Concert Review: Ernie Haase & Signature Sound – Stockton Baptist Tabernacle – England

The live concert experience is simply unmatchable for many fans. The venue for Ernie Haase & Signature Sound’s only British pit stop on a whirlwind European tour was the beautiful, Stockton on Tees Baptist Tabernacle. With a start time scheduled at 7:00PM I knew we would be in for a great evening of harmony and fellowship.

Every time I’ve been too an EHSS concert I always leave thinking, “How can they top that the next time?”.  The amazing thing is…..they do! From the opening lines of “I’m Gonna Live Forever” to the closing lines of “Champion of Love”, it was an absolutely electric atmosphere where tears of joy, thankfulness and hope flowed freely.  People may have come in with worries and things on their hearts, these days who doesn’t have worries, yet I’d challenge anyone to tell me they left feeling the same way.

The Band:

EHSS sang well over thirty songs over a period of three hours; we sure got value for money! Even songs which I’ve heard live quite a few times felt fresh, no doubt down to the influence of the genius on the keyboard; Wayne Haun. (Note to SG Pianists…..Wayne Haun knows how to accompany a song, not asphyxiate a song!) The band was very tight and well prepared, it was a largely unscripted show, Ernie would decide on a song and they just followed along seamlessly. The addition of Kelly Vaughn on guitar adds another dimension in terms of flexibility, plus Kelly is a great guitar player, “Folsom Prison Blues” was a rather unexpected surprise! David Griffith on bass guitar was as solid as ever plus he controls the tracks, no easy task! Zak Shumate on drums was as energetic as usual and never missed a beat. Ahem. I used to be of the opinion that tracks or a live band made little or no difference in a live context. I was very, very wrong! The live band gives such a benefit to the MC. They can slow or speed things up to their own requirements, plus the sound is improved.

Ian Owens –

“I Believe”, “This Ole House”, “The Old Rugged Cross” were the standout features for me. When Ian first joined I believe Ernie mentioned that Ian was a singer first and a bass second. This is a great description of Ian’s style and voice. His control on the end of “The Ole Rugged Cross” in his upper register was incredible, aside from George Younce; I don’t think I’ve ever heard that level of precision. It was almost operatic in its tone.  A good friend of mine described Ian’s voice as more cultured than most bass singers and for me that uniqueness works incredibly well with the other three voices on stage with Ian.  We had a great discussuion after the concert his family’s bass singer heritage, with his father and grandfather both being bass singers. Genetically, I don’t think Ian had much option, but too be a bass singer! “I Believe” is on the upcoming CD due out in February, with full production, this song is going to be an absolute cracker.

Ian Owens was joined on a few occasions by Colet Selwyn, the young bass sensation who first came to my attention back in February 2011 with his incredible bass interpretation of “Happy Rhythm” in Belfast. Ernie had Colet come on stage and sing “In The Garden.” This impromptu version of the song was very well received and credit to Colet for holding his nerves!

Doug Anderson

My favourite baritone in the business and he showed me why on Saturday night. I love the richness in his voice and it doesn’t half glue the entire sound of the group together. Doug’s standout features had to be, “Thank God For Kids”, “Jesus Is Holding My Hand” and “I’ll Take What’s Left”. The last song in that list is an incredible song. In a concert context it just hits you, lyrically, and it really cut deep into my heart.  It’s the most  tender of ballads that speaks of how God can use whatever we give him, broken and ruined we may be through choices we may have made, God can use this for good and make something from nothing. It reminds me of a saying, “Broken pots spill the most water”. There was not many dry eyes after that heartfelt rendition by Doug. “Swinging On The Golden Gate” is another song that shows off Doug’s versatility at its best, jumping up and grabbing the lead part.

Devin McGlamery

The albino porcupine (!) brings a great edge to the EHSS sound. I love his style of  voice, he combines power with a little bit of blues and soul and stamps it down on his deliveries with a great honesty. His new song from EHSS’s yet to be released project called, “I’ve Been Here Before” is going to be a big, big song for Devin. You read that here first! Ernie commented to me that they wanted to give Devin his own song that he could really work at and make his own. Well, if you catch them in concert before this project releases in February 2012, you will understand what I mean. It’s a brand new song and I trust it does as well as it deserves too.

My favourite songs that featured Devin had to be “Changed By a Baby Boy”, “I’ve Been Here Before” and “Climbin’ Higher and Higher”.  Devin also delivered a stellar performance on “He Touched Me” which was well received from the audience, especially when the rest of the group came in on the chorus.  Devin fits the mould of my preferred style of lead singer in a quartet. In my opinion the lead singer has to be authoritative and dynamic in order for the sound to be built around him and for me this is one of the things that Devin added to the group when he joined EHSS.

Ernie Haase-

It’s well documented that Ernie is my favourite quartet tenor. His high D flat on the end of “This Ole House” was a joy to witness from the front row, but even more incredible was the a cappella reprise, minus microphones, of “Walk With Me”. Ernie absolutely belted his big note and I couldn’t believe how loud it was without a microphone. Then the rest of the group joined in without their microphones and it was an absolute joy to listen too.

Fresh on their new Christmas EP record, “A White Christmas” is a song Ernie or “Ernvis” has been longing to record, “Blue Christmas”. The crowd absolutely loved this and I had to include the video of it here below this post! When Ernie starts his “crying” at 0:44, he was singing to my girlfriend beside me!

My favourite Ernie features were, “Oh What a Savior”, “This Ole House”, “I Thirst”, “Blue Christmas” and “Amen”. “Oh What a Savior” is one of my all-time beloved songs and I love hearing it live. I was not disappointed in the delivery. With the rest of EHSS and the crowd singing along with him, Ernie absolutely nailed his trademark song with sincerity and lifted the roof of the Tabernacle with the high notes.

It is very hard to condense a three hour concert into words and then into a coherent review! EHSS are easily one of the most polished groups on the road today. Vocally they keep improving and growing and the subtle changes that Wayne Haun adds into the arrangements keep the songs fresh. This can catch you off guard, in  a good way, even if you are very familiar with the pieces. I cannot recommend a live concert experience with EHSS enough. A  live concert experience is where it matters, where it counts and where it happens. Plus after a show you can talk with some of the most friendly and genuine guys in the industry. You can even get a photo with Ernie Haase and his Converse shoes….. 🙂

On a personal level, I would just like to thank EHSS for coming over and leaving wives and families behind to minister to people across Europe.  It was deeply appreciated by myself and I’m sure by many others who had the privilege of attending.

For all you Northern Irish fans that could be reading this, keep May 19th 2012 free. Ernie Haase & Signature Sound will be back in Belfast at the Whitewell Metropolitan tabernacle! This will be a brand new show, with a new album of fresh, newly written material and a new production level for a live show. Keep up with any Gaither/Ernie Haase & Signature Sound concerts in the UK and Europe at http://www.tkentertainment.co.uk/

Pictures by Subhan Christudas

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