Multi-Genre Guitarist and Composer Ward Darby Revisits Gospel Roots with Two New Tracks

BRANSON, Miss., July 15, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Guitarist and composer Ward Darby, whose career in vintage rock and roll and country music spans nearly six decades, continues to mine his deep gospel roots with two new tracks that reach back to the church music of his youth in West Virginia.

(Photo:  http://photos.prnewswire.com/prnh/20130715/PH46802)

Recorded in Branson, Missouri, in March 2013, "He Made It For You" and "Open Up Your Heart" come on the heels of Darby's finely crafted solo instrumental guitar album, Old Gospel Guitar, released in 2012. "He Made It for You" is set for release on July 16th, on his Dar Bee Music label. "Open Your Heart" is scheduled for release in the fall of 2013.

"He Made It For You" is a reassuring song about the place in eternity that the Lord has created for all of his followers. The track's solid rhythm underscores the interplay between guitar and keyboard. "Open Up Your Heart" follows a similarly understated tempo, with a message about the peace that inevitably follows when one accepts the Lord's gift of salvation. Darby's seasoned vocals fill both songs with a depth and character that suggest an appreciation of the blessings of this world and a true faith in the next one.

The tracks are a prelude to an album scheduled for release sometime in 2014. Both feature a team of skilled accompanists: keyboardist and background vocalist Kris Spencer, bassist and background vocalist Earl Grigsby, and drummer Jimmy Baker. Grigsby and Darby go back a long way together, all the way to a series of gigs in the 1960s. Darby had also worked with Baker on previous occasions. Spencer was the newcomer, but the combination of old friends and new ones brought their "A" game and delivered a pair of high-quality recordings.

Darby's relationship with gospel music began more than sixty years ago, when Darby was a young boy growing up in War, West Virginia, where his first musical exposure took place in the church. Although he pursued rock and roll in the late 1950s, then veered toward country music in the '60s, the gravity of gospel music has always been powerful enough to keep pulling him back to his roots.

"When I'm writing this kind of music, the Lord is flowing right through me, and it would be a terrible shame for me to miss that experience and let the opportunity slide by," says Darby. "When the spirit moves, that's when I pick up the guitar and express myself that way. It's a gift – a gift and a release. I feel so much better after I've done it. I'll sit down to play the guitar and it may last two or three minutes or it may last an hour or more. Whatever the case, it's refreshing and life-affirming every time."

For more information on Ward and his music, please visit his Website, Facebook or YouTube page.

Contact: 
Brad Darby 
Dar Bee Music 
Email
904-339-5233

This press release was issued through eReleases® Press Release Distribution. For more information, visit http://www.ereleases.com.

SOURCE Ward Darby