Booth Brothers Concert: A Prayer Request, an Interview, and a Duet

Last updated on: October 3, 2011 at 6:00 am by Esther O’Reilly

Booth Brothers Concert: A Prayer Request, an Interview, and a Duet 2011-10-03T06:00:54-04:00 Esther O’Reilly

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

The full review of the Booth Brothers concert I went to will have to wait for a little while until I get some important schoolwork out of the way. Meanwhile, here are a few things that might interest my readers until then. First, a prayer request for Jim Brady: During the concert, he shared that his dad had been taken to the hospital the night before. He didn’t share many details but simply asked for prayers because things looked uncertain. So keep Jim, his dad, and the rest of the family in your prayers. I got to chat with Jim real briefly at half-time and told him that he had co-written one of my favorite songs of the year (“Stand Among the Millions”). He said that he believed that might be the next radio single for Brian Free & Assurance. If he’s right, I hope it’s a hit. In Jim’s words, Brian really “tears it up.”

Second, I caught up with Ronnie Booth at half-time and asked him what his favorite song on the new project was. He said it was “Masterpiece of Mercy.” I asked him to share a bit about why, and here’s his response:
Ronnie: Well, I mean, I can see the work of grace has been done in my own life and how I’ve changed over the years, and more and more wanting to become like the Lord Jesus, through his word. Musically speaking, it’s one of my favorite styles to sing. It was so melodic—Jim and Rodney Griffin wrote that.
Me: It’s right in your sweet spot.
Ronnie: Very, very much. And it really showcases the harmony of the group.
Me: Yeah, and I love it at the end on that last note when Michael is just floating up there above you like he does… it’s just beautiful.
Ronnie: I think I floated, but I didn’t get quite to my pitch… but I eventually got there. [Laughs]
We then talked a bit about how Ronnie and Michael’s voices actually resemble each other a lot despite the fact that they have different timbres. Ronnie is a sweet guy and it was a pleasure to meet him. There was also a funny moment before I got a chance to speak with him when another lady in line was asking questions about the Jubilee projects. She wasn’t quite sure what she was looking for but knew she was interested in one of those collaborations. I thought I heard her mention that she was looking for a DVD, so I said “Well here’s their latest one” and picked up the Jubilee 2 DVD which happened to be in the rack right next to us. Ronnie flashed me a grin and said “I’m glad you’re here.” He was obviously very occupied with the various people trying to talk to him and asking for autographs, so he probably appreciated the help. 🙂
And finally, I had the wonderful opportunity to connect with Michael Booth both at half-time and after the concert. At half-time, I nervously began to introduce myself, saying he might have seen me around the blogosphere… Before I could finish, he started to say “Are you yankeegospelgirl? I saw on your blog that you were coming tonight and I was hoping to meet you!” You can imagine my surprise at this point as I blurted out, “Really? You wanted to meet m-m-m-me?” He said “Yes, I did.” I asked him if he’d read anything I’d written about their stuff, and he said he had and really appreciated it. Then he leaned over very seriously and said, “Listen, you bloggers are really important. You carry just as much responsibility as we do.” He said “I want you to know that it’s okay to be direct, just as long as you do it with grace. And I think you’re doing that. You’re doing a good job.” That meant a lot to me, and I thanked him very earnestly. I wanted to put that into a blog post here as a reminder to my other fellow bloggers, that we do indeed carry a responsibility. People are coming and reading what we say, and if we don’t reflect Christ, we’re not being a good witness. As Michael said, that doesn’t mean we should feel constrained from sharing honest opinions, but if we do so with intent to be constructive, I think we’re doing the right thing.
After the concert, we were able to link up again mostly by chance (long story), and I surprised him by asking if he could sing a little duet with me. I did this with Ernie Haase when I saw Signature Sound in concert earlier this year, so I’m starting to rack up a small collection. I actually would have been content to do it with any of the Brothers, but it was extra special to do it with Michael. We were standing in the empty auditorium with loud music playing over the speakers, so I said, “Let’s not do it here.” We walked out to the lobby, and he had us stop in a corner so that the people milling about out there wouldn’t mob him. We sang “It is Well With My Soul.” Despite the background noise, it came out very clear and very simple. As far as I can tell, we were on pitch the whole time. Later I felt really, really bad about putting him on the spot and risking his being mobbed by fans, but I think he was able to retreat safely after we finished. 😀
After we sang, we had a few more parting words, and it came out that he didn’t really botch his lyrics on “Welcome to the Family” at NQC. He did it on purpose to give the audience a lift. Typical Michael. He had me fooled. 😀 But when I asked him if the Four Great Cathedrals story was true, he said it was absolutely true. He knew he was going to fail the test anyway, so he figured he might as well make it a little fun for himself. Again, typical Michael. I was grateful for the small amount of time I got to spend with him and hope we can meet again one day. He’s a southern gospel treasure, and if he’s reading this I want to thank him from the bottom of my heart—for making the concert a great experience and for making time for me in particular. I don’t take it lightly. I don’t take it lightly at all.

Concerts

Booth Brothers

Previous Post

October 1, 2011

Half CD Review: In Good Hands by Declaration (EP)

Next Post

October 5, 2011 Scotty McCreery talks us through his debut album

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 3 star 3.5 star 4 star 4.5 star Anatomy of a Song Behind the Songs Blog Stuff Book Reviews CCM CCM vs. SG CD Reviews Christians in Entertainment Christmas Essential 12 Christmas Favorites Christmas Top Fives Concert Reviews Concerts Culture Devotional Thoughts Faith and Culture From the Vault Fun Gospel Singers Gospel Songs Great Music Guest Posts Harmony Master Classes History Holidays Humor Hymns Interviews Marriage in the Movies Monday Morning Humor Movie Reviews Movies Music NQC Odds and Ends Old Movies, New Eyes Old Southern Gospel News Old Stuff Open Threads Other Genres Perfect Tenor Performances Polls Questions and Answers Recently Added SG vs. The Rest of the World Sing It Again Songs Songwriting Southern Gospel Surprise Sunday The Definitive Hymns Theology Toe-to-Toe Top 10 Lists Top 5 Top 5 Lists Two Sisters Review Uncategorized Video Posts Youtube Finds

Select a Month August 2026 February 2025 August 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 October 2023 March 2023 February 2023 December 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 June 2020 March 2020 February 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 April 2018 September 2017 August 2017 May 2017 February 2017 December 2016 November 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz

Who was the oldest man recorded in the Bible?

Select your answer to see how you score.

Methuselah Noah Adam Jared