilla and I (and Piglet!) headed to Modesto to see The Collingsworth Family in concert! If EVER you have a chance to see them live, I highly recommend it. For those who aren't familiar with this group, I will do a quick introduction. The parents are Phil and Kim, and they've got 4 children whose ages range from 23 down to 14: Brooklyn, Courtney, Phillip Jr., and Olivia. Aside from them all being singers, Phil plays the trumpet, Kim is an incredible pianist, and Brooklyn and Courtney are violinists. They are obviously one multi-talented family. During the concert, they sang several songs off of their most recent album, Part of the Family, with piano solos from Kim and violin duets from the two older girls sprinkled throughout the concert. They did a really nice job of switching up lead singers, along with providing just an all around great variety of vocal combinations.
What I am about to say next I say with the utmost respect. I personally have not been much of a fan of Kim Collingsworth's piano style. (Clarification: she is phenomenally gifted on the piano, but it just isn't a style which I myself tend to enjoy.) However, to see her live is a different story. When she went to that piano and started playing To God be the Glory, the anointing that was there is completely beyond words. I just sat there and cried. She was most definitely in another dimension!!! After each of her solos she'd just have to sit and take a few moments to 'come back down'. It was really quite an experience. Unforgettable.
After the concert ended, we got a chance to talk to Kim (see photo below). She is so down to earth and just... real. During the concert she spoke about homeschooling in the back of their van when they were just starting out, and was it ever funny! Anyways, she's just a really neat person.
We then headed to the back of the church to meet the three girls. We talked mainly to Courtney (2nd eldest). Her husband had just graduated the day before (pre-med student), so they'd been flying all over the place! Anyways, she's a bubbly little thing. Definitely the more outgoing one of the 3 girls. Left to right: Courtney, myself, Cilla, Katie, Olivia and Brooklyn.
Then Courtney rounded up the rest of the family for one more shot... pardon the darkness of the photo.
So, that is the Collingsworth concert report. We had a fantastic time, and they said they would be returning to California next year. I know of at least one of their seats that will be taken!
And in other gospel news, the Gaither Vocal Band will be releasing a new CD on the 11th of September. Woohoo! :)
Until next time...
Mizz Babs
