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Notes and nostalgia
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The Schlitt show at YMCA took the audience on a trip down melody lane
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PHOTO: M.KARUNAKARAN
In uplifted voice John Schlitt
Between 1986 and 2005, John Schiltt was the voice of Petra, the Christian band that redefined the way people worship. Schiltt has generated a lot of interest even after the band bowed out of the scene. A fact that has encouraged the singer to go for his third solo, ‘The Grafting’ (released in January, 2008).
When Schlitt presented songs from this album with his band Stonejava (on a month-long tour of India) at a recent concert at YMCA, Royapettah, the response was along expected lines. There was head-banging coupled with devotion. But the response to songs from Petra’s albums was something totally different.
There was a roar of delight when he launched into ‘Just Reach Out’, one of the emblematic Christian rock songs ever. From ‘Beyond Belief’, ‘Creed’ to ‘Jekyll & Hide’, the last Petra song to be recorded, the audience lapped it all. The choice of songs seemed to present the different stages of Petra. This meant it was an evening of nostalgia for musicians like Timothy Madhukar, who said, “I grew up listening to Petra.”
The Schlitt concert also fielded local talent. Roped in as a guest artiste, Billy Day gave a taste of Christian rap.
After Billy, Schlitt returned but did not stay long. Unable to cope with the Chennai heat, the 58-year-old cut short his second innings.
Following ‘Blessed Be Your Name’ which is part of Vertical Expressions (also known as II Guys from Petra), an album born out of a collaboration between John Schlitt and Petra guitarist Bob Hartman, Schlitt said that there are different ways of praising God.
As a frontman of a band that has been slotted into various categories (Christian rock, progressive rock, hard rock, country rock and heavy metal), he has proved it.
PRINCE FREDERICK
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Metro Plus
Bangalore
Chennai
Coimbatore
Delhi
Hyderabad
Kochi
Madurai
Mangalore
Puducherry
Tiruchirapalli
Thiruvananthapuram
Vijayawada
Visakhapatnam
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