The Petra Zone

It was great to see Petra on stage again at the Illinois State Fair. It was especially nice to see John Lawry play with the band again. It's been 10 years since I had seen Petra, 22 years since I saw Petra with John Lawry. The band was limited by time, since they were to be followed by Peter Furler (Newsboys). But it was still a solid set. Each of the band members did short solos, and it was a treat to hear (an abbreviated version, due to time) John Lawry's legendary, "Jesus Loves You" solo. Bob was having trouble with his amplifier. He started with a Peavey half stack that looked very similar to the EVH model, but it didn't have the EVH logo. About 1/3 of the way through the set, they had to stop because the head blew. So Bob switched to a Vox. Midway through the song "Creed", the Vox went out. Not sure what happened there. I think they ended up just plugging in Bob's preamp through the board. It was lucky that they had the Keyboard to carry the song. Below is a listing of the songs that they played. Unfortunately, the songs aren't exactly in order and I'm thinking I've forgotten a couple of the praise and worship songs. But it should give you a good idea of what took place.
Beat The System
Dance
Judas Kiss
The Right Place
Holy is Your Name (new song available for download on Petraband.com)
Amazing Grace
Creed
Jekyll and Hyde
Beyond Belief
Just Reach Out
"Jesus Loves You" (John Lawry)
Lord I Lift your Name on High
He Came, He Saw, He Conquered
Ancient of Days

Full concert.

Beat The System
Dance
Judas Kiss
The Right Place
Holy is Your Name (new song available for download on Petraband.com)
Amazing Grace
Creed
Jekyll and Hyde
Beyond Belief
Just Reach Out
"Jesus Loves You" (John Lawry)
Lord I Lift your Name on High
He Came, He Saw, He Conquered
Ancient of Days

Have they been playing "Beat the System" regularly with John? Other than the Double Take version, I've never heard him sing it, but a couple of months ago I heard a YouTube version and it was a bit underwhelming. That said, I think it was mostly because of the sound. Other than that, a lot of John's favorites there. Solid setlist.

Wow, such a tiny stage. It's almost sad to see. I remember when these guys used to fill arenas.

On a more positive note, John Schlitt sounds great. There was a period there when he started sounding a bit rough, but he's back as good as ever. I've asked this before, but does anybody know if he had some voice coaching recently to tune his pipes up?

Right?? This is what I have been trying to say... They are doing REALLY Small venues now.

It's a fair, right? Unless it is a big name artist, that is what you are going to see.

I would have stood outside. Those JBL VRX speakers are not real line arrays (they are curved). They get loud and harsh up close and then kind of poop out 20' away. Combine that with the bright, reflective nature of a metal barn...yikes.

While I have installed those JBLs for budgetary reasons, they are kind of harsh. Heck, they have three HF compression drivers and one 12" LF driver. They are very bright sounding. Whomever set up those side fills pointing outside put them side by side, which is not ideal either. Those horns are phasing big time.

That's my nit pick. It's typical of low budget fair sound. Been there, done that....and griped a bunch until it was over.

After watching the video I came away with a couple of things.

1. The Keys add a lot to the sound, being fuller & richer
2. John Schlitt's voice is better than ever and his stage movement is not coming from someone who is 64 yrs old.
3. Bob actually looked like he was having a lot of fun.

I could get behind this line up especially if they would record new material.

Beat the System has been in the set for a least a couple years. I've seen them twice and that was the opener.

I understand it is a state fair, must have been good money, I don't image they would have had a 5 piece Petra for free.

After watching the video, John Schlitt does sound better than he did 10 years ago, simply amazing. The keyboards make the sound so much fuller, I would put money behind John, John and Bob making an album. Even when the amp went out, the keyboards carried perfect.

Who was the one who started to do that really cool drum double-beat during the intro to "Dance"? I first heard it on the Farewell CD/DVD and thought it added a really cool vibe to the song.


EDIT: And as I'm watching the rest of the show, I have to ask as well, why have they ditched the bridge near the end of "Creed"? That was one of my favorite parts of the song.

I downloaded this at work and have listened to it a few times. The sound quality isn't the best, but it's still enjoyable. Lawry is a bit hot at the beginning, but once they get going the keys are a nice addition. Holy Is Your Name sounds awesome with the keys in there.
Cristian is in fine form. John has some flat spots, and few places where he sounds like he's just throwing something out there and not going any place in particular note wise, but overall he sounds great. I don't hear him struggling. In songs like Dance and Judas Kiss, he's nailing some nice stuff.
The extra vocals from Lawry are also nice.

gman wrote:John has some flat spots, and few places where he sounds like he's just throwing something out there and not going any place in particular note wise...

Probably because he can't hear himself. That's not exactly a hi-fidelity sound system they're dealing with in that video.

Well, I watched it. I thought it was awesome! I would drive 8 hours to see that lineup. Unfortunately, IL was 13 away from me Record and tour please?

pmal wrote:Well, I watched it. I thought it was awesome! I would drive 8 hours to see that lineup. Unfortunately, IL was 13 away from me Record and tour please?

This is my personal belief here. I think we are at a stand still. The show I was at last year, it was a packed house, and there was no Lawry. Tickets were about $18, and the people came. It was an outdoor tent with stage that is closed off in colder months. The seating capacity is listed as a approximately 659. It wouldn't surprise me if the crowd was larger than that, but it was certainly at least that.
I believe that Petra is available and willing to do shows, there are people and places that would have that play, and people would come. However, I get the feeling that most folks are not actively seeking out Petra to have them come and play, and Petra is not actively seeking out gigs.
Whiteheart actively sought out shows in 10 cities. They were able to get enough fan interest and presale in 4 cities. Once those are over, and assuming they go well, Whiteheart plans to actively seek out more cities for a spring run.
Bottom line is that Petra is not doing that.

gman wrote:

pmal wrote:Well, I watched it. I thought it was awesome! I would drive 8 hours to see that lineup. Unfortunately, IL was 13 away from me Record and tour please?

This is my personal belief here. I think we are at a stand still. The show I was at last year, it was a packed house, and there was no Lawry. Tickets were about $18, and the people came. It was an outdoor tent with stage that is closed off in colder months. The seating capacity is listed as a approximately 659. It wouldn't surprise me if the crowd was larger than that, but it was certainly at least that.
I believe that Petra is available and willing to do shows, there are people and places that would have that play, and people would come. However, I get the feeling that most folks are not actively seeking out Petra to have them come and play, and Petra is not actively seeking out gigs.
Whiteheart actively sought out shows in 10 cities. They were able to get enough fan interest and presale in 4 cities. Once those are over, and assuming they go well, Whiteheart plans to actively seek out more cities for a spring run.
Bottom line is that Petra is not doing that.

You make some good points, so what we are really talking about here is getting management for Petra, they need management like White Heart.