[Mickey]

(Nashville, TN) September 6, 2002 – Following a successful spring tour, two-time GRAMMY-winning and multi-platinum-selling Jars of Clay gears up for the fall leg of The Eleventh Hour Tour, featuring special guest The Elms and a tour partnership with international relief organization World Vision.

The fall tour will visit over 40 cities from October through early December with intimate performances in 3,000 – 5,000 seat venues. Special ticket pricing for fans and sound check meet-and-greet events enhance the appeal of this tour, which launches in Detroit, Michigan on October 3. (The first segment of dates is listed below. Venues and additional tour dates will be announced soon – see www.jarsofclay.com for updates.)

“Working with Jars’ vision and personality, the detail of this tour really makes sense. The band favors spending one-on-one time with the audience, and everything from ticket pricing to the new sound check meet-and-greets are set up to allow for that proximity,” notes David McCollum, Rendy Lovelady Management.

It is well known that Jars of Clay supports humanitarian efforts through its musical platform, and the partnership with World Vision on this tour is not surprising, considering the AIDS initiative World Vision has assumed in the past few months. “We have always supported those who are in need and those who can’t help themselves. We’re aligning with people like World Vision and DATA because they are able to give legs to the idea of battling the pandemic that has overrun Africa,” remarks Dan Haseltine, lead singer for Jars of Clay.

Jars of Clay’s self-produced and critically acclaimed The Eleventh Hour generated two number-one singles including, “I Need You” and “Fly” and has been covered by media outlets such as the TV Guide Channel, The CBS Early Show, Music Biz Magazine, Teen People and both CNN’s “Music on the Road” and “Headline News.” A special note by CNN’s Lindsey Brien concluded that “the band has found an audience with their subtle message and their not so subtle guitars,” adding, “their fans continue to support the band faithfully.”

Jars of Clay, honored in many musical genres including pop, rock and gospel, continued to tour through the summer, following the successful 50-city spring leg of The Eleventh Hour Tour. The group headlined a number of fairs and festivals in addition to performing with Sheryl Crow on numerous dates of her summer and fall tour.

Jars of Clay will release its first DVD, 11 Live: Jars of Clay in Concert, September 3. The DVD, also available on VHS, features two hours of performance footage, including a full-production concert set and an intimate acoustic set, plus behind-the-scenes interviews with the band. The project also offers a complete musical retrospective of the band.

Hailed as “one of the best bands to come along in Christian music” by ChristianityToday.com, The Elms have received credible praise for their distinct sound and probing lyrics. Following the widespread critical acclaim of their debut album The Big Surprise, The Elms will release their highly anticipated sophomore album TRUTH, SOUL, ROCK & ROLL on October 22nd which features the talents of producer Brent Milligan (Seven Day Jesus, Chasing Furies), and engineers Richard Dodd (Sheryl Crow, Delbert McClinton, Wilco) and David Bianco (Tom Petty, The Black Crowes). The Elms’ album also caught the attention of legendary guitarist Peter Frampton who invited the band to join him on several tour dates in August and September 2002.

The Elms single “Hey, Hey” was the band’s first music video and has received consistent airplay on MTV2’s “120 Minutes” as well as reached the Top 5 on the Christian it Radio Charts (CHR). In addition, The Elms gained two nominations for the 2002 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards. The album was nominated for Modern Rock/Alternative Album of the Year, while “Hey, Hey” received a nod for Modern Rock/Alternative Song of the Year.

For further information on Jars of Clay please visit www.jarsofclay.com or www.essentialrecords.com and for detail on The Elms go to www.theelms.net or www.sparrowrecords.com.

Jars of Clay The Eleventh Hour Tour – Fall 2002 with special guests The Elms

(tour dates tentative and subject to change)

October
3rd Detroit, MI
4th Cedarville, OH
5th Bluffton, IN
6th Erie, PA
7th Providence, RI
10th Washington, DC
11th Columbus, OH
12th Cincinnati, OH
13th Merillville, IN
16th Toledo, OH
17th Champaign, IL
18th Cedar Rapids, IA
24th Fresno, CA
25th Perris, CA
26th Sacramento, CA
27th San Jose, CA
30th Salt Lake City, UT
31st Flagstaff, AZ

November
4th Oxford, MS
6th Auburn, AL
7th Hattiesburg, MS
8th Columbus, GA
9th Valdosta, GA
13th Charleston, SC
14th Florence, SC
15th Raleigh, NC
16th Charlotte, NC

For much more on Jars of Clay, click here