Christian Music Online

Jars of Clay Annual Christian Concert at Riley Park

May 27, 2007 – 8:37 am

Joseph P. Riley, Jr. Park will add another Grammy Award winner to its list of performers this summer, as the highly acclaimed Christian rock band, Jars of Clay, will play at The Joe Aug. 5 for the Charleston RiverDogs’ annual Christian concert. The concert will immediately follow the RiverDogs’ home game against the Greensboro Grasshoppers, and admission will be free to all who attend the game.Jars of Clay, known for early hit singles “Flood” (1996) and “Crazy Times” (1997), has been one of the most celebrated Christian rock bands in the history of the industry. The group, which was formed in Greenville, Ill. in the early 1990s, has released eight albums, including a platinum record in 1997 and a triple platinum self-titled album in 1995.

Richard Young, owner-director of Young & Associates, has for the last decade booked and produced Christian concerts for the RiverDogs.

“Jars of Clay has always been a Christian band, but the great thing about them is that they had some singles years ago that the entire country heard,” Young said. “You couldn’t turn on any radio station anywhere without hearing ‘Flood.’ To have Jars of Clay performing there is a pretty incredible thing because everybody outside the Christian community knows them as well.”

RiverDogs general manager Dave Echols has seen several popular Christian artists play at Riley Park during his seven total seasons with the organization, but perhaps none more renowned than Jars of Clay.

“Every year, we aim to bring Charleston a first-rate Christian concert, and I feel like we’ve had a great deal of success in that effort,” Echols said. “Our promotional department should really be commended for landing the Jars of Clay considering that they’ve been the standard in the Christian music industry for years.”

Assistant general manager Jim Pfander has worked primarily on the promotional side of baseball and views the annual Christian concert as one of the most popular promotions each year.

“The Christian concert has been such a great event the last few years with groups like Jeremy Camp and Building 429 coming to The Joe,” Pfander said. “We’re thrilled to have someone with the popularity of Jars of Clay - a band that has made a huge impact on the Christian music scene for a long time.”

Jars of Clay is comprised of band members Dan Haseltine (vocals, percussion), Charlie Lowell (piano, accordion, background vocals), Stephen Mason (guitar, vocals) and Matthew Odmark (acoustic guitar, background vocals). They have made a worldwide impact through their international touring and concerts to benefit charities.

The band has won the Grammy Award for “Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album” three times with Much Afraid (1997), If I Left the Zoo (2000) and The Eleventh Hour (2002).

Fellow Grammy Award winners Bob Dylan and Willie Nelson played at Riley Park in 2004.

For ticket information, please contact the RiverDogs’ box office at (843) 577-DOGS (3647) or online at www.riverdogs.com.

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