Gene Watson find his gospel roots

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One of my favorite country entertainers is Gene Watson. He recently took home the R.O.P.E. Awards, 2017 Entertainer of the Year, an honor he shared with one of his best friends in the music business – Jeannie Seely.

Gene Watson continues to stay true to his traditional country style with the release of his new record with New Day Christian Distribution, My Gospel Roots, available December 8.
“New Day Christian has a storied legacy of distributing quality Christian products,” said Dottie Leonard Miller, President New Day Christian. “We’re excited to add Gene Watson to that list. Gene’s voice is synonymous with Country music, and we couldn’t be more thrilled to partner with him as he returns to his ‘roots.’”
Over the years, Watson has proved that he is one of the great traditional country artists of his generation, and is defiantly proud to release a Gospel album that stands out in the wave of today’s popular music. He is even prouder to dedicate his new album to his parents, Ted and Thelma Watson, who he credits for raising him in the church and sharing their love for Gospel music. The 13-track record brings the pure, organic country sound that Watson is famous for to gospel songs that he grew up with.
“This record really goes back to my roots of being in that little church and singin’ hymns. We had nothing but love, family and prayer back then, so I wanted to honor those traditions with this album,” Watson said.

Fans got a taste of what to expect from Watson’s new record with the release of his “Help Me” rendition on his 2016 album, Real.Country.Music. Originally penned by Larry Gatlin and recorded by Elvis Presley, “Help Me,” captivated audiences and rose to No. 1 in Christian Servant Magazine, Christian Voice Magazine and on Cashbox. My Gospel Roots includes “Help Me,” but also features Watson’s own renditions of many other classic Christian songs.
Watson includes songs from all different generations on his new record, and proves that he hasn’t lost a note in his incredible multi-octave range. One particular stand-out is “Old Roman Soldier, the first single releasing to Christian radio stations.
“I’d never heard a Gospel song written from the point of view of the Roman soldier who placed Jesus on the cross,” Watson said. “This song is true Country Gospel in the way it delivers a strong Christian message with such a visual story type setting.”
Despite a busy few months in the studio, Watson, who is often known as “The Singer’s Singer,” shows no sign of slowing down his touring schedule. Fans can expect to hear his powerhouse vocals on classics like “Farewell Party” and “Fourteen Carat Mind,” alongside Watson’s gospel renditions.
Be sure to follow Gene Watson on Facebook or visit GeneWatsonMusic.com to order My Gospel Roots and purchase tickets to upcoming shows.

“A Question of Faith” opens doors for youth performers while changing lives

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Karen Valero (fourth from right) stops on the red carpet at the Los Angeles premiere of “A Question of Faith” with fellow cast members, from left, Donna Biscoe, T.C Stallings, Kim Fields, Richard T Jones, Mara Hall, Amber Thompson, Renee O’Connor, Marliss Amiea, and James Hooper. (Photo: Silver Lining Entertainment/Erik Fischer )

Karen Valero (right) and Jaci Velasquez portray daughter and mother in the new film “A Question of Faith.” (Photo: Silver Lining Entertainment)

I recently visited with singer/actress Amber Nelon Thompson at the National Quartet Convention as she enthusiastically described her experience filming her role as “Michelle Danielson”  for the new film “A Question of Faith.”
Thompson received the opportunity after her mother Kelly Nelon Clark of the Gospel artiists the Nelons, who went to an acting audition and noticed the role of a teen singer among the roles being cast. Signed to her own record deal, Amber fit the bill and soon found herself cast.
She was so excited by the experience and attending the premieres. She shared with me the experience of coming to know another young actress Karen Valero who portrayed another one of the main youth roles.
Members of the amazing ensemble cast includes Richard T. Jones, Kim Fields and C. Thomas Howell in the film from Pure Flix and Silver Lining Entertainment opened in theaters around the country Sept. 29 and combined premieres in Atlanta where it was filmed, Los Angeles and a private screening at the Capitol in Washington, D.C.
“We had over 3000 people show up at the Atlanta premiere. Wow it was fantastic!” Valero said. “This movie has changed my life, I’ve heard people telling me about their personal life and how inspired they are to become a better person after seeing the film.”
Valero, who lives in Atlanta, was born in Caracas, Venezuela coming to America at 15. She soon found that her loves of theatre, photography, and visual arts complimented her interest in acting. For her modeling jobs led to appearing in commercials, which then turned into film auditions.
In “A Question of Faith” Valero portrays “Maria Hernandez.” She said the film tells the story of three families that find themselves at a crossroads and questioning their faith.
“Each family member deals with their issues, their worlds start to intertwine,” she said. “It was such an honor to work with this talented group of actors.”
Multi-million selling Grammy ® nominee Jaci Velasquez appears in the film as her mother “Kate Hernandez.”
“Karen is a natural, she was a delight to work with,” Velasquez said. “Working with Karen is a true pleasure, she’s super easy going and discovers new things in the character she is playing and brings it to screen in a beautiful way.”
Valero describes her character as a free-spirited teenager who works with her mom at a restaurant.
“She owns delivering restaurant orders, but Maria can’t stop texting and driving and doesn’t want to listen to her Mom, as she strives to be the first one in their family to attend college,” she said. “However, her choices change not only her life, but all those involved within the story.
“Playing Maria made me realize receiving this role for me was a sign from God,” she said. “My life has changed and I’ve been closer to God more than ever.”
She said this was never more evident to her that while playing the jail and court scenes faced by Maria.
“It made me feel like I lost everything and I would never like this to happen to me or anyone else in real life so I’ve learned a lesson to never, never text and drive,” she said. “Which is something I did do before being cast. I hope and pray that those who see this film change their habits as I have.”
For more information about Karen Valero, visit http://www.karenvalero.com/ and Amber Nelon Thompson at www.thenelons.com.
Visit A Question of Faith movie website at http://aquestionoffaith.com and follow A Question of Faith movie on Facebook and Twitter and follow the conversation at #AQuestionOfFaith.

A shave and a haircut

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As I sat and squirmed in my chair trying to scratch a place in the middle of my back, I wasn’t very happy that I made a trip to get a haircut. Have you ever noticed when you go to the barber that those little hairs that fall inside your shirt collar can make you itch for the rest of the day?

It kind of makes you understand the “hippie” movement, at least the hair part of it. Although I never understood my middle brother Alan’s desire to have a six-inch afro, it must have been somewhere in the early 70’s, I ran in from playing down the street to find my brother sitting in the living room looking like he had a fight with an electric toaster and lost.

One thing that makes me wonder is why folks go to a salon to get their hair styled. They can do most anything there from your hair to your nails. They even got them places where you can get a full body wrap.

Now when I was growing up, men didn’t go to a salon. A salon was for women. That’s where women folk went to get their hair glued in place before they went to church on Sunday.

Back then, men folk went to barber shops. If a man was caught going in to a beauty salon, it took a month of Sunday’s to live it down.

While memories of my first haircut have faded, I am told that I was really not too much of a squirmer in the barber’s chair. I knew that if I didn’t behave that would be my last time sitting down for a while.

After our family moved from the big city of Little Five Points out to the country in Chamblee, my Dad and I settled on going to a barber named Mr. Saxon. I don’t believe I ever knew his first name, but Mr. Saxon cut my hair from my third birthday all the way through my senior year in high school.

One thing I have learned in my life is that loyalty to a barber is one of the most important choices a man can make. No matter where Mr. Saxon moved his practice through the years, that is where we went to get our hair cut.

Haircuts back then didn’t cost an arm and a leg either. It took me years to not cringe when pulling more than $2 out of my pocket for a haircut.

Initially, the old barber shop had been in business since the days of Civil War reconstruction. As I sat in a red leather swivel barber chair, I would look up above the mirrors on the wall at the shotguns which were mounted above each barber chair in case some restless mountaineer needed to be reminded that he was in town.

Hill folk would ride into town and not only get a haircut, shave and a boot shine, but  take a shower and house their horse out back while they were in town.

Mr. Saxon always managed to keep my Dad and I properly trimmed. After my cut, I would always help out by sweeping up the hair clippings on the gray tile floor. Through the years, it was amazing how I always seemed to sweep up a dime or two to put in the old red carousel Coca-Cola machine when I was done.

Through the years, Mr. Saxon imparted many words of wisdom on this impressionable lad. Probably the one that stuck the most was “Always remember, no matter who you meet in life, your mom and dad will be the best friends you will ever have.”

By the time I had reached my senior year, Mr. Saxon was growing near retirement. While he was once a whiz, time was taking its toll. The loyalty within me insisted that he would be the one to cut my hair before my senior photos were taken. Unfortunately, that haircut left a lasting memory and was not a great testament to his many years of talented barbering.

By the time I reached Georgia State University, trends in the outside world were making franchise style shops the place where people went for a trim. It was difficult for me to take my first steps into such a place, but eventually I did. Unlike the old barber shop, almost every time you went in there would be a different butcher on duty.

As my musical star began to rise, a fellow musician from Chicago, Sue Koskela, had taken up the trade and become an award winning stylist. Thankfully for me she was kind enough to take me on as a client and would always travel in to handle photo shoots and album covers. She settled near Knoxville for many years, and I would regularly make the six-hour round trip from Atlanta to have her work her magic. I am not exaggerating; what she did was magic. I knew when I walked out of there, I would not have to do anything to my hair and I would be sporting whatever latest style suited my look and shape of my face. Every time I went elsewhere, I usually looked like a cross between the Frankenstein monster and “Mo” from the Three Stooges.

When I joined the cast of “In the Heat of the Night” as “Officer Randy Goode,” my head and hair became the responsibility of whichever hair and makeup artists were assigned to oversee my look. They had to make sure that we actors looked consistent throughout scenes that were filmed out of sequence. In one of those happenstance moments, we got a new and short-lived hair artist who decided to give me a different look for an episode entitled “Heart of Gold.” I had one of my largest feature appearances of the early series. It was amazing to me how detrimental that look on camera was for me. I never realized until that point how much a person’s hair style has to do with how they are perceived by other people.

Good grooming is something we can all do to make the world a better place, but finding a good barber these days can be as hard as finding a six-ounce bottle of Coca-Cola for a dime.

The choices we make touch other lives

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In life we are constantly faced with choices. We are blessed or cursed with the gift of free will, depending on your perspective.

From the smallest detail of “Do you want fries with that?” to “Do you take this woman to be your wife?” in America, we have endless choices.

People can choose to work hard and by doing so achieve great success and accumulate wealth. Some choose to dedicate their energies to benefiting humanity.

Each choice we make sets us upon a path. Even the simplest thing like having one extra cup of coffee in the morning could change your schedule enough to prevent you from being involved in an auto accident.

As I look back on my choices, there are some I would like to change in spite of the fact I do not know what path changing them would have brought. Nevertheless, I cannot change them; I only have the power over what lies ahead, not behind. I can only try to learn from those past choices.

Using my television exposure as a podium, I have spent much of my life speaking to youth about living a successful drug-free life. My work yielded the attention of the National Drug Abuse Resistance Education Officer’s Association. Consequently, they made me an honorary D.A.R.E. officer. I have encouraged thousands across the country to make the choice not to use drugs. I do not know if any made that choice. I can only hope that at least one did.

No matter how you try to influence others, the ultimate choice lies with them. With that choice also lies consequences. When you make a choice that effects you, your family or even others you do not know, it is up to you to take responsibility for what that choice brings.

Many times people try to shift the blame if things are not going as they planned. I think we pick up this behavior as a child. It is the old “He did it” approach to avoid punishment. I do not know about you but that never worked for me. It only made the punishment worse.

Last week I attended a teen/parent forum at the Colonnade that included a discussion from both parents and teens on the issue of parents making choices for their children that affect other children. Choices such as providing alcohol for teen parties or even adults turning a blind eye to drug use by not being vigilant supervisors, as they should.

Some parents may say “I’d rather have them doing it where I can keep an eye on them,” but when other children are involved I imagine their parents might like to have a say and an eye involved in the situation as well. At least that is what the parents at the forum said.

Each choice we make, in some way, affects someone else — sometimes people we do not even know, such as that driver who might be injured by a teenage drunk driver coming from a supervised party where alcohol was served.

Don’t get me wrong. I am not focusing on these parents exclusively. The teenagers admit that even if parents are not providing, some of them will find a way to get alcohol themselves from older siblings, buying it themselves at establishments which do not card them or by sneaking it from a parent when they are not watching.

Unfortunately, these teenage actions expand to various types of drugs, including prescription pills out of medicine cabinets as well.

No matter what choice you make, they are your choices. You ultimately have to live with what results from them. So if you are making a life-changing choice, become informed about what may happen depending on which path your choice leads you.

Even if it turns out to be the wrong choice, at least you did not go down that path with blinders on.