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About MercyMe For the men of MercyMe—Barry Graul (guitar), Robby Shaffer (drums), Mike Scheuchzer (guitar), Nathan Cochran (bass), Jim Bryson (keys) and Bart Millard (vocals)—worshipping the Lord and leading others in His praise is very much a life-long calling. That commitment has guided the band through the creation of six independent projects and 6 albums as one of the flagship artists of INO Records. MercyMe’s beginnings can be traced back to Bart Millard’s football-hungry hometown Greenville, Texas. “My dad and my older brother were both football players,” Bart recalls, “so naturally, that’s what I wanted to do as well.” When Bart broke his ankles in a football game, he became interested in the school choir. During his freshman year of high school, Bart’s father had contracted cancer, which five years later claimed his life. “I felt like I needed to get away, start fresh,” remembers Bart. “My youth pastor had moved to Lakeland, Florida and asked me if I’d be interested in coming down there and working with his praise band. I moved there at the end of my first year of college. That was the first time I ever did anything with a band—but I fell in love with it immediately.” After becoming friends, Jim and Bart were picked to head a worship team. Mike came on board in August 1994. In just a year’s time, MercyMe was attracting the attention of local promoters. In Nashville, they played a little church for some label representatives and a few hundred kids. “We basically played all the songs on our one little album. The kids demanded an encore and since we had been playing praise and worship songs … we went back and began to worship. As we left the stage a second time with all of them still singing the choruses, I think that was the very first time the band realized how important praise and worship was to us.” Nathan, Robby and Barry have also been a vital part of the mission of MercyMe. “I think these are a tremendously talented group of guys,” Bart enthuses, “but from the beginning, we’ve always said we know there are lots of talented musicians out there. But spiritually, it would be hard for me to find more godly men.” Bart says that having enjoyed success as an independent act, it took an astonishing set of circumstances to convince MercyMe it needed to sign a major label deal. “We were literally fulfilling all the roles an artist usually hires out—management, booking, marketing. We finally realized that we had played for nearly 200,000 people during 1999 and were selling albums at the same pace as many nationally known artists. Administratively, we were in over our heads to the point where we couldn’t have CDs printed as fast as we were selling them. We knew we needed help in fulfilling what God had called MercyMe to do.” So MercyMe began charting its future course with INO Records and Brickhouse Entertainment. Now with 6 albums and over 13 years after their founding, the guys of MercyMe still find themselves passionate about leading people in worship and hope that their music will continue to direct people to Christ. |
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Meet Barry Graul Whether you want to learn the very foundations of music or take it to the advanced stage, WorkshopLive has been created for you. It was an incredible experience to meet and record the lessons with a committed team of people who really care about music education! I was given my first guitar by my parents when I was about 13 or 14. I started taking lessons immediately, as well as learning a lot on my own which pretty much gave way to me just teaching myself. Well…Sort of. Me, Jimmy Page and Eddie Van Halen would have lessons together everyday after school. I learned a lot from them and all of the other music of the 70's. I didn't know about Christian music then, in fact, there weren't nearly as many artists as there are now. So I started playing in cover bands for school dances and clubs and wherever we could play. After that chapter in my life had closed a friend played me a song by a Christian band, Undercover. I had no idea this type of music existed. So, in short, I packed up the car, moved to Nashville and for the next 14 years or so played for artists and bands which are too many to name until I joined MercyMe in 2003. I’ve been playing a long time but find that there is still something to learn. I feel blessed every day to be able to do what I love. back back |
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Meet Mike Scheuchzer WorkshopLive is an unbelievable experience for any guitar player of any level. I would have done anything to have had a resource like this when I was learning to play...there's no telling how well I’d be playing now if I did! I grew up in a Christian home, but not a terribly musical home. My parents, however, saw that I loved music from a young age and REALLY supported that. I started playing guitar when I was in 7th grade then quit 2 weeks later. I picked it up again when I was 15 and have been playing ever since. We started MercyMe when I was 19, so I didn’t have a whole lot of years under my belt, but no better place to learn how to play than in front of a crowd, right! After a few years on the road, my life TOTALLY changed when we played a show in West Monroe, LA. That was the day I laid eyes on the most beautiful girl on planet earth. Not long after that, somehow, I suckered her in to marrying me, and now 5 1/2 years later we've got the 2 smartest kids in the world...Don't believe me, ask their mom. |