The stories behind the songs from

"RAIN ON STEAMING PAVEMENT"

Steve receives many inquiries about how certain songs came to be and what the inspiration was for his popular ballads. We are happy to share the 'stories behind the stories' from Steve's award-winning debut album here:

TIP: For the stories behind the songs from other albums, click on the appropriate "Stories" link at left

“He Is There” (4:11)

A few years ago I received a phone call about a young Air Force physician who, just after discovering she was with child, was diagnosed with an aggressive blood cancer. As she lay ill in the hospital with all that mattered to her in question and her husband and pastor at her side, she was asked what they could bring her to comfort her. Amazingly, she asked for recordings of two of my songs, which she’d heard once at a concert a year earlier. After Pastor Marvin Wray related this to me on the phone, I came to realize that Joanie Dixon’s request was pivotal in my decision to professionally record these and other songs. Her faith and desire to connect with God through the music He’d given me was a powerful inspiration to proceed with the 2-year-long “Rain On Steaming Pavement” project, so that others who might be blessed and comforted by this music could have it in recorded form. “He Is There” was written shortly after the phone call that introduced me to Joan Dixon (who I have never met in person but who I feel I know in a special way), her husband Darrin and their at-the-time unborn child (who was a miracle birth a few months later). This song was meant to remind her, and all of us, that in life’s most dire moments, our loving God is reaching out and calling out to us to give us comfort, hope and the reassurance of His promises. “He Is There” is dedicated to Joan and Darrin Dixon and their family.

“Galilee” (5:06)

After a near-fatal motorcycle accident in 1996, doctors told me I was lucky not to have been killed or paralyzed and that I might not have use of my right arm and hand (devastating news to a musician, pianist and writer), but the Lord had other plans. During a long recovery and while in casts and confined to bed, this gentle, simple song about our Savior’s healing power and touch came to me.  As I envisioned the leper in the throng at Galilee and the music and lyrics to this ballad came to life, I would “play” the piano keys from within my cast and anticipate the day when I could again sit at the baby grand and, for the first time, share “Galilee” with others.

“Hold Them Close” (3:54)

As my beloved stepdaughter’s eighth grade graduation approached, I began to realize how fast our eldest child was growing up. She’d always been an exceptional young-lady, but her pending enrollment in high-school and her interest in going off to boarding school made me realize one afternoon that our little girl would soon be a woman and that ‘those special times’ of her childhood were slipping away. Struck by what a blessing we Christians experience in being able to trust those we love most to the God who loves them even better, I sat at the piano and wrote “Hold Them Close”, which I was privileged to perform for Kirsten’s eighth-grade commencement ceremonies, again on the occasion of her high-school graduation (at a beautiful seaside boarding school where she met her husband-to-be; learn about Monterey Bay Academy here), and once more at my little girl’s wedding to that fine young man several years later. The third verse lyrics were updated a bit for the wedding, but the prayerful chorus that I believe is in the heart of every Christian parent recites the wish I have each day for Kirsty, her husband Ryan, their amazing son Aiden (born January ‘06) and our son Derik: ‘Hold Them Close” Lord!

"It’s The One” (5:25)

On a clear Saturday afternoon in Elko, Nevada, my mother’s family gathered for a visit. At one point in the day my dear Grandmother asked if I’d play some music for her, and we sat at the piano at my mother’s home while I played some of the old hymns she liked. She asked me to play “the one she loved” but couldn’t remember the name of the song, and so, with my wife close by enjoying the musical journey with us, we set about singing along to the piano and searching for the one hymn that Granny so wanted to hear. Nearly ninety at the time, and always dear to my heart, she sat close and spoke softly, her hand on my knee, sometimes letting her gaze drift to the beauty of the high-desert and the Ruby Mountains which lay just outside the nearby parlor window. Those moments, replete with hymns that praised the Savior we both loved, laughter at our failing memories, our affinity for the power of music in our walk with the Lord and that warm sense of communion shared by Christian family, brought “It’s The One” to life some weeks later. This song is among the most-requested of my ballads, a story that I hold close each time I sing or hear it, and the song from which the album’s name is taken. I am grateful to Bill and Gloria Gaither for the timeless hymn, “Because He Lives”, which is the song my loved ones and I searched for and found on that praiseful afternoon in northern Nevada.

“Passage” (2:58)

Written more than 30 years ago by a 15-year-old who used his free period at boarding school to steal away to a piano practice room and teach himself to play guitar chords on piano, “Passage” was and is a musical representation of the journey my life has taken under the care-full watch of my Redeemer. If you listen closely to this song, which has yet to find lyrics (perhaps because it was not meant to), perhaps you will hear and feel the joy, sorrow, melancholy and elation, fear and resolve, failure and recommitment, turmoil and peace that have been part of my life and spiritual paths.

“’Tis Not This Ship” (4:02)

There is a powerful realization and peace that comes with the truth that our God has already paid an immeasurable price for our salvation, and that we are saved and made whole by His grace alone. “Tis Not This Ship” is a nautical ballad that speaks of the heaven-sent winds that will bring us home, of cutting loose the binding ties to this world and turning fearlessly into the storms of life on our journey towards eternity with our Savior. In simple allegory, this song is meant to remind us that, when all is said and done, when  the “waters are calm and the harbor is found”, nothing we did got us there; we’ll be delivered by the boundless grace of our Lord and Redeemer.

"The Best Of Us” (2:57)

Like many Christians I know, my spiritual journey has benefited from (and at times survived as a direct result of) the proactive presence, ministry and loving friendship of a few, extraordinary lovers of the Lord (Carl A., Billy K., John K., Keith W., Ken L. and others … you know who you are). One of these precious spiritual mentors was my friend Stuart Jayne, who I came to know and love when we were part of the same Napa, CA church family. Stu was a retired pastor and church administrator when I met him, but he needn’t preach to show you the love of God. It was just in him. Few people I’ve known have demonstrated the unconditional, “always on” love of Jesus and an immovable faith in God like Stu did. I believe that his influence in my life has made me a better person, shown me the way to a closer walk with my Savior, and made many choices (including the one to record this music) clearer to me. “The Best Of Us” (Stu’s Song) was written and played for Elder Stuart Jayne’s memorial service and is dedicated to his memory and to his wonderful wife (also a dear friend), Ruth. I’m looking forward to sharing it with him some day.

"Soft, Sure Voice” (4:35)

There was a time during my journey to understanding that God’s grace was my salvation that I felt that the challenges of life and the frenetic pace of the world around me made it hard to hear Christ’s voice. “Soft, Sure Voice” was written as a reminder to myself and those I love that, above the din of this world’s dangers, disappointments and deceptions, the Lord of Lords is gently calling our names … reminding us that He is near and that, before we know it, He’ll be here! (The lyrics to verse one were update after the tragedy of 9/11/01)

"Reunion Day” (4:25)

Like many young people from our denomination and others, I attended a Christian boarding academy (high school). For numerous reasons, this experienced proved to be one of the best and most important of my adolescence. The people that became part of my life at Rio Lindo Academy (learn more about this exceptional school, situated on a scenic bluff overlooking northern California’s Russian River, here), both students and devoted faculty, helped shape me into who I am. Their love and care showed me a way of living I’d not known until living among them, and demonstrated what Christian community meant. Many of these dear people are still ‘family’ to me and, though I’ve tried to tell them, I’m not sure they understand just how profoundly their generous spirit and example impacted me at a time when I was struggling to discern just who I was and how God would fit into that picture. ‘Rio’ (as we called the school) was many things to my 550+ schoolmates and me. For me, it was the place where I would learn that which would serve me the rest of my life: things spiritual, physical, mental and emotional. It is where I would first fall in love; where I would learn how to live in a diverse community, and where I would begin to understand what kind of person and Christian I wanted to be. It is where, on a starry night during a week of prayer given by singer/songwriter/minister Keith Knocke, I would find God and give my life to him. It is where I could wander from the dorm on a sunny afternoon or balmy evening and, in the trees and across the sculpted lawns … along the banks of the river and among the people I came to love … I could feel Christ’s very presence. “Reunion Day” was written when I was asked, ten years after graduating from Rio Lindo Academy, to contribute music to our 10-year reunion church service (on the very piano I’d played a hundred times during my student years there). Its lyrics were reportedly published in a church conference magazine in following months (though I never saw the article) and some apparently regard the song as the school’s (unofficial) alumni song. I was asked to sing “Reunion Day” again at our 20th reunion in 1997 and for our 30th in 2007, and will be delighted to share it again at our 30th reunion if asked. To date, the only place this song has been played is at Rio Lindo Academy (just once every 10 years), which I suppose is completely appropriate. The song takes me and others back to the consecrated halls of the fine Christian schools we attended; to the smiles, love and encouragement of the teachers and faculty members who made priceless contributions to thousands of young lives; to the young faces in the alumni photos that hang in the administrative halls, and to those private and public places on campus where the Lord made himself known to us and began to gather us together for the ultimate reunion day.

"Guitar On Piano” (3:43)

I am not a classically trained musician, nor a ‘real’ pianist. I’ve never been comfortable thinking of myself as a ‘performer’, and the music that God has gifted to me has been, for decades, a private and personal experience for me. The songs I’ve written are largely about the spiritual experiences and paths of myself and a few close friends and family, and until a few years ago, I never envisioned recording them professionally. Not unlike those who keep a journal of pivotal events in their lives, these ballads have come at times when I needed—or was impressed—to chronicle an event or experience that had meaning in my (or another’s) walk with Christ. Earlier in life, when it was suggested that I had musical talent that might prove contributive to others, key voices in my life suggested that, without formal training, sharing the music that was in my heart would be a foolish exercise. “Guitar On Piano” was written as a restatement of a commitment I made later in life, when I came to understand that God can use anyone, with any variation of talent or training, to do what he calls us to do. Yes, my piano playing is limited to a finite selection of guitar chords that I found on the piano keyboard and arranged into songs. Yes, it’s true that I can’t read or write music and have no formal musical training. And yes, I listened for too long to those voices that suggested that what God gave me to share was not good enough. But no more. When His call became clear in recent years, and He threw doors open to make the recording of this and future albums possible, I resolved (with the love, encouragement and support of my amazing wife, children and friends) that I would reorder my life so that I could go and do what God asked me to do. I hope the resulting collection of songs will be of comfort to you and yours, and that you will find blessing in listening to “Guitar on Piano”.      

TIP: For the stories behind the songs from other albums, click on the appropriate "Stories" link at left