No Petra Tours????

[fcollazo]

Whatever happened to the Classic Rock and the 40th Anniversary tours? Anybody has any idea? I saw John is asking for solo dates in 2014, no Petra though. Oh Bummer!

[zman7720000]

There must be no demand for it.

[Dan]

They simply have to bring Louie weaver in and there is something to market.

[p-freak]

Dream on, Daniel. That won't change a thing.

If Petra really wants to be relevant, they should start making albums. I believe at this moment in their career albums might have more impact than touring. If they don't make albums, no wonder nobody's booking.

It's not as if a heavy touring schedule is preventing them from doing this

[zman7720000]

They simply have to bring Louie weaver in and there is something to market.

Like!

[Thief]

Dream on, Daniel. That won't change a thing.

If Petra really wants to be relevant, they should start making albums. I believe at this moment in their career albums might have more impact than touring. If they don't make albums, no wonder nobody's booking.

It's not as if a heavy touring schedule is preventing them from doing this

Obviously I'm all for more albums, but I'm not sure I agree with the bolded statement. There are a lot of 80's and 90's bands that are constantly touring even without releasing many albums. Firehouse, Motley Crue, Poison, etc. This bands rely on their classic sound to fill in concerts, and lots of them succeed. And although some of them have released some scattered albums here and there, people go to the concerts to listen to the classics.

To be honest, I'm at a loss as to why more people aren't booking them.

[pmal]

Because Christian Radio doesn't give those bands any airplay, for one. Most people have never heard of them. For two, there's not any Classic CCM stations like you have with the 80s and Classic Rock secular stations, unless its online, that anyone listens to; so, no one ever gets to hear those songs anymore. Thirdly, Christians that I know are insecure and think they have to try and impress someone all the time and for some reason feel that if it sounds more than a couple of years old, that it's out of date and they can't impress someone with something older. That sounds harsh, but I've heard it come from their lips (except for the insecure thing . Anyway, there's no homage paid to these acts and they are totally out there on their own, usually with a limited money supply. How far could it all possibly go? I'm with Brent and what he's said in the past on this deal, and I take it a step further. They need someone with unlimited money to absolutely burn, with no hope of return on investment, and along with that, I feel, the Dream Team or close to it that releases new material and brings people out of the woodwork that don't really like CCM now, that comes to the shows as seekers, buys their stuff in droves, and forces stations to play it for it to ever take off. You know, kind of it was like in the early 80s when the band was so good that the concert goers and other people forced the stations to play it. You know, an absolute miracle. Because, there's one thing for sure. Radio and the church didn't get this started in the first place, God and the band did.

I think they should do kickstarters with John Lawry producing/playing in it, and start making albums again.

But, who asked me?

To be honest, I'm at a loss as to why more people aren't booking them.

[bakersfieldpethead]

I think there has some how become a generation gap in the CCM field.

Southern Gospel is still booming because there are Southern Gospel Radio Stations nation wide and now internet Southern Gospel Radio Stations plus several different "Convention" style multi-day events all through the year, every year. Lesser known groups promote the bigger events and get on the major stages for nothing more than a chance to be seen and heard by more fans. The more bigger bands (Gaither Vocal Band, The Hoppers, Gold City and others) get paid for being there, however all artists must pay $550 and lower for a booth to sell their Merchandise. Then after each event all artists continue on the road hitting everywhere from small to large churches and waffle houses and bbq joints that support Southern Gospel or Country Gospel Music. That with also the help of Printed and Online Media Magazines, Gaither Videos (now Gaither TV soon) and other outlets. The fans are always hammered with the current sounds, but also with new collections of the old legends (Statesmen, Imperials, Blackwood Brothers, Goodmans), so it is being done with that genre of music. The market is so good I was shocked to see a digital re-issue of an album of The National Quartet Convention from the 60s, a various artist record that the market is so good now that this was on the table for a re-issue, I'm glad it is don't get me wrong but I was shocked that I saw it in the Amazon mp3 store.

However in the CCM market

Here are the artists still being promoted from the 70s and early 80s. Amy Grant, Michael W Smith, Sandi Patty, Russ Taff, Steven Curtis Chapman. Rich Mullins (who passed away in 97 but still sells a lot). Sandy and Russ are also being promoted in the Southern Gospel market as well, but what are these artist doing differently than Petra, The Imperials and others?

Here are the bands from the 90s still being promoted, dc Talk (who isn't even together anymore). Newsboys, Audio A, Jars of Clay, Point of Grace - what are they getting that Petra isn't getting Airplay, Media Promotion, Financial Backing?

For some reason The World and Christians alike gets behind new music or a mega tours from The Beach Boys, The Rolling Stones, The Who, AC/DC, Black Sabbath, KISS, Van Halen, Guns N' Roses (with just Axle) and don't rule out the over exposed U2. But the Christian market, can't get behind PETRA? What is wrong with this picture?

Most of the labels can't afford to keep Grammy Awarded albums in stock, only online in iTunes. Grammy Awarded albums in the secular market are all over the stores, but not in the CCM market. If it wasn't for the WOW series doing compilations every so often on past hit songs, I don't think a younger generation would get a chance to hear the great music from the past.

[GS.]

Sources say that dates will be scheduled. I know Manheim PA wants to bring them back. I would also say to look out for festivals this summer.

[sue d.]

"sources?" I'd love to hear who that might be.

There's a big difference between ccm rock and mainstream, classic rock.

Ccm has no respect for their founders. Maybe because the genre hasn't been around long enough...? who knows. Mainstream rock knows what they have/had with their founders; ccm rock does not.

[brent]

You can't compare legacy secular bands to legacy CCM bands. It does not jive in any way shape and form. Christians mature out of their youthful preferences. Christians do not always remain Christians. It is no longer cool to be rebellious and listen to Christian rock. Having an alternative to secular music is not new and is no longer required. Most Christians do not listen to CCM.

[executioner]

You can't compare legacy secular bands to legacy CCM bands. It does not jive in any way shape and form. Christians mature out of their youthful preferences. Christians do not always remain Christians. It is no longer cool to be rebellious and listen to Christian rock. Having an alternative to secular music is not new and is no longer required. Most Christians do not listen to CCM.

TRUE!!

[brent]

I think the numbers speak for themselves. There is not enough demand for either version to do a "tour", just scattered one-offs. One-offs are not as feasible or profitable because they are inefficient.

The only thing that would pry money out of my hands is a band with Kelly, Hartman, Schlitt, Lawry and.......wait for it......Weaver. That ain't ever gonna happen. I have no desire to see the current modern Petra without new music, unless they were backing John on a solo tour.

I have enjoyed the last three Schlitt solo records more than Petra music. I can't tell you the last time I have listened to Petra. If and when I did listen to Petra, it was J&H. If they could get something like that out again, that was done with as much thought and care as John's solo records, they might have my attention.

Just my piece of crap opinion.

[Thief]

You can't compare legacy secular bands to legacy CCM bands. It does not jive in any way shape and form. Christians mature out of their youthful preferences. Christians do not always remain Christians. It is no longer cool to be rebellious and listen to Christian rock. Having an alternative to secular music is not new and is no longer required. Most Christians do not listen to CCM.

Yeah, I suppose you're right to some extent, even though I still listen to Christian rock (as well as secular rock). I just don't think that releasing more albums will exactly help Petra right now. It's a very complex situation with lots of moving parts.

[gman]

I spent a number of years in Grand Rapids, MI and Christian music and radio was big there. I'll bet it still is. All the big tours came through. I'm in east central PA now, and Christian music still seems pretty big here. We've got several stations now, and all the big tours come through here. The number of festivals have increased, and the big one isn't exactly getting smaller. Winter Jam is also very popular here. Petra played to a packed house in October. I think they could have moved the show to a larger venue and still filled it. Based on what was said after, I fully expect them to be invited back. Also, based on the circumstances around Creation last year and what was said, it appears that Petra is willing to try again this year, and I'm expecting them to be invited back. We shall see.
Personally, I think this version of Petra rocks your face off. They are way better than a lot of the bands on the Creation lineup, in my opinion. Plus, Brent has said that Louie is not really into the music, whereas Cristian is gung ho for it.
My question in this thread is, what happened to the record label involvement? I thought something more was supposed to be coming in 2014? I think are places where Petra could pack the house, but, as Brent and others have pointed out, getting someone with the money to sponsor them is tough.