Brother's Keeper
Philip Enzor, Gabe Dunlap and John Sanders had already realized an important part of their individual ministries before they ever uttered a note together. Attending the same high school and youth group at church, each believed strongly they were called to minister to one another-encouraging each other as young men wanting to live out their Christian faith in an increasingly secularized culture, as they attended college and prepared for whatever life would bring.
This type of "accountability relationship" is the spiritual foundation on which Brother's Keeper was built. "When I think of Brother's Keeper, I just basically think of Philip and John," explains Gabe. "It's two guys that I've grown up with, that I've known since I was in 10th grade, that were my best friends then and are still my best friends now. Those relationships were at the core of this group before we ever sang together, and are still the reason we are called to be in this ministry. Accountability is an often misunderstood and misused word. When people have no accountability, chances are they're not communicating with anyone about the things that really matter in their lives. The heart of accountability is really just ongoing, quality communication."
It was on a tour with the church's youth choir that these three (along with another former member) discovered their ability to make a joyful noise together. Originally singing a cappella, the guys were originally inspired by vocal groups like 4Him and Boyz II Men, taking occasional gigs while finishing high school and college. For a time, the group utilized a swing/jazz vocal approach, and caught the attention of Ardent Records executives after competing in a Gospel Music Association regional talent competition.
Brother's Keeper's 1999 self-titled debut album featured a bright pop vocal sound in step with the emerging boy bands of the day, and garnered them plenty of radio airplay-particularly the #1 charting "Rain On." But times and tastes change, and the new album from this threesome, Cover Me, reflects the next step in its musical evolution.
Says John, "I've been playing guitar since I was 16, but hadn't found a way to incorporate it into our music until recently. We'll always have great harmonies, because it's what brought us together musically in the first place, but now we've developed more of a guitar-driven, pop-rock sound that represents where we are today much more accurately than our first album."
Helping to get their new sound recorded the way they wanted it heard were Christian rock veteran and producer Dana Key, who also wrote the majority of the songs, and Kevin Paige, who produced their first album. Long time Christian music fans may also recognize BK's new rendition of "In His Love," a ballad written by DeGarmo & Key and originally recorded by Sandi Patti in the early '80s for her live album, More Than Wonderful.
The experiences of new-found fame, increased touring and other events in each of the member's lives have caused them to mature-apparent both in the recorded performances that fill Cover Me and in live appearances that stress ministry over music business. Philip Enzor says it's partially the result of many lessons learned over the last couple of years.
"For me personally," says Philip, "one of the most valuable things I've learned is not to assume that the folks you are singing to in churches-or even some of the artists you meet along the way-have a personal relationship with Christ. I say that partially from experience, because I had been singing with these guys for eight years before I truly surrendered my life to Jesus in September of 1998. It has given me a new appreciation for ministering to the Church, because there are so many people that have grown up in the church, but have still not given control of their lives to the Lord."
"I'm really beginning to realize the magnitude of what we're doing now," says Gabe. "It's not just about touring the country on a bus and having a great time. We're telling people about the Gospel, and sometimes you can forget that and get caught up in the routine of life on the road. This is much bigger than me, and much bigger than Brother's Keeper, and we need to continue to be accountable to one another, communicating and reminding each other of what it is we're doing and why it is we're doing it."
"I'm learning lessons about dealing with people,"says John. I'd love to sit down with somebody and hear them talk about their ministry and learn whatever I can from them. I have to really work though, at focusing on certain people that come up to me at concerts, really listen to what their saying, and realize that they are looking at me as a representative of Christ. It's real easy with my hyped-up personality to move too quick, forget names, and worst of all, forget to pray for people I have promised to pray for."
The decision to title the album after the song "Cover Me" was made on the day scheduled for the photo shoot for the cover-which happened to be September 11, 2001. As Gabe explains it, "We were on our tour bus, getting make up applied just before the shoot, and the TV is on. All of sudden, the story of the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center begin to unfold in front of our eyes, and we're like, 'We can't do a photo shoot and smile for the camera when we don't even know what's going on in our country.' We called off the shoot that day and just prayed together. After that, we all just knew the album needed to be titled Cover Me. In this unstable world where we don't know what will happen tomorrow, we need to remind each other that we are covered by Christ, and we can cover each other in prayer."
"The lyric says, 'From your knees please lift me, and I will cover you,' " explains John. "Basically, 'cover me' is another way of saying, 'pray for me.' None of us can pray for everyone, and that's why it means so much when someone says they are praying for you. If someone is praying for you, you are blessed."
"This album is centered on being faithful and being fearless," John concludes, "and with that, we chose 'Cover Me' as a way to blend our past with our vision for the future in our walk with the Lord by saying, 'We are covered by His grace, love and mercy…and pray for me.' " |
