Marie Barlow: News

There is a little celebrating going on way out here in Elizabethtown, PA...we thought we'd share!

After almost 17 months of blood, sweat and tears (and writing checks) today we are giving final approval to the DESIGN and MASTER of our new CD, "Shelter - Worship Through The Ages"! It has been a long road with many twists and turns, and we intend to take a breath as soon as it hits us that we've finished and have nothing else to do.

Ah, but now to promotions! We are blessed that we have Gina Adams on board to help with this, and September, October and November will see premiere concerts throughout the United States (more on that later). We hope and pray that this latest labor of love will be a blessing and comfort to all who hear it.

We'd like to formally welcome Gina Adams of the Adams Group in Nashville, TN to our ministry team! She is our new, dynamic PR guru who is getting the word out about what Gordy & I are doing. Please visit her website and give her lots of grief from us! Thanks Gina! http://christianpublicityservices.com/dramatic_rose/dramatic_rose/index.html

We added our new song, Ode #40 (Sing Allelu) to the Fan Favs chart! Go check it out! It's under Inspirational...

This is the song that we told you about: from the oldest known Christian songbook, written around 100AD. Imagine the earliest Christians sitting around singing this together...it is such a privilege to bring it to you now, as we worship as they might have. Close your eyes and just imagine their voices reaching toward heaven in praise...

For all of those who have asked (and for those who haven't!) the final mix of our new CD, "Shelter - Worship Through The Ages" is being completed today.  It has been a long, very long, journey with many ups and downs, but we are certain that God has been in charge and has had much to show us through this process.  We are humbled to be able to offer this work to Him for His glory!


The final piece of this puzzle came together when we found an incredible song that comes from the oldest known Christian songbook in history.  It was found around the region of Antioch, many scholars peg it as written around 100 ad, and the work consists of 42 odes.  If you can imagine the earliest of believers - perhaps people who heard Paul speak or maybe even John - sitting around singing these songs of worship to the Lord!  It is mind-boggling and a true privilege to sing one of them on this album and give it to you.  In concert we will teach you this song and all of us will sing the chorus together.  Maybe it will sound something like it did all those years ago.  These wonderful works did not come with written music, of course - only text.  The music for this was written by John Andrew Schreiner, and is a beautiful representation of what the early believers might have sung.  The words are adapted from the original Syriac. 


All of this to say that the album, which has finally come together, will have worship music represented over thousands of years - some inspired by the psalms, some from the traditional hymnal and some from the most contemporary worship music of today.  The ode brings them all together from the beginning of the Christian church and reminds us what a joy it is to worship the Lord...Sing Allelu!

Hi All! Sorry, once again, it has been a while since we've updated everyone! We have been working hard on Album #4 - "Shelter" - and time just goes so quickly.

We are in the studio now putting down the final lead vocals on the album. Bit by bit this project is coming together. We have fabulous musicians who have helped on this, and we are excited to hear what it will be like when it all comes together.

For those of you who know us, this album will not be typical of what we have done before. We have spent a great deal of time working on songs that are more "contemporary" or somewhat "pop" in order to expand our repertoire and our audience. This album will have 10 songs, and 5 of them will be this new style. The other 5 will be a little more typical of Gordy & Marie - a couple of traditional sounds, one country-esque, and Marie's torch song style.

I, Marie, must say that studying to sing pop stylings has been extremely challenging. I've spent half a year getting the style into my ear and into my mouth, and what's come out is certainly a departure from the norm for me. I am not a pop singer, to be sure, and I don't ever intend to become one, but I do believe that as a vocalist, I must be as true to the style of music as possible. For example, it would be no more right for me to use a country twang on an aria than it would to sing opera on a contemporary worship song. My goal has been to be true to each song's style with the voice that God has given me, all without losing "Marie". We'll see how this translates. What is fun about a venture like this is that Gordy & I are discovering new facets of our music which we can present in concert and which might touch some people in ways that our other music may not.

Music is powerful. It has the ability to change a person's heart. There are so many different styles of music on this planet, and not one style touches all people. This is why we must always have different styles out there - to reach into the heart of a person who otherwise might not hear. It is our hope that the music we present in Shelter will serve to add to the number of hearts who hear God's voice...

http://local.lancasteronline.com/4/214320

http://local.lancasteronline.com/4/214349

We had a wonderful time at the CCCA Convention in San Diego a few weeks ago and were very blessed to be a part of their week. We have new pictures sprinkled throughout the website from our concert on the opening evening, including this one above, so take a look around!

Many of you have been asking about our Nashville sessions and wonder why there isn't any information about it yet. Never fear! We did go to Nashville and recorded about 60% of the album. We will record the rest in January and are on track for our spring release.

The album is titled "Shelter" and is an original written by Gordy, sung by Marie. The album will have several Matt Goss originals, as well, which will help us dip our toes into the christian pop world a bit, but we will still sprinkle the album with our signature unique takes on a few old hymns. And for those of you who have seen us live in concert, yes, Gordy will finally be recording the ever-popular "For The Love Of My Life" on this album! So many of you have requested this song, and we are thrilled to be able to bring it to you!

We took some neat pictures during the studio time in Nashville, so keep an eye out on the website for those shots to appear. We also took new promo shots for a new informational brochure about our concert ministry, and we'll be sharing those photos soon too.

The Christmas season will be starting before we know it - has already begun for us since we rehearse well in advance - and we want to wish you and yours a most blessed season. We love to hear from you, so please keep writing. Your encouragement is greatly appreciated and comforts us tremedously as we continue headlong into this music ministry. We don't know what God has in store for us, but He is preparing us each day for whatever might come.

Hi All! Well, as you can see by our schedule, we have been extremely busy this summer and were able to take a short breather in August. Now the fall and winter months begin, and we will be busier than ever. First, we officially changed our company name to Rock Dove Ministries although our label is still Rock Dove Records.

Speaking of label, we are working on our fourth album and have been working on her for sometime now. We are excited to be recording in Nashville in less than two weeks at Wildwood Studios - scene to many a famous record or two - with our arranger Phillip Keveren! He's one of the greats in this industry, and we are most blessed to have him on board.

Album #4 will be unlike any you have heard from us with originals and an even bigger variety of songs stylistically, and we are looking toward a premiere in the spring of '08. More information about that to come...

We are proud to introduce a new member of the Barlow Martin family....Geopardy! (Check out our "photos" link to see pics of her.) She comes from a long and storied line of Thoroughbreds and Warmbloods and is the great-great-great-great (you get the picture) grand daughter of War Admiral, and arguably the most famous racer in the world, Man Of War. Her Papa's side, however, is Hanoverian (Graf Goetz - http://www.rougemontsporthorses.com/grafgotz.html - an equally famous dressage horse) so she isn't as high-strung as most thoroughbreds, although she is definitely a complicated handful! She is also the promise of a childhood dream fulfilled. Welcome to our family, Geopardy...you are most loved.

Well, Rock Dove Records couldn't keep it a secret any longer...Gordy & Marie's new album (that's right - ANOTHER new album!!) is about to hit the shelves, and the buzz has already begun! Their third album is the much-anticipated Christmas album which shall prove to be the artists' finest work to date. Pre-sale orders will be offered in the coming days so that fans might obtain this album in time for Christmas, and discounts will be given for multiple orders. More information to come...

Introducing Marie & Gordy's latest CD: How Can I Keep From Singing - Hymns...

HOT OFF THE PRESS!!! The new CD incorporates old hymns with new arrangements for a very special musical experience. Pick a quiet morning over coffee or block out a noisy world while driving - this CD will bring you into the presence of our Lord...

Rock Dove Records is proud to announce the newest album by Marie Barlow Martin and husband, Gordy Martin!

After the release of the artists’ first album, Dancer To The Drum, in December of 2004, requests for live appearances poured in. 2005 saw Marie and Gordy very busy with concert dates totaling no less than forty, and from these came the demand for a second album. The artists are going back into the studio in January of 2006 to record their next CD which will be arrangements for their favorites hymns many of which can be heard in their live performances.

Rock Dove Records will release this CD in spring, and it will be available on the artists’ website, www.mariebarlow.com or at Tower Records, CD Baby and Christian Light Bookstores among others. You can also access the artists’ calendar at www.mariebarlow.com/calendar if you wish to attend any of the scheduled engagements.

If you have not yet secured your copy of the limited release album, Dancer To The Drum, copies are still available at the above locations.

For more information about the artists, you may contact us at RockDoveRecords@mariebarlow.com

Again, good-bye to another year and hello to future possibilities! Doesn't it always feel as though you've been given a fresh start when the calendar turns as dramatically as it does between December 31 and January 1? Our 2006 is already looking very exciting and blessed. We'll begin our concert ministry at camps and retreats this year which will add a new dimension to the blessings God is pouring out to all involved. We are also not wasting any time on the new album - we go into the studio January 2nd and plan to have the CD completed by the end of April (more on that in a separate announcement). All in all, we have been amazed at where we have been lead in 2005 by God's grace and love, and we can only imagine that 2006 will be no less divine. Thanks to all of you who have supported us and encouraged us along the way. We are most grateful. Have a wonderful New Year!

WOW! Has it really been almost a year since our first album came out? Has it really been more than two months since I updated everyone on how things are going?? So sorry! Time does fly. We have exciting things in the works, and as you can see by our calendar, we are very busy. We are exceedingly blessed by God's goodness and continue to be obedient to His calling...soon there will be an announcement about our upcoming CD (yes, another one alredy - can you believe it??) as well as some personal updates to let you know what's happening in our lives. Suffice it to say, "We are blessed abundantly above all that we can ask or think!" More on this later...

Today we celebrate our first year in marriage and in our home. When we reflect upon the past year together, and we remember the Leap Of Faith we took one year ago today, we can hardly believe what God had in store for us and the journey we were about to take. We are thrilled to know that this journey has only just begun and that with each day that we wait upon the Lord, we are that much more whole and healed to be able to be all that He made us to be. Mostly, we are thankful for this marriage that God has given to us, and we cherish it with all our being. We pray that you and yours are as happy as we...

Hi Again!

Well, new things on the horizon and happenings all around! First, please take a look at our new pictures on the website! Gordy and I took some promo shots which will be used for fliers, postcards, banners and the like - you can find them on our Photo Album page, our Bio page and our Contact Us page at this point. We'll be modifying these in the future. If you should need any promo materials for your venue, please let us know and we can send these to you in just about any format imaginable.

We have also been blessed with some exciting concerts in the near future: we will be singing about marriage and family values at a function hosted by Governer Ed Rendell and the American Family Coalition of Pennsylvania this month...we will be pairing up with inpirational speaker Connie Pombo in her effort to impart strength to others through her struggle with cancer and to share the ways her faith in God has brought her to where she is today...and Sandy Cove Christian Ministries has booked us for an entire weekend of praise & worship as well as a full length concert along with top-selling author Liz Curtis Higgs next May among many others...

We have been most blessed. Please stay in touch with us - we love to hear from you.

Hi All! Well, Spring has certainly sprung, and the world is quite beautiful from our window...I've identified (so far) 52 different species of birds in our yard, am watching the bulbs bloom which I planted last fall, and am enjoying my work at the horse stables tremendously!

We've been most blessed to have booked some exciting concerts this year as well as next year. We have put together very nice packets which we can send out to any venue or organization that might be interested in booking us. Please, if you know of a particular person or place where we should send our information, we would appreciate the contact or referral. Just email us here on our website with the information, and we'll take it from there.

We hope your Spring is a rebirth for you in your own way! Stay in touch - we love to hear from you.

We're in the stores!!! That's right - all five Christian Light Bookstores in and around Lancaster, PA are now carrying Dancer To The Drum! This is an exciting step for us, and we're grateful to Christian Light Bookstores for their support. Please send them your business!
www.christianlightbookstore.com

Hi All! As some of you already know, Tower Records is now endorsing "Dancer To The Drum"! You can navigate your way to the appropriate page by going to my "Links" tab. Also, some local Christian bookstores have agreed to carry our CD as well including Christian Light Bookstore and Sweet Spirit...more info on that to come! Yipee! Let's get The Word out so we can bless more lives! Thanks to all the well-wishers who have been in contact with us. Hearing from you means a great deal...