GLENN'S PODCASTS!

THE JUST BEFORE CORNERSTONE FESTIVAL UPDATE:

Got all kinds of news about the new GKB project, "Octane" as well as the completion of the REZ Band boxed set- quoting the Grrr Records email that just went out here-

"Grrr Records Summer Email Cornerstone Festival 2008 Edition

Your Grrr Records summer email has arrived, packed with new releases and great deals available at grrrrecords.com

Hope to see you at Cornerstone Festival!

To view this web page, go to http://www.grrrrecords.com/emails/June08/juneo8.html

Glenn Kaiser Band/Octane
Don’t miss the white-hot new studio release from Christian music’s premier blues rock trio, the Glenn Kaiser Band. Along with bandmates Roy Montroy on bass and Ed Bialach on drums, Glenn Kaiser serves up another sonic smorgasbord of classic rock, blues and R&B. The thirteen tunes that make up Octane crackle with fire and passion that are challenging and enjoyable at the same time. Available now.

Resurrection Band/Music To Raise The Dead Box Set
Brace yourself for the definitive Resurrection Band box set coming this summer. This first career-spanning Rez collection includes three CDs with 52 digitally re-mastered songs, an 80-page full-color booklet detailing the history of Rez Band with scores of photos, and one DVD with over an hour of previously unreleased live concert video footage and special features.

Grrr Records 920 W. Wilson Ave. Chicago, IL 60640
Orders: 1.800.568.1225 grrrorders@jpusa.org"

So that's the deal with those two projects.

GKB has been doing a number of the new songs live and will add more as summer touring happens. I think we'll add 3 new ones from Octane at the Cornestone Festival set.

REZ rehearsals have been fun and we look forward to shows at Cstone as well as Unity Fest near Muskegon, Michigan.

Then Wendi and I get vacation time!

GKB looks forward to doing a couple sets per day for about 4 days running at the world's largest bike rally, Sturgis, South Dakota.

At some point I GOTTA find time to put photos of my incredible Swamp Thang resonator guitar from Shannon Coberly at Trimmed and Burnin' Guitars and Amps, as well as Rod Mclellan's exquisite acoustic (which I'll play at the REZ set at Cstone and Unity). Both are just amazing in all respects.

I know, I know- I've been talking about adding podcasts forever and just haven't gotten it done... it's in my HEART to add 'em, I have a number ready to go, just so little time and personnel to add 'em! All of us are so busy pre-Cstone...

I'm strongly leaning toward doing a project, perhaps next year, ten. titled Fulton Co. Blues (where our Cornerstone Farm is) much in the basic vibe of Ripley Co. blues, that is, half acoustic, half electric blues, featuring a few more of my friends on various instruments, very blues-based but stretching out, live "jam" feel on some of the tunes. More on this in the future but I'm writing songs for that now.

I may just get a street performer's license for the city of Chicago and do a bunch of solo blues street gigs this summer and early autumn. I've been wanting to do this for years but schedules haven't permitted. Lord willing, I'll get onto that this summer and fall, and get one of my cigar box guitars out there with an acoustic, stomp board and harmonicas. All the sweet weather, and beneath the city, the subway which is always nice and cool- and has good acoustics too!

Should be quite a summer! See you at the Fest and hopefully on tour. And thanks for stopping by!

Love and Hugs,
-Glenn

YOUR BEST FRIEND KNOWS

My brother Darryl Kaiser recently passed away. He died of cancer just two months past his diagnosis. I loved him and will miss him!

The day after he passed my Wendi and I celebrated our 36th anniversary. We spent a few days together at Cornerstone Farm (where JPUSA hold the annual Cornerstone Festival) and had a great time together bird watching, walking, gardening, driving around at night looking at all the deer and wildlife.

Then we drove up to Wisconsin for the funeral/memorial service together.

It had been some years since my Dad and Mom had passed away, and they died within 3 months of one another. They'd been divorced for many years prior. It was God's grace that moved my Dad to pray at a Rez Band concert many years before.

Wendi had prayed a salvation prayer with my Mom about 3 months before she'd passed.

And now there are only my sister Holly and I left of our immediate family. We had lost track of her for several year, and again, by God's grace found her son-in-law & daughter's email addy, and I was able to notify her of Darryl's passing.

Holly and family attended the funeral and we had an amazing time remembering Darryl, and hearing how Holly had now begun to follow Jesus with her son-in-law and daughter! Yahoo!

I had prayed (and will continue to) for each of my family, their spouses and kids for years. It was excellent to see so many of them that day.

My brother's wife's bro. was asked to speak as was I and also his immediate neighbor and dear friend, Jim. All of us of course touched on Darryl's life, character and personal anecdotes. I was really blessed by the message each brought to the moment.

I'd wanted to write about this today but first opened the Bible up to read, then a daily devotional I get emailed to me. The devo was a basic quote saying "Do your best work last so that when you die you have nothing left to do but die". Wow. Indeed.

I responded to a boatload of overdue email (due to all my travel this month) and then took a short break to read one of my fave devo. books by Michael Card. In it I read the following sentence: "A great way to come closer to someone is to get to know the person's best friend".

I immediately marked this as profound and nearly always true.

And then I thought about the implications of it.

When I die, what will my best friend say about me?

I have several best friends really. First, Jesus Christ. I think I know what He'll say, at least for the most part. Wendi is certainly my best friend on earth and I think I pretty well know what she'd say. I have several other very close friends, all of whom will speak the truth and I trust bring at least three things regarding my life: glory to God, shrugs/eye rolls as well as laughter.

And then I began to consider this in light of now, today, for you and for me:

At this present time, what would my/your best friend honestly say if asked? What could they say about our: integrity, authenticity, humility, love for Jesus, love for people, prayer habits, Bible-study and quoting/application in our lives, teachability, accountability, willingness to share the Good News, servanthood? Add anything you like to this list. What would they say about the media I loved? How would any of this/all of this reflect my relationship to Jesus, my Christian faith?

Huge, 'eh? Indeed. God help us... and our best friends too.