The Holy Rocka Rollaz

I've heard many things roll out of mouths in my 54 years. Sentences, utterings, mutterings ranging from rage to euphoria. Some have stung for years only to fade away as time does what it does. Then others that rang sweet notes in my soul and bettered with age.

I have no idea how this particular story will age...but I sure don't think it's going to fade away.

Here we go.

The Holy Rocka Rollaz had just finished a 10 am performance at the Clay County Fair in September of 2017. It was a dewy morning and we…

That’s My Son

I charged at this 50s rock ‘n’ roll/rockabilly thing. HARD.

You could say I was given a vision in early 2010 that laid out the parameters of what The Holy Rocka Rollaz would become. Rocking. Authentically 50s. Bad ass. Fun. An upper midwest phenomenon that would bring joy to many.

There were wonderful moments of musical joy and ministry with drummer Matt Alexander and bassist Paul Jongeward in the South Dakota State Pen for several years. I shared with them the aforementioned vision…

Standing on the west bank of the St. Croix River in beautiful downtown Stillwater blessed me immensely last week. The Rollaz put on a great show in front of an enthusiastic crowd. The weather couldn't have been any better. I had a smile for nearly three hours as I looked back at Matt pounding out rhythms and then to my left to see Lisa Lynn slappin' the stand up bass. 

Behind them was a cresting river and an awesome view of the historic Lift Bridge.

I kept thinking, "Man, am I lucky to be doing this."

…

NO LONGER UNEMPLOYED!!!

When I tell folks this, they smile and say, "Congratulations! You finally found a job!"

I smile back and say, "No. I MADE one. Two actually."

With whatever's going on with the economy, finding a job with my skill set (or lack thereof) proved fruitless. So I picked up my lifelong passion and held up a sign that read, "Have guitar. Will work. Will sing. Will travel."

It's working!

I'd love to say this recently created career is firing on all cylinders throughout the year and…

It takes a lot of jobs to become a rock star. Well...at least for me.

I'm a veritable jack-of-a-lot-of-low-paying-trades. Please know that I'm chuckling as I write this. I can't help but laugh as I look back on my career trajectory (or lack thereof) and realize how my haphazard approach to becoming a rock star has led me to quite an interesting array of jobs.

I'll list them: (All of these jobs came after obtaining a B.A. degree.)

• *Cleaned witch noses and sorted plastic fingernails for Halloween kits. (5…

I'm glad I lost my day job.

Really!

It kicked off a very cool and moving journey.

Oh, I miss the regular paycheck and the nice people I worked with. But that's about it.

Sometimes when you're waiting for your ship to arrive, life sneaks up and shoves ya off the dock.

So far, the water's fine!

I've spent more time with my family, more time chasing this dream, a bit more time worrying about finances (that ebbs and flows), less money (it's amazing what you really don't need), more time praying, more…