Christian theme rock

11 MP3 Songs
ROCK: Adult Alternative Pop/Rock, POP: Pop/Rock

Show all album songs: The Story Songs


Details:
Rumor of Glory is many things. A band of two musicians brought together despite vastly different paths. Permission to ask questions to an unseen but ever-present God. Most of all, though, Rumor of Glory is the true story of a sonâs return to the Father.

The band was conceived in 2006 by Tony Harrison and JJ Plasencio (Plumb, Sixpence None the Richer) in Austin as a vehicle for Harrisonâs recent return to faith. Recalls Harrison, âItâs really a story about how powerful the church can be over you.â

The early 1990s found Harrison working as a musician in his native Orlando. It was there that a series of controversies and deceptions in his local church directly harmed his family and drove him to stop attending services altogether. Not long after abandoning the church of his youth, Harrisonâs life began to take a turn for the worse.

âI basically went on the road for several years, didnât have a home, and nearly got myself in trouble. Really big trouble,â Harrison says. âThen there was this moment when I just began praying, and God heard my prayers and came thru in a big way! After that, I stopped playing music for myself and wanted to play music for a better reason, I suppose to pay God back.â

Harrison packed his bags for Austin, knowing the vibrant music scene there would provide a healthy outlet for his art. Still, he didnât darken the doors of another church for several years until a fellow musician suggested he try Gateway Church.

âI knew that I wanted to serve. I didnât just want to come on Sunday and get my helping and then leave,â Harrison recalls.

Plasencio, Gatewayâs music director, immediately identified Harrisonâs natural musical talent and invited him to become a regular part of the worship team. Their bond continued to strengthen as Harrison shared his story and struggled to put past ghosts to sleep.

Eventually the two began writing songs together, partly as a way for Harrison to heal and move forward with his life. Songs like âNo Loveâ and âHeaven is Waitingâ addressed God directly, probing tough issues like why He allows so much pain and suffering in the world.

Adds Harrison, âI was just angry and hurt by what I thought God (it was really the church) had done to me and my family, and I didnât understand why so many bad things happen to good people. It didnât make sense to me until I figured out that this very trial was the one that brought me so much closer to God than I ever thought possible.â
Then came âShow me Jesus.â

âShow Me Jesusâ begins as a quiet meditation on the difficulty of being faithful in a faithless world. Harrison tackled the same questions as in previous songs, and ends with a climactic finish in which he joyfully proclaims âI believe,â alongside a chorus of singers. âShow Me Jesusâ became the albumâs cornerstone as well as a personal landmark for Harrison, who was baptized not long after completing the song. Harrison debuted the song before more than 5,000 people during Easter services in 2006. Before long, a slew of other songs arrived, bringing the character full circle and comprising the album that would become The Story.

âThe Story is Tonyâs story, but the story also transcends Tony,â Plasencio explains. âItâs really about how much the church can open its doors to someone who is broken. Our hope is that this record would do everyday what baptism does.â

âGod started to put us together to write songs like this,â Harrison adds. âItâs very refreshing because itâs very real.â