Thoughts on Integrity and Friendship...

Here’s a little story that I am somewhat reluctant to tell, because it might sound a little bit like self-promotion. Well, it isn’t. This is a story about integrity, and about how easy it is to let great friendships disappear into the sands of time.

I first met Darrell Evans as a freshman at LIFE Bible College, Los Angeles (Now LIFE PACIFIC College, San Dimas) back in 1987. He was among a group of guys I used to hang out with. We would play guitar for hours on end in my dorm room, and outside in the quad by the café. Most of us were on the college worship team and we would take turns leading worship for classes, at parties (why not?) and other events. Among that group were a couple of other guys – Tim Gillis and Craig Davis – (I’m just now making contact with both of them again.) In lieu of studying, we would all play and learn from each other, trading guitar licks and learning Phil Keaggy songs among other things. Good times!- :)
Darrell was always singing and writing songs. Even back then we knew there was something different about that skinny, curly-haired kid – just that way he sang so passionately and didn’t care what people thought of him. He also had a great sense of humor!

I remember one afternoon in particular, I believe it was nearing spring break, me and Darrell were jamming and singing in my room and he said, “Stop! What is that you’re playing? – show me.” So, we played with the melody a little bit. The next day, he came back with a nearly finished song, and we played with it some more. A couple of days later, we were playing it in chapel in front of a few hundred students and faculty - his doing, not mine! (I was a big chicken at that point and I distinctly remember trying to back out at the last minute). At the end of the school year I remember how we said goodbye in Craig’s room, he moved out of state, and we lost touch.

About five or six years later, he called me up – at work. He had tracked me down somehow. (I have no idea how to this day!) He had big news! One of his songs (Let the river flow) was getting a lot of attention and was being put on a compilation album and being used as the theme for a large Teen Mania youth event. He was also talking to Don Moen (Integrity, Hosanna!) about doing a live worship album. I congratulated him and we traded info and promised to stay in touch. He also asked my permission to record that little song we had written and played in chapel. How could I refuse?

Over the years we’ve stayed somewhat in touch – a phone call here, an e-mail there. He of course became “the” Darrell Evans, so I didn’t bug him too much. I was always humbled and flattered when he would call or e-mail me – always politely reminding me he just couldn’t get that little tune out of his head and some day he would record it. It’s been 20 + years now since our 87’/88’ freshman year. He tracked me down again a few months ago via the comments on THIS BLOG – how on earth did he find me again?

My reason for relating this story is two-fold. First and foremost, I am grateful for Darrell’s integrity. He is a very gifted and anointed psalmist who has accomplished a lot over the past 15 or so years. He didn’t have to record “our” song, nor did he have to even offer to give me any credit for putting a couple of chords together that caught his ear twenty years ago. But it speaks volumes about his integrity as an artist and as a loyal friend. For that I am grateful. Secondly, though it is awesome to be back in touch with another one of my friends from college (btw, there are others who’ve done big things too!) it kind of bums me out to think of all of the other great friends I have lost contact with over the same span of time. I then realize that I am really lousy about staying in touch and I haven’t been a very good friend to many of them. I find this very painful and hard to take. (This is definitely good fodder for another blog!)

Lastly, as for “self-promotion”, let me publicly state that although I am excited, honored, proud and humbled all at the same time to have my name in the credits on Darrell’s latest album, I cannot in any way consider it an accomplishment of mine. Here’s the best analogy I can come up with:

If Darrell were Gold-Medalist Swimmer, Michael Phelps, I might be able to take as much credit as say, one of the towels he used to dry off with during a high-school swim meet.

That about sums-up my contribution to this latest album, which, of course you should buy immediately – especially track #4.

Btw – if you purchase the song from Digstation – my name is NOT there in the credits on track 4 – no biggie – just FYI.