Grace like rain

[stephen]

Sunday morning my P&W Leader gives us song sheets for Grace Like Rain (Todd Agnew). tells us, were doing this today. ARGGGHHH! I hate that! I love the song, but I've only heard it all the way through maybe twice. I hate the last minute, "here ya go!". But Chris said, I have confidence you all. So we did it. Wow. I was so blessed by it. Both services, we just played our hearts out on it, and I gotta admit, it sounded so sweet.

Whenever I have heard the song and I have sang along with it, it has brought tears too my eye's. Well, the tears flowed like buckets during both services. Sometimes God knows better than me. Make that all the time, He knows better than me.

[colefish]

You must be pretty good if you pulled that off at the last minute. Not that there are any blazing licks in there but it is full of tasty fills.

Did you use delay on the intro or any of the fill parts?

That Todd Agnew has quite a voice for a young guy. I like his playing style very much.

Beautiful song!

[stephen]

You must be pretty good if you pulled that off at the last minute. Not that there are any blazing licks in there but it is full of tasty fills.

Did you use delay on the intro or any of the fill parts?

That Todd Agnew has quite a voice for a young guy. I like his playing style very much.

Beautiful song!

:oops: Pretty good? I like to think I know how to fake it pretty good.

Its actually a pretty simple song, 4 chords repeating all the way through:
C#m, A5, E, B. I would on the main lyrics defer to the acoustic for most of the rhythem, and I would fill with some apregiated open/bar chords, and throw in a volume swell or two.

I dont have a delay pedal (yet), but I cranked up the gain on my tubescreamer, had my chorus set mild as always (I love the slight surround effect I get that way: amkes all the notes bloom fuller), and kicked on the flanger with a slow medium depth sweep, easy on the regeneration. This afforded a very responsive modulation in response to pick attack: Nice and dreamy with a precise and careful pick aaccents, both apregio's and strumming, and then allowing it to go major sweep/scream when diggin in for an aggressive attack during the chorus.

I guess I have a good ear for the ambience needed in a song. My technique is not much to be desired, but I know what sounds good, and somehow I know how to deliver it. Thats a talent I owe all to God, cause I still cant figure out how me being self taught, totally illiterate when it comes to written music, and I pull it off, so I know its gotta be God.

The other thing is, I think I have finally conceded, that I'm a rock guitarist. I love the blues, and I'm nuts/gah-gah over SRV, and I think it just dont get any better than that, but I aint ever gonna be that kinda player. Oh I may have a little influence in my playing, and that by itself makes me exstatic, but I know when I pick up my guitar, I'm gonna play rock-n-roll, cause thats what I do best. Just that adjustment there, I can tell my playing has gone up quite a few notches. Still not anything great, but like I said, I can fake it!

[CortLegacy]

That's great Stephen :) such an awesome song.

[stephen]

That's great Stephen :) such an awesome song.

Yeah, it is. It leaves me in awe every time.

[Ascension]

Killer tune and one of my favorite P/W songs currently .

[colefish]

Hey Stephen,

I'm being used the same way at my church. Kinda like the guy that adds the color or ambience as you put it, to the songs.

Interesting that I use the chorus and gain or overdrive together in the same way you describe.

I am also self taught and was basically a strummer and singer for the first eight years I played. When the church wanted to go to the contemporary worship sets there was an obvious need for that element that makes Rock and Roll, Rock and Roll!

Nobody really asked me to or anything but I went out and bought a Mexi Strat and brought it to practice with me one week and everyone liked it. Well you know, next you need some fx pedals and a guitar that has humbuckers and... :mrgreen:

Anyway, I enjoy being a part of the worship team and I get compliments all the time from the other musicians on the "tone" I get and the element I bring to the music. I try to tell them it's the Lord but I don't think some of them get it. I mean, I can't read music and besides the notes in the cowboy chords area I only know the notes on the 6th and 5th strings all the way up the fretboard. I know next to nothing about music theory and I was never able to play like this before so it's the Lord!

Sorry Stephen, I don't mean to hi-jack your thread, just felt a kindred spirit thing. I just watched one of my Stevie DVD's yesterday and I'm always wondering, you know, what if...?

[stephen]

colefish, no hijack in my eyes.

More than kindred spirits, we brothers by adoption by the Greatest Father, and the Best Big Brother!

Yeah, I notice too sometimes, they dont get it, when I know it aint me at all.

I also wonder if Stevie was still with us,...... oh wel, we'll all be gathered at the Fathers feet casting our crowns back too him, and playing our hearts out collectively before Him, you, me, Stevie, and all of our other brothers and sisters. How Awesome!!!!!!!

[ryanspeer]

That really is a great song. It's a bit over-played on the radio now around the Seattle area, but I do love it still. I introduced it at a summer camp that I was leading worship at for my brother's youth group last year and we had one of the greatest times of worship that I think I've experienced in at least the last 2-3 years. I think I was even more blessed than my brother and his youth group.

I played it on my acoustic, along with a tiny bit of slap-back delay, moderate chorus, and a bit of compression during the verses. It worked out far better than I could've imagined without having a full band backing me.

[SoulShade]

We are going to start practicing that song tomorow(Friday), so we'll see how it goes. Isn't it amazing how we end up where we do sometimes? God has a way of doing things, sometimes I feel like I'm just along for the ride!

[Old Believer]

It's one of my favorite P/W tunes. Hans Ives and the Harvest Praise Band do a great version of it.

[CortLegacy]

We just played it at Senior High Youth at our church on Sat night. It was powerful. Everybody was really into it. We built it as far as we could and then rocked it all the way to the end. God moves!!

[stephen]

.....God moves!!

Awesome!

[SAguitar]

We've been asking our Worship Pastor to do that one for about a year, and this weekend is the one he chose to introduce it. Awesome song, it moves my heart closer to the Father. :bowdown:

[colefish]

Great news!

We are finally going to introduce this song into the rotation at my church. Better late than never! Plus this allows me to glean from you who have already worked on this. :mrgreen:

Anyone using the delay in a similar fashion as Todd does? Got any settings or tips you could throw my way?

I've got a Boss DD-3 but it doesn't allow me to use an unlatching footswitch for that momentary delay that it sounds like Todd uses.

Well thanks for any advice.

[stephen]

OK, I dont use delay, but I have my tube Screamer on, my Boss Super Chorus, and my Ibanez Flanger all goin.

I rely on my pick attack, and pup selector switch a lot on this song. During the main verses, I utilize mild appreagiate chords C#m, A2, Em (barre, @ 7th fret), B, and come in sometimes like a 1/4 beat behind on some of the changes, and rely on a lot of droning open strings. I'm splitting both my pups.

When we hit the verse leading into the chorus, I flip to the bridge pup, keeping the mellow apregio's going, but building up to almost a "House of the Rising Son" appregio, and then diving into an aggressive strumming/shuffle attack, really driving the chorus into the stratosphere. During this aggressive chorus, I do a hybrid strum/apregio on the A2 and Em (barre chords). It almost gives the effect of a little fill or lead being played at the same time.

I tell you what, that song wrecks me every time, doesnt matter if its during service, practice, or singing along in my car alone. That song is very special too me, and with my Worship of Jesus.

[MadHatter]

I use my tonebone classic with medium gain setting, my dd3 is on, just enough to give it some space tho. I also use my wah extensively during this song.

I use the neck pick up on my strat to start with my volume rolled off to about half, this cleans up the guitar very nicely, just a touch of grit. I mimick the decending F E C line that you hear in the recording, while our rythym guy plays the chords on his acoustic, Like I said...I use my wah extensively, but not to get Wah wah sounds...I just slowly rock it in and out of the sweet spot, for some nice tonal changes. when we get to the point where they have the lead break when the song speeds up a notch, I turn up the guitar volume to 10, and play the short lead break.

from this point till the instrumental bridge I do a gentle gallop on the root notes of the chords, with some octave strumming to break it up.

the instrumental break my delay wah goes off and I play straight power chords.

the next section is quiet, and I go back to half volume and mimicking the decending F E C, here I start to turn it around tho and start to improvise a bit. when we get to the end of that part where that verse ends, I kick in my flanger, turn up the guitar again, and rock the wah all the way from heal to toe, and do a pick slide down my low E string, It sounds over the top, but it's just perfect really,

then I go back to galloping, during the last two times through the chorus I start to improvise over a D minor scale, lot's of bends and a little pentatonic wanking...not lots'...lol but just enough

I agree with stephen...this is a very powerful song, and I feel priviledged to play it...
and it never fails to move me

[TheBigKevDogg]

i'm just trying to figure out my parts to it right now. awesome song! since I just added a DL4 to my pedalboard I've been playing with it on this song, starting out with some swell harmonies at the beginning and then doing a fast synced sweep echo for the verses and non-distorted first chorus. still trying to get it down though! i'd love to hear recordings of what you guys are doing with it if you have any!

[stephen]

Were gonna record this year, so when that happens, I'll see what I can do.

One thing I think is important for this song: the minor chords. The chord progression we use is C#m, A2, Em (electric barre chord 7th fret, acoustic open Em on 2nd fret), B. This progression gives it waht I cal a darker, or brooding tonality to the song. I heard another group attempt it, and the chord transposing they did got rid of the minor chord progression, and brightened the song, and it lost its whole flavor.

My band is going to play at a prison in 4 weeks, this is one of the closing songs were scheduling, though the Holy Spirit may decide differently, but thats what were planning.

[TheBigKevDogg]

Were gonna record this year, so when that happens, I'll see what I can do.

One thing I think is important for this song: the minor chords. The chord progression we use is C#m, A2, Em (electric barre chord 7th fret, acoustic open Em on 2nd fret), B. This progression gives it waht I cal a darker, or brooding tonality to the song. I heard another group attempt it, and the chord transposing they did got rid of the minor chord progression, and brightened the song, and it lost its whole flavor.

My band is going to play at a prison in 4 weeks, this is one of the closing songs were scheduling, though the Holy Spirit may decide differently, but thats what were planning.

Wow what an awesome opportunity to play in a prison! That'll be awesome! As far as the chords go, it's interesting that you play Em. The official chords from his site ( http://www.toddagnew.com/downloads/charts/glr/Grace_Like_Rain.pdf ) list it as a (in your key, theirs is a half step up) C#m A E B progression (with an E-Major). I'll have to try the minor thing and see how it sounds...

[colefish]

Thanks you guys for taking the time to detail your takes on the song. I found myself actually hearing what you were describing. I agree though, it would be great to hear what you've done with it.

We are using an eight week set rotation right now and this song will be introduced with about nine other new songs (new for us) as a ninth week set. We are on the eighth week this Sunday so I have to wait for two months before we actually will play this in a worship service because we have so much new material to cover.

I'm really pumped about this song. Do any of you sing it? Todd has a unique tonal quality to his voice. I've only sang one song at our church, Ocean by Ten Shekel Shirt a couple years ago. I think I would like to sing Grace Like Rain but I'd have to stick to playing chords, I could not sing and do the fills, not at this point anyway.

Well thanks again for the info, I found your takes very interesting.

[colefish]

Wow Stephen, it sounds like God is really using the gifts and talent He's given you.

Is the group you are recording with the same group that is going into the prison?

Hope all goes well as you minister in song in each endeavor.

[MDK2323]

I hate the last minute, "here ya go!".

It's funny you mention this subject, as this is how we do things just about every Sunday at my church. Our worship pastor will give us a CD about once or twice a year with some songs that he wants to do, and we are supposed to learn them. So I take the CD home and try to learn the songs, and when/if we do them, we wind up transposing them up or down several keys, throwing out or adding a bridge or chorus and adding a huge impromptu guitar solo.

That is my biggest pet peeve. I've talked to our P&W pastor about it, and he says that what the CD's are for. But we also do many songs that have never been on any of the CD's he's given us.

I read an article with Lincoln Brewster that talks about how churches have rehearsal during sound check and sound check during the service, and that is wrong.

What can be done? Pray?

[stephen]

I hate the last minute, "here ya go!".

It's funny you mention this subject, as this is how we do things just about every Sunday at my church. .....................................

What can be done? Pray?

Well, praying is the first thing we should do. It prepares the path.

Then if you still feel that way, talk again with your P&W Leader, and tell him your struggling with this. Explain again, you learn the songs on the CD's, you practice them, and then there transposed or re arranged, and its throwing you off.

Now unless your all on staff in the Praise Team (ie: paid), I'm pretty sure that practices are very rare, if at all. Suggest this: If you have 3 services on Sunday (say 8:00am, 10:30am, and 6:00pm), suggest once a month you all practice for 1 or two hours on the third Sunday of every month, right after the second service. Our P&W Team does that twice a month, but I suggest start with once a month first, and see if the consensus is there to do two a month.

Now to go a little further, I would have to say, that we alter songs about 30% or more. But we really find that you have to, as a team, work those alterations out. That means practice.

I also want to clarify one point too, when I said, "I hate the last second, here ya go!" what bugs me most about it I think, is I am also trying to lift up Praise and Worship to God, and I find myself having to kinda disconnect from being a "worshipper" to plugging into being a "musician", and with me, theres a big difference between the two.

Finally, I want to take us back to the first thing we should do, ........pray.

I ask in my prayer, that through all things, that its not about me, but all about Jesus. I've found myself a few times not making an approach on something I was absolutely convinced that I was right on, only to feel that I was not right about it. One thing I have learned, God has a way of taking care of it all, far better than any plan I could come up with!