JJT
John J. Thompson
John J. Thompson has been causing trouble in the fringes of the alternative music underground since the mid 80s. “Two things have really defined me since I was a kid,” Thompson explains. “I always knew that God loved me with a passion that defied explanation, and that He gave us art to allow our souls to explore the unknowable.” His dual passion for the pursuit of the Big Truth and beautiful, dangerous and transformational art possessed his imagination. Never satisfied with less than the best, Thompson developed a vision for music, and art in general, that not only functioned at the highest levels creatively, but that struck a resonant chord of truth in his soul. Chasing that resonant chord has become his life's work.
The chase began in earnest at the age of sixteen when, along with a friend from church, Thompson started his first band. That band, now known as The Wayside, has been performing around the country since 1989, and has released three critically acclaimed albums. The Wayside remains active, playing churches, bars, festivals and theaters. Though writing and performing original music was Thompson's first love artistically, after seeing the struggle and compromise that often followed artists who had to make a career out of their music, he decided to find other means of support. He found so much encouragement, inspiration and challenge in the work of obscure artists like Larry Norman, Randy Stonehill, Daniel Amos, The 77s, Mark Heard as well as more known artists like Bob Dylan, U2, Midnight Oil and The Alarm that he became an active proponent of what he called “Faith-Fueled Music.” “I began writing reviews and articles, and even spoke at area churches. This work needed to be heard, and it had precious few advocates. I made it my job to get the word out.”
In the summer of 1986, at the age of sixteen, Thompson took his first real job as the music buyer for a Christian Bookstore and Religious Gift Shop in Wheaton IL. Though his duties included delivering candles to area churches, vacuuming the store after-hours, working in the back room and taking phone orders, it was his work with customers, especially in the music department, that defined him. “I loved every day of work at Wheaton Religious,” he remembers. “The first day on the job I was up on the roof spreading tar! It was over a hundred degrees up there, but I was in heaven. I knew that I was on a path.” Within six months Thompson had doubled the music sales for the store, and inside of a year had doubled them again. Before his eighteenth birthday he drew up detailed plans for launching the first store that would focus exclusively on finding and selling only the best music created by Christians. After nearly two years of planning, research and fervent prayers, Thompson’s dream came true.
In 1989, at the age of 19, Thompson founded True Tunes Etc, in Wheaton Illinois. True Tunes was claimed by some to be the first honest-to-goodness record store that drew a laser-bead on music informed by faith and authenticity. Calling it a "Christian Music Store" never quite got it. True Tunes became ground zero for the emerging underground of faith-fueled modern music, eventually launching an internationally distributed magazine (True Tunes News) and mail-order company, and later a concert venue (Upstairs At True Tunes) that one legendary punk rocker called "The CBGB's of the church." Upstairs hosted over 500 individual sets of music in under three years of operation, including performances by POD, Sixpence None The Richer, MxPx, Jars of Clay, Julie and Buddy Miller, Switchfoot, The 77s, The Call and too many more to list. While the magazine grew to become the widest circulated alternative Christian music magazine in the world, and Upstairs became a destination for the most important bands touring, True Tunes changed ownership behind the scenes. Within months the legendary True Tunes ‘left the building.’ TrueTunes.com, the new and very successful internet home of True Tunes went on while the rest became history. The ownership changed again and Thompson helmed the web site and mail-order business and helped the new owners launch an independent label called, of course, True Tunes Records. He remains a contributing editor to True Tunes, but left the staff in 2000.
Having been originally inspired to launch True Tunes at the Cornerstone Festival, Thompson quickly accepted an offer to join their staff in 2001. As Cornerstone's "Marketing Coordinator" Thompson handled the re-building of CornerstoneFestival.com and introduced the concept of a "Promo DVD." He also handled event planning, representing Cornerstone at conventions and other festivals, and handling ad sales and sponsorships. Thompson remains involved with the Cornerstone Festival to this day, was thrilled to write and produce a 90 minute documentary entitled Cornerstone Festival; Twenty Years and Counting.
Along the route, Thompson built a solid reputation as a music critic and feature writer. He served as CCM Magazine's Rock News Editor for two years and contributed reviews and features to that magazine as well as HM Magazine, Christianity Today, Christian Musician, Prism Magazine, Inside Music, The Illinois Entertainer, The Syndicate, 7Ball and others. He has been considered an expert source on the alternative Christian music underground and Christian music in general by writers for Time Magazine, The Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post and numerous other outlets. In 2001 he wrote his first full-length book, Raised By Wolves; The Story of Christian Rock and Roll for the mainstream publisher ECW Press out of Toronto Canada. The book has been called the definitive history of the Christian rock underground. Thompson has also served on the Grammy Awards Screening Committee for more than ten years and spent two years on the Chordant Distribution (EMI) Retailer Advisory Committee in the mid nineties. He has been a featured speaker and teacher at various festivals and conferences and has spoken in front of literally thousands of youth on the subject of media awareness, the influential power of music and various aspects of the music industry.
In 2004 Thompson founded Gyroscope Arts Inc, a creative services company that exists to aid business, ministries, artists and technicians as they interact with the community of faith, the entertainment industry and new media. In some capacities Gyroscope serves as a consulting agency, and in others as a production company. In its first year Gyroscope projects included the production of an entirely original score for a local ballet school, written, arranged and recorded by Thompson and Danny Galaxy. Thompson also traveled to Mexico, Colombia and Honduras conducting interviews, taking photos and video for The Evangelical Alliance Mission and consulted on the launch of a new fashion company (Faveur Fashions.)Thompson also produced a video ad with Gyroscope member Chris Wicklas, composed and recorded an original soundtrack for traveling photography exhibit, and continued as the sponsorship and ad sales agency for the Cornerstone Festival. He recently produced a children’s album with artists like Matt Slocum (Sixpence,) Phil Keaggy, Ayiesha Woods, Phil Joel (Newsboys,) Ian Eskelin and others that is still awaiting release. In 2006 Gyroscope became the official advertising sales agency for HM Magazine and Thompson launched The HM Podcast, a music show that reaches over 50,000 fans. In 2007 he recruited Erin Lee (formerly of the acclaimed Chicago area alternative band Celestial Static) to take the helm of Gyroscope’s various ad sales and sponsorship representation initiatives while he joined the staff at EMI CMG Publishing as their full time Creative Director. In that role he oversees Film and TV pitching, Print Music and Artist Development. He continues to oversee Gyroscope’s efforts and frequently contributes to various projects as a writer of liner notes and magazine articles and a consultant. In 2008 Lee added WorshipTogether.com and SoulFest to the Gyroscope roster and began doing selective artist representation for publicity and booking.
Thompson is currently finishing production on a contemporary Children's album for Gotee Records (EMI) that includes contributions by Matt Slocum (Sixpence None The Richer,) Phil Keaggy, Phil Joel (Newsboys) and many other artists. Thompson served as a pastor at The Warehouse Church in Aurora IL from 1996 to 2007 when he finally made the move to Nashville. He remains active as a songwriter and performer as well, and is currently planning the recording and release of a new Wayside project. “After all this,” Thompson says, “I’m definitely still a fan. I’m thrilled to be useful and I thank God for so many diverse opportunities to serve His people over the years. As we enter the Nashville phase of this story I am incredibly excited about what may lie in store.”
Subscribe to Thompson’s blog Thirty Three and a Third HERE. (www.johnjthompson.blogspot.com)
Check out his work with EMI CMG Publishing HERE. (www.emicmgpublishing.com)
For the latest information on The Wayside click HERE. (www.MySpace.com/TheWayside)
To see archives of previous JJT writings go to www.JohnJThompson.com. (Coming soon.)
