PRS In Church?

EGIIrp said:
Just joined the forum and found this thread! Been using a PRS in worship services for almost 20 years. Being a Marylander, it just seemed right. I use a PRS EGII with Mike Christian piezo saddles I modded years ago. Toggle just switches between piezos and magnetics. Still my favorite guitar. I run through a pedalboard that is uses a couple IRs (Iridium) and a few effects, one for acoustic and one electric tones, straight to a monitor and FOH. Just needed the flexibility to use one guitar and pedalboard for all the songs. Start a lot of them with an acoustic, and switch to electric. Speaking of songs, didn't play today, but last week the set list was:
Let Me Count the Ways
Fresh Wind
Humble
Set My Heart
What a Beautiful Name
Our God is Love

Blessings,
Ron
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Ron, I've considered this. A few years back, I'd booked Mark Lee (Third Day) for a church gig up here in Ohio. Got to hang out for a couple days and had a blast. Turns out one of his fave guitars to use is a P22. I'm not a typical f-hole guitar fan, but the addition of piezo saddles for an acoustic-style mode is intriguing to me. By your post, I'll assume that you never looked back and that the mod was well worth it. My '09 Sunburst 22 will never be modded (PF09 finish and could not bear to change it). But, the '04 Singlecut with the TV Jones in it...I'm tempted to do the piezo mod. If you have any audio tracks to share, please do! I may go that route.

Thanks!
 
Thanks.
I didn’t play that Sunday, but I was on bass last Sunday. It was tough finding practice time with all of the stuff involved with arrangements and such that my wife had to deal with, but God is good, and we only did three songs, all of which id done before.
 
DreamTheaterRules said:
I played Saturday outdoors at are Fall Family Weekend. We played one 30 minute set, 6 songs. About 2,000 people there. I played bluegrass(ish) though, so I'm not sure if that counts.
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Wow! Playing for a couple thousand must've been a blast! Now, that said...I'm trying to wrap my head around tying "DreamTheater" and bluegrass!! :D Although me thinks your almost dozing speaks volumes...? LOL!
 
BradM said:
Wow! Playing for a couple thousand must've been a blast! Now, that said...I'm trying to wrap my head around tying "DreamTheater" and bluegrass!! :D Although me thinks your almost dozing speaks volumes...? LOL!
Click to expand...
When we play special music at church, they always let us do 2 songs. I've been playing with these guys for 10 years. At first, I had to tell them "If you're doing one slow song, you have to do a fast one." Well, fast to them is not fast. And slow to them is SLOW. I'm constantly telling them to play it faster so we don't put people to sleep. Honestly, I've told my wife for the last 5 years that I'm going to stop playing with them, but all of the guys are good friends, and one of them is the guy I did the 3 year weekly gig with.

That said, I'm no bluegrass player, and while I could learn that style, I don't want too! So I play what I want and it's more "bluesgrass" :p And the sort of leader of the group (bass player) is one of those guys who it drives crazy that I never play the solo exactly the same way, and that I don't take music on stage. After 10 years, he'll still ask me "now is that exactly how you're going to play the solo tonight when we play?" and I'll say "probably not." And he will respond "so how will we know when to come back in?" I laugh and say the solo is 8 measures. Play your 8 measures just like you're supposed to and come back in just like you did at practice." :p I bet I've told him 50 times "If you get throw off by me playing something different, then don't listen to me! Just play your part and come in when you're supposed too." The funniest thing is, he likes to watch me solo, and the better I actually play the more it throws him off because if I do anything other than simple slower stuff, he'll be watching me and loose track of where he's at.
:p:p

In his defense, we have a banjo player that you sometimes need to be very careful with when he takes his solos. You better stay on the measure and come in when you're supposed to because he may end early or late. :rolleyes:
But I try to assure the bass player that I'll end on time and just do what you're supposed to and it will be ok.
 
Well, since this thread ties PRS guitars and worship together, you all might enjoy this. If you're up for something a little different and some excellent composition and playing... check out the group Dogs Of Peace. It's more a project band than anything (no touring, etc.). They've done two CD's... Speak (1996) and Heel (2016)...yes, 20 years apart! And, just recently popped up a single within the last couple months or so. You can find them on Apple Music and maybe others. The writer of all but two songs is Gordon Kennedy. He co-wrote Change The World (that Clapton recorded).

About 6 years back, I got to know Gordon while taking a dozen Miami University kids down to Nashville for a week. I set them up with about six artists to meet and have them share their stories. Miami paid the artists a small stipend, but all were generous with their time. I brought each a bag of butter rum coffee from a local roaster in Cincy. Gordon reached back to setup getting more shipped to him. Then...we had some long conversations on faith, his writing, amps (I build, mod and repair some in the Dayton/Cincinnati area) and touring...you name it.

Dogs Of Peace was a startup project with Gordon and bassist, Jimmy Lee Slous. (You might also recognize Gordon's name from the group White Heart when Dan Huff left.) The reason I brought up Dogs Of Peace is that you'll hear some very cool music, playing and all the songs centered around Christ. Look them up and enjoy!

Brad
 
DreamTheaterRules said:
he'll still ask me "now is that exactly how you're going to play the solo tonight when we play?" and I'll say "probably not."
Click to expand...
Hahahahaha! I feel your pain! Our keyboard player is the worship leader. He and I get along very well. We don't do click tracks, but timing is pretty good...usually! We do have a bass player that will drop off a measure or so every so often. But, I do have one singer that lacks enough confidence and...the reason?...he doesn't spend enough time really learning the song. But, all is good. We're leading a couple songs at best for worship and the entire congregation is singing so all is glossed over a bit. And, being the whole point is to worship Him, there's never anything but compliments given after the service. We try to lift their spirits up with some good pep talks.

My frustration is...we need youth or this local work will stagnate and die off. Playing 200 year old hymns won't cut it for another 10 years. Now, the worship band plays mostly current tunes, but the hymns come along in the opening, after worship band and at the close. The elderly (lol, I guess I'm about included at 63???) accepts and loves the current tunes, but the youth could care less about the "boring old hymns" and I totally understand that (Actually, I get pretty bored with the old stuff, too...just the nature of my personal taste). Oh well...pray for a turnaround and more to come attend! We need it!
 
BradM said:
Sorry so late responding...sorry for your family's loss. My mom had just passed one month back. Thank God I know she's with Him.
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That’s such a comfort. As my wife often says, “I don’t know how people can go through this without Christ”.
 
BradM said:
Well, since this thread ties PRS guitars and worship together, you all might enjoy this. If you're up for something a little different and some excellent composition and playing... check out the group Dogs Of Peace. It's more a project band than anything (no touring, etc.). They've done two CD's... Speak (1996) and Heel (2016)...yes, 20 years apart! And, just recently popped up a single within the last couple months or so. You can find them on Apple Music and maybe others. The writer of all but two songs is Gordon Kennedy. He co-wrote Change The World (that Clapton recorded).

About 6 years back, I got to know Gordon while taking a dozen Miami University kids down to Nashville for a week. I set them up with about six artists to meet and have them share their stories. Miami paid the artists a small stipend, but all were generous with their time. I brought each a bag of butter rum coffee from a local roaster in Cincy. Gordon reached back to setup getting more shipped to him. Then...we had some long conversations on faith, his writing, amps (I build, mod and repair some in the Dayton/Cincinnati area) and touring...you name it.

Dogs Of Peace was a startup project with Gordon and bassist, Jimmy Lee Slous. (You might also recognize Gordon's name from the group White Heart when Dan Huff left.) The reason I brought up Dogs Of Peace is that you'll hear some very cool music, playing and all the songs centered around Christ. Look them up and enjoy!

Brad
Click to expand...
Love it!
That arrangement! Your voices blend so well together. The style takes me back to some of my favorite indie music from the 80s.
First time I ever heard a talk box on bass on Light in the Darkness. I’ll bet that loosened a few teeth
 
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theDeepender said:
Love it!
That arrangement! Your voices blend so well together. The style takes me back to some of my favorite indie music from the 80s.
First time I ever heard a talk box on bass on Light in the Darkness. I’ll bet that loosened a few teeth
Click to expand...
The more I listen to them the more I find things that stand out. A couple songs will have a Pink Floyd flair...(Do You Know is one). Some will remind you of a Beatles' Sergeant Pepper tune (All This For A Piece Of Fruit, for example.) Gordon wrote all of them except two songs...Only The Gold and I forget the other.

About Gordon, he's the son of Jerry Kennedy (did the Pretty Woman licks for Orbison). He went on to produce a lot of bands, etc. So Gordon grew up with a plethora of amazing vintage guitars. He has most of his dad's guitars, amps, etc., and Jerry is still living. On Dogs Of Peace, the most go-to amp for tone on that is a 94 Matchless HC30 head feeding into a 1963 Bassman 2x12 cab with the original Utah speakers in it. Sometimes the guitar is an ES335, sometimes an ES355, might be a 70's Strat at times or a 50's Esquire.

Listen to 'Pray To God'...that's an ES355 into an original Dallas Arbiter Fuzzface...into the Matchless/Bassman cab setup. The Phaser effect possibly his Eventide 3000...he wasn't certain about that. Listen to 'Do You Know'...that starts with the ES355 into the Matchless/Bassman cab...then he switches to a Strat loaded with EMG's. My guess is it might be a Gilmour style of EMG's as in 1994 Gordon saw Pink Floyd twice. Lol, can you tell he's a fan? (Aren't most of us?) :p

As of this past weekend, Gordon and keyboardist Blair Masters (both on Dogs Of Peace projects, were playing on Garth's Stadium Tours and wrapped it all up with 5 shows in Ireland at Croke. All sold out at 84,000 each night. I caught them in Cincy and the show was amazing.

Love the scriptural theme for the Dogs Of Peace stuff. Gordon also wrote or co-wrote all the songs on Ricky Skaggs' Mosaic album. That's another hidden gem. Not to fear, DreamTheater, not even close to bluegrass!!!:) If you happen to want to buy the Mosaic album...grab it from Amazon Prime if possible. There you'll get a bonus track version that's a 55 minute dialogue between Ricky and Gordon about the songs on Mosaic. What that talk gave me is that...as you listen...you really find out "how" Gordon writes. And, through other conversations, I know he writes the music first in most everything he writes...lyrics are usually last. Enjoy!
 
BradM said:
Geez, I just caught you're in Cincy! Whereabouts? I live in Trenton, OH. :) Small world! Search Facebook for Airship18Amplified and you'll find me. :p
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I’ve done a bunch of mortgages in Trenton because I had a builder that was building there a few years back. I am not on Facebook. My office is in Milford. Oh and for a couple years My wife was the postmaster in Overpeck…right by Trenton
 
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