Why the Faroe Islands? It started some 10 years ago, when a promoter for a rock festival that had grown up listening to Russ Taff on “samplers” had invited him to sing at this rock festival he was promoting. He put a band together for Russ, some from Copenhagen and the rest from the Faroe Islands. Every other summer, Russ would travel to the Faroe Islands to play this rock festival with a band made up of three record producers; Jakup Zachariassen, Óli Poulsen and Kristoffer Mørkøre and other players from around town. Two years ago, Russ had his budget from Spring Hill Records, and while visiting their state of the art studios asked what they would charge to use their studio in the Faroe Islands. Both producers said, “Well you can just have it!”
About three weeks after arriving back home, Russ received a conference call from the guys: "We miss the passion of the 80s and 90s and the stuff that you were doing, and if you would consider going back and revisiting some of that, we will pay for it.”
The three put up the money, flew Russ over five times to write songs and put everything together. There are a few covers but the rest are all original.
I asked Russ to pick his favorite and why, though this is always a hard question for a singer/songwriter.
“It’s like trying to pick your favorite kid.” According to Russ, “All of them affect me in a certain way, but if I had to pick several, 'Here Comes Jesus' is the very first cut on the record. It’s fun and has a great R&B feel to it and the lyrics are fun. Another would be one of the covers that I did, like Bob Dylan’s, 'I Believe In You.' The lyrics say: 'I believe in you even through the tears and the laughter, Jesus I just believe, no matter what comes in to my life.' It reminded me of the lyric of the song that I did in 87 or 88 called 'I Still Believe.' I love making that declaration, no matter what comes in my life, no matter the highs and the lows, the ups and downs I just believe, I just believe.”
Russ said of writing for this project in the Faroe Islands, “to get out of Nashville and go to a place that’s half way around the world and just sit and write and let the Holy Spirit speak to you, away from the phone and so many things that bring distraction in, I haven’t done a record like that in years, where everything just goes away and you just focus on the music, the lyric and how it fits in your personal life.”
It was quite a powerful experience for Russ and being able to see the landscape while recording.
“In the vocal booth, to be able to look out the window and see this big mountain and the ocean as far as the eye can see, it’s just inspirational, to see God’s great handiwork and His creation.” Typically when and artist records they’re stuck in this little cubby, a little cubicle, “It was great just looking at this scenery and the majesty of it. It takes you to a different place in your spirit just seeing that.”
Russ shared about writing the song "God’s Love," “I was standing out and just looking at this incredible view, and I started writing this lyric, 'the waves call out Your name, they echo Your love.' The lyric was just born out of standing there and looking out. The chorus says 'God’s Love is wild as a hurricane and God’s love, gentle as a prayer. God’s love calls me by name, Yes, He knows me and calls me by name.' The whole song was just born out of looking at the window at God’s majestic creation."
Russ began touring in the Faroe Islands with Andrea Crouch about 20 years ago. They received him so well, the response is just “wonderful over there” (in Russ' own words). The people are not as reserved there; they just love music. Russ played Christian festivals and churches, and to fill in between, they would perform in nightclubs. They had the opportunity to share the gospel through song in clubs. All the activity would just stop, and the people would listen so attentively to Russ and Andrea.
“It makes me understand how Jesus could go in to places like that, and He was so well received. If you share God’s love and don’t preach at them. The sinners love Jesus. Just to see how the words to the songs we had written were compelling to these people that were just searching. We have stories of how people were touched. They just got off work at 5:00 and went into the club to drink their cares away and to have someone come in and sing 'Jesus Is The Answer' and not preaching and just sharing the good news, the anointing was strong.”
"The gospel is strong, if you just present it, it will take care of itself. So many times we forget where we came from," Russ continued. "We forget that we were the ones standing there with the beer in our hand and in search of something. "we become pious and judgmental and think everyone should act and look like us."
Of the song "Harvest," Russ said, “Don’t lose today. Don’t lose this opportunity of ministry that we have today. Don’t get so caught up in life and problems that we miss the great opportunities that we have to minister. The thing that I don’t want to happen when I’m at the end of my life and I’m lying in that bed thinking 'I wish I had, I wish I had,' but that each day I seized the moment and I loved and I cared and I ministered and I was there when people needed me and when somebody had a problem I didn’t judge that I came in and just loved them and held them. It’s so easy to get caught up with day to day stuff. God just help me seize the day.”
The road ahead for Russ: half of the year is with Bill Gaither and the Homecoming Concerts, lots of solo concerts and more and more preaching. Russ shared that more and more he performs on Saturday night and preachers are asking him to stay over to preach on Sunday morning.
When asked to sum up his ministry, Russ told me, “I tell about Zacchaeus. That he was a tax collector and how hated tax collectors were. They were despised, outcast from the Jewish community. They weren’t invited to the synagogue family gatherings. They were wealthy people but weren’t welcome in the Jewish community. Then, how Jesus came walking into Jericho and the throng that came out to see Him, and I show that Jesus just loved the wrong kind of people. He walked in and began to address Zacchaeus and the crowd began to murmur. 'Doesn’t Jesus know who this guy is?' But Jesus invites him down and goes to his home, and Jesus refers to him as the son of Abraham. He hadn’t been called that in years. I then go into how when I was on my sycamore tree, going back to what we talked about earlier, never forget where we came from and how Jesus came to me in my sycamore tree. I was embarrassed and ashamed that I had not made good choices, and I hurt people around me. He didn’t bring religion, and He didn’t bring laws or traditions. He brought love. He invited me down and told me how much He loved me and because of that I wanted to change. Just to share that we’ve never fallen too far that His love can’t reach us, that His love can’t change us.”
As big a ministry as Russ Taff has and as far reaching as it is, Russ is still about sharing the gospel, God’s simple plan.
For more information on Russ Taff and his new recording Faroe Islands, visit http://www.russtaff.com.
Author: Jeff Lowe
| Author's Website: http://www.mercyriverqt.com
Written: 02/01/2012
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