Signs & Wonders Blog

Today is the 38th anniversary of Elvis Presley’s death. Although I wasn’t a big fan of the singer, I can remember where I was when hearing the news about him passing away. My family and I were at a Neil Sedaka concert in Fargo, North Dakota. Neil announced from the stage Elvis died that afternoon and then sang his composition “Solitaire” (a hit by the Carpenters but also sung by Elvis) as a dedication to the late singer. Elvis was often referred to as "The King of Rock 'n' Roll” or simply “The King,” a title he repeatedly resisted. Having been raised in an Assembly of God church, Elvis often declared there’s only one King, the Lord Jesus Christ. Early in his career, Elvis confessed to his pastor, the Reverend James Hamill: “Pastor, I am the most miserable young man you have ever seen. I have got more money than I can ever spend. I have thousands of fans out there, and I have a lot of people who call themselves my friends, but I am miserable. I am not doing a lot...

At the time of this writing, a well-known radio personality who had a big influence on my life is in poor health and may pass away soon. 82-year-old Casey Kasem is best known for hosting “A merican Top 40” plus voicing various cartoon characters. In recent years, Kasem has suffered from a form of dementia similar to Parkinson's Disease that has left him barely able to talk. Casey’s radio show was one of the things that inspired me to become a DJ. It also got me through difficult times during my childhood. Growing up in Moorhead, Minnesota, I first listened to “American Top 40” with my family on our way home from spending weekends at the lake. In January 1978, I started writing down the Top 40 every Sunday plus recording snippets of Casey’s show with my Panasonic tape recorder. My mother got annoyed because I listened to Casey’s commentaries more than the actual songs. Eventually, I made weekly trips to music stores that subscribed to Billboard magazine whose record charts AT...

Just before I logged off the Internet yesterday morning, I decided to check the headlines one last time. The news was already full of reports about the mass shooting and bombing in Oslo, Norway the day before. Still I had a hunch another tragedy had just occurred. On the home pages of Yahoo and CNN, I read “Breaking News” that British singer Amy Winehouse died in her London home. What stood out to me in those headlines was that Amy was only 27 years old. Immediately I thought of other rock stars who died at that very same age: Jimi Hendrix, Janis Joplin, Jim Morrison, and Kurt Cobain. Like Amy, all of them had a history of drug abuse. I first became familiar with Amy Winehouse while watching the 2008 Grammy Awards on TV. The singer was nominated for six awards and won five of them, including Record of the Year and Song of the Year for her hit “Rehab.” Amy made more headlines with her erratic behavior and run-ins with the law. Although I wasn’t a big fan of the singer, I occasio...