::HE KNEW ME WHEN::I've had publishers approach me about this song, the head of Chesnut Mound publishing said, "Bravo" when he heard it, and many of you out there have told me it's your favorite song, and for that, I give God the glory! Lives have been saved by it, and it is the ultimate joy for me to not only know that, but to get to perform it night after night at my shows. It's my signature song, and some 'Michael English type guy' is going to grab it, make it HIS song, and make a bunch of money off of it...but that will be a good thing for the kingdom. Until then, I'll just keep singing it to a few hundred people at a time, reaching one ear at a time, and hoping YOU pass it on to a friend or loved one.

::DIE OR FLY:: The ultimate toe-tappin' southern gospel song, with a hint of humor in it. All good gospel songs long for heaven, and once again, some quartets need to be including this in their nightly repertoire, swapping lines, and having a good time with it (I'll be glad to show you how!) Click here to Hear 'Die Or Fly' at GospelSinging.com

::JESUS (CLAIM THE NAME)::Shortly after the OKC bombing, we were deluged with 'moments of silence' and everyone got real 'spiritual' for a while. This is a bit of a 'dig' to the shallowness of some of that. I've sung it with praise teams, and the chorus and bridge has a nice 'praise' feel to it. This song will also be a part of my youth musical, "The Witness Protection Program". It'll be fun acting out some of the situations.MISSISSIPPI SQUIRREL Sooooooo many people asked for this song on tape, that I didn't have a choice. We ran through it one time in the studio, I sang it one time through, and we were done (except for adding the BGV's). I actually HAVE an Aunt Evelyn (I have two of 'em) and an Uncle Earl, so I felt like that fit better than whatever in the world Ray Stevens says when he does it (Bellummorle?). They used to call the aforementioned Aunt Evelyn "Earl's Evelyn" and my other Aunt Evelyn "Jack's Evelyn" (Uncle Jack) so we'd all know which one they were talking about (I'm starting to sound like Mark Lowry). For a long time, I thought that was their real names! Anyway, Ray Stevens doesn't get out enough, so I'm single-handedly keeping the Squirrel alive!

::DON'T TOSS THE HYMNBOOK:: I'm never ceased to be amazed at the number of people that buy this tape for this song (most of 'em don't have CD players). It's sad the battle that is sometimes fought over the music we sing in church. (Isn't that right, Mike Speck?) Some people are surprised when I sing this, knowing that I lead music in a church that does almost all new songs, praise and worship style music. But I'm telling you, I LOVE the hymns of the faith; and so this 'parody' is my way of dealing with it. My apologies (or should I say ApologetiX go) to Alan Jackson, but it is such a fun parody.

::I'M FOR REAL:: This is a carryover from my first CD. I wanted to break up the instrumentation of this project, so I put this song on since it has a live string section, steel guitar, and some nice harmonica by David Short. Besides, I wanted anyone who was wanting my gospel songs, to not miss out on it. It's a great song to perform live, and I'm bad about leaving it off of my song performance list. Remind me to sing it, the next time you come to a performance.

::CREAM OF THE CROP:: This is my signature song to Oklahoma Opry audiences. As mentioned before, it's a favorite of Governor Keating, and others. When I performed it on the Grand Ole Opry stage during the Starbound competition, it was a real thrill, as well as singing it for the rescue workers at the actual bomb site during the rescue attempts and clean-up. It won song of the year as awarded by the Oklahoma Heritage Association in 1995, and this is a live version that I performed during my 'Live N With An Attitude' shows I did for four weeks at the Opry in August of 1995. The truth is, I was doing a costume change (getting out of one) for the big finish, and I told Cindy (Scarberry) to start the song if I wasn't back on stage in time. So, it was a 'special' moment, the way I stepped out singing on that first chorus. (You can tell that Cindy hesitates for a minute before going to the harmony, not seeing me appear on stage behind her) On the CD, I also put the studio version, since that had been released on a single cassette before, but not on a CD. The cassette soundtrack is also available.

::DADDY'S LULLABY:: This is a song I started writing when my son, Dustin, was little. I finished it based upon some of the same 'thunder/lightening scares' I experienced with my two youngest. I added the little chorus to complete the song, and took my girls (the Whitsters) into the studio to record it. They really didn't know it very well, and they had never tried to sing with headphones on, etc., so I was really rolling the dice the night we went in. But it turned out to be a real magical moment, and I think you can sense it on the song. The "good night" thing was done spur of the moment, and the laughter was accidentally caught on tape. Dave McErley was about to erase it, when I said, "Wait! We may want to leave it in there!"

::THE RING (Only on the CD):: When I won the Starbound contest in Nashville, I was awarded some free studio time. The musicians were good, but not any better than what we have in OKC. Dotty West's studio wasn't much of a studio (I'm not sure how active she was with it), but I wanted to do a real 'country' version of 'The Ring' from my first CD. I am convinced that Reba, or Pam Tillis could make a monster hit of the song (but they'll have to hear it first!). After doing it, however, I'm still pretty partial to the original version I did. It's included here as 'Tune For Thought'!