Nifty Noodles/ Show #27

1/28/04
And let it be known that RTR show number 27 was recorded on the 28th of January Oooh For...

Traffic on the way to L.A. Was such that I had little spiritual enthusiasm or motivation today... But recording "the Gift Of Pain"... Show number 27 and the first of a new series went reasonably smooth and quick.

I should have listened to my own RTR show on "stinkin thinkin" on the way down perhaps... Anyway this show maybe embraced the realities of pain more than encouraged anyone through them... I'm struggling to find the balance in the show.

Once again I used more secular artists than Christian choosing: Keb Mo/ that's not love Bonnie Raitt/ I can't make you love me Alanis Morrisette/ You Learn Bryan Duncan/ When it comes to love Amy Grant/ After the Fire Seal / prayer for the dying

I followed up the recording time by taking in a movie in L.A. That's not being played in my local area... The movie is called "Monster" ... The Story of a prostitute who started hookin at 13 years of age after her father died and became a serial killer...it's based on a true story... Wow it pretty much put me over the edge... It was sad and disturbing and hopeless... The last line as she's been sentenced to the death chamber is a quote of several "positive thoughts" the woman had heard in her life time... Something like... "Where there's life there's hope"..."every life counts"... "everything happens for a reason"... And she says,... "Yea well I guess they gotta tell you something" ... (suggesting sarcastically that it's all a big joke)

It made for a sobering day. And long thoughts about Christian influence in the world... Meaning of life... justice vs redemption... The balance between forgiveness and paying the consequences of our actions... The death penalty and rehabilitation... It's all part of this sinful world as it is... Once again...

Pray For Me.... Bryan Duncan

Nifty Noodles/Neediness

1/26/03 Home...
Some days you can't read anything good. You miss the point. And songs fail to inspire. I'm looking for insight on "the predicament of neediness". It's Radio Rehab show #28. I find myself trying to offer advise to others when I really want to explore it for myself. The reason for the show is not to lay out all the answers. It is merely to look at the issues that I struggle with in trying to be reasonably happy and have a measure of sanity. I listened to music all day. Went through my whole collection looking for insight... I hated my own song "we all need"... Cause I still wrapped it up in a "fix it all" bow. Like so many Christian songs, passing out answers we haven't explored. Living is not just having all the right answers! Feeling the realities is something I've avoided my whole Christian life like it was unspiritual and anti- faith.

Some days I feel too happy to do "the Road To Redemption" radio show... (like I have to be miserable to examine the real truth). Best song I found all day was "how fragile we are" by Sting. I get frustrated using all the "secular" songs on the show. I'm just amazed at how little insight Christian Music seems to offer. It is projection of the conclusions that we are supposed to have reached already, knowing Christ.

I hate that. I feel rushed to commitment and judgment and then wonder why I have no passion!

Here's to real passion and discovery... Bryan D

Nifty Noodles/ Road Reopened

1/23/04 Home
It took some discipline to get back to preparing the shows for The Road To Redemption... After several weeks off through the holidays. But finally the first script is ready in a series of shows called the "Guardrails on the Road". (the stuff that keeps you on the road when you're out of control)

The First show was energy draining in reconsidering my own experiences (though it won't show in the show) picking the songs is the hard part...

Here they are:

Keb Mo/ That's not love
Bonnie Raitt/ Can't make you love me
Alanis Morrisette / You Learn
Bryan Duncan / when it Comes to love
Amy Grant / After the Fire
Seal/ Prayer for the Dying

It's Radio Rehab show # 27.... It's called "The Gift Of Pain"

There's your update... Keep coming back... Bryan D

Nifty Noodles/ Maranathagain

1/21/04 Three times a year I wander down to San Diego to play at Maranatha Chapel. It's a Wednesday night Bible Study really... I usually play 5 songs but on this occasion for whatever reason they asked me to quit at 7:55 and since the worship music went long it left me to do 3 songs.

I took it in stride and spent some time talking to the security guys outside about Oswald Chambers' stuff... I can quote sections and recall the day in the devotional where I read it! I quote him like scripture not sure why he has so picked my mind... For years he was over my head. Now I can't seem to read anybody else.

I met people at the door as they were leaving... Met another Pentecostal Preacher's kid who's in the Navy here... He just married a former Mormon girl who only recently "defected" to Christianity. Funny, she thought the service here was pretty rowdy.. I thought it was lethargic myself.

Maybe I'm in an over the top good mood but I felt a little too hyper for the gig. I just didn't seem to be on the same page tonight. When you only have 15 minutes it's hard to repair your original first impression! 8)

The highlight might have been the drive to and from San Diego from my home in Riverside... David Rowe, My sound man, is great company and the fellowship is hard to beat.

O.K. So there's that... Bryan D

Nifty Noodles/ Post Falls

Took all day to fly up to Spokane and drive over to Post Falls in time to run through some songs with a local choir and get a sound check... And then it seemed the quickest show on record and it was over and I was on the way home at five a.m. Almost stunned that the great moments I enjoy are over so quickly. Once again the boys from Seattle played with me and a few singers too. The show went so well that I found myself dancing through a number of songs surprised that I had the stamina to dance as long as I did... Completely unrestrained! Sadly the promoter did not make his money out of the concert... Attendance fell short of anticipation. That was the only low point. Still there were at least 700 people there to enjoy a rare moment in my life.

Toward the end of the show I was interrupted by the Choir director who showed the audience a copy of my first record with Sweet Comfort Band (from 1974)... And proceeded to offer something of a "life time appreciation" statement about the impact of my music on his life and ministry. Once again these things do not pass me by... As I am aware that others are realizing how long I've been doing this.

The Choir sang Maybe I'm Amazed, I'd Like To Thank You, and The Battle is The Lord's... The last song being a first in concert for me and I could not reproduce the "preacher" segment on the end, as the air was ridiculously dry.

Many folks had me sign whole collections of records showing the long term interest in my career. I was Honored.

I am encouraged that God still has plans for me and it's just so different now with a better attitude about life that I have discovered through a thorough working of a 12 step program of recovery now going on 700 days of reasonable happiness... Thanks for lettin me share.

Bryan d

Nifty Noodles/ Washington Flurries

1/12/04 Seattle, WA
Finally home after a four day marathon that included 3 full concerts, 2 sound checks 1 rehearsal, 1 t.v. Show, a recording session and three bookstore appearances.

The first concert was at a six thousand seat behemoth. "biggest church in Washington State" I was told...(didn't meet anyone from that church though.. Hummmm... Interesting). I had another mega band of local musicians including four of the best musicians I may have ever played with live. Ricky B on Bass, runs his own secular rock band "Fused" but loves funky stuff best. He introduced me to Sam Matthews an award winning local drummer. Walter Finch on Guitar who has his own records out, and Phil Curry another studio expert especially on Hammond B-3. They were joined by another keyboard player and 8 back up singers. Man I felt like I was playing with the Yellow Jackets! it was world class and still relaxed. We didn't even have time to rehearse all the songs so it was a real interesting night.. I felt like a member of the audience. I let the band pick the songs... And they picked some funky tunes I haven't played in years... Like "Wheels of a good thing", "Where there's Love There is Hope" and a first ever live band rendition of "Yes I will" and "Once I've Arrived"... All songs that are not on the Twin Cities Live CD.

The grooves were so tight that even when I forgot the second verse in Wheels of a Good Thing... I just walked over to one the singer's charts to ask how it started and the band played on... like leaving your car running to drop off the mail! of course I created a few new endings to songs too.

The great thing was that even spiritually the mood just happened. Nothing was manufactured on my part. I even felt waves of emotion, gratefulness, and a few moments where I had to wait a moment to regain my composure. "No Words for this song" was especially wonderful.

After all these years of fighting and working to make things happen in my career, and finally "giving up".. And then recovery from a poor attitude, resentment, anger, arrogance, and pride to name a few things that had become unmanageable in my life, here I was with a huge band playing to 1200 people who paid to get in. But now it was not a career move. It was the joy of seeing old friends and meeting the families of the local musicians and appreciating the talents of the opening act and my own musical support. It was hearing the stories after the concert from fellow strugglers many of whom this night, left in teary eyed laughter.

It was everything that I missed the first time around because I was so self involved and worried about my own self esteem. I was honored just to have the opportunity. It felt like a "this is your life" moment.

The band played with me on Sunday morning for two church services where I was given the entire service to say whatever I felt like...(not sure this was a wise thing) but what an honor to be Trusted like that!

It was humbling. My favorite part of that event was when I launched into the Serenity Prayer at the end of Step by Step and several people in the back of the church jumped to their feet in complete surprise and full recognition of a prayer that is central to most recovery groups.

Even when I was on TBN Saturday morning being interviewed for the full length of the show (as no other guests showed up). I felt Honored even though we still weren't quite on the same page. I've learned to acquiesce. I have no demand for others to understand me or hear what I have to say. I simply tried to accommodate their questions with a graceful answer... ( this is a miracle too by the way). They avoided my mentions of "recovery"... Choosing to address a new question... But I didn't mind. They're not in the same place as I am.

Sunday night I met the members of the rock band Fused at TNC studios in Seattle to lay down a few tracks to my new Christmas Tune "This Christmas". Once again I could see talent from musicians that are bigger than one style of music. I talked about writing some songs in the future with them... ( not necessarily for their band but perhaps a single to release to the public or to offer another artist. It was fun to dream new dreams and think about possibilities outside my own "format" and expectation.

The bookstore appearances were poorly attended mostly but meeting those who came was enjoyable enough. it made leaving to go eat even more rewarding. I was not outraged by the lack of interest. It was more of an "o.K. That didn't work" kind of attitude and we were off to the next thing.

And finally Saturday night we went to the Seattle Underground part of town and walked the streets and took in one of the worst Blues Bands I've ever heard... Don't even remember their name they were so forgettable. But they were working hard. And we enjoyed the outrageous lack of groove and when we left I felt grateful for my own abilities and grateful I wasn't playin in a club somewhere every night where the patrons are more interested in the drinks at the bar!

This weekend had a great impact on me in that I felt the changes in my own attitude and the differences in my life... Recovery is working.

OKC ya... Bryan D

Nifty Noodles/ Hold On To My Hat

1/7/04 Home....Southern California
I leave for lAX again tomorrow morning... All my bags are packed I'm ready to go...I writing now cause my living room is full of high school kids who gather in the weekly ritual of watching "the OC"... A t.v. Soap opera about life in Southern California... It's the Dawson's Creek replacement I guess. "the OC" to me is Oswald Chambers! man I guess I'm the odd man out.

Lets see, between now and Sunday afternoon I will have done three Christian Book store appearances (singing on sight as well)...one rehearsal with the band, one T.v. Show a concert and a couple of morning church services, Oh, and an interview or two...

Ahh it feels like old times... Haven't been to Washington State in a while and I will run into several old friends between engagements. I hope I still have that kind of stamina. I haven't been this busy in at least three years. Back when I was doing two tours at the same time. I'd rather be busy though if I'm gonna be away from home. Anyway the following noodles will be a smattering of who knows what.

OKC ya in Washington State... Bryan d

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