 Part boxcar teacher, preacher and vagabond troubadour, Testament Jones was first, last and always a seeker of truth. Needing the comfort of a straight and narrow path through this world, he walked the shiny steel rails of the Iron Horse. Along the way, he found his own awakening in the eyes of his fellow pilgrims and in the strings of his beat-up old guitar. The songs he sang delivered a message of hope to the quiet corners of soup kitchens and drifted on the smoke of a thousand hobo campfires.
Decades later, another seeker of truth walked along those rails and heard them whisper of a singing preacher who'd passed this way before. Suddenly, the title for his next album hit him like a freight train "Testament Jones-On The Way Home."
Singer/songwriter Gil Reynolds reaches for a brighter light in the seductive grooves of "Testament Jones- On The Way Home" a new collection of songs. The Folk/Pop sound of "testament jONES" is confidently breaking new ground, delivering an uplifting message driven by a serious downbeat. The new CD contains 11 original works by producer / singer / songwriter Gil Reynolds from Newberg, Oregon. Based in the Willamette Valley for the last 30 years, Reynolds is a multi-instrumentalist who has entertained audiences from Florida to L.A, Nashville to Las Vegas. Joining Reynolds in live performances are:
*Tracy Stewart, an outstanding talent who's stellar vocals have a way of touching your soul,
*Singer/songwriter and recording artist Alan Peterson who has recently finished a solo tour promoting his latest CD, "World In Love,"
*Session drummer Jayson Foidel, who also teaches at Portland's "The Drum Shop" and mixes sound for "The Swingline Cubs,"
*Classically trained and 'in demand' studio bass player Jared Hermens,
*Rich Layton on harmonica, a resent transplant from Houston TX, where he fronted the top regional band, "The Generators."
The music of "On The Way Home" is about human issues and the sometimes deep challenges we are all faced with on a daily basis. "I believe in songs that communicate, that say something. Some have called my music 'too intelligent' for mainstream audiences, but I disagree. The concepts are universal. Like Testament Jones, there's a little bit of the teacher in me. But as long as a songwriter is dealing with real issues, there will always be people that can connect and relate to what that writer has to say."
Reynolds adds, "From my point of view, when I'm only seeing obstacles, I've have lost sight of my goals. My goal here is to transcend all of the labels, to take my music to that level where everyone connects, and you get those nice little warm chills up the back of your spine. When that happens, I feel like Testament Jones might be right there on-stage with me.
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