[Jonular]

One of the premier songwriters of today, sixsteps/Sparrow Records' Chris Tomlin, plays an Avalon S25 guitar on his fastest-selling album to date, Arriving, which debuted at No. 39 on the Billboard Top 200 and sparked the current No. 1 hit single, "Indescribable." Tomlin is also playing the guitar on the already successful tour this fall with Steven Curtis Chapman and Casting Crowns.

Joining the growing list of top guitarists endorsed by the guitar maker, such as Jim Corr and Anthony Drennan (The Corrs) and Cliff Young (Caedmon's Call), Tomlin comments, "I am grateful to Avalon guitars for letting me use such a wonderful instrument. Their service and integrity speaks for itself in every guitar."

"Avalon Guitars is a guitar company committed to excellence and have endeavoured to reflect this in their choice of guitar for Tomlin," says North American director for the company, Miles McKee. "When someone like Chris is out there ministering for the glory of God it only makes sense that we create a guitar which will compliment his purpose and serve him in his calling."

Tomlin's Avalon S25 was handcrafted in Ireland by the world-renowned luthiers of Avalon Guitars. In the realm of small-bodied guitars, the Avalon S25 model is a variation on a theme, closely hinting at the proportions of a classical guitar but built for the versatile demands of a steel string player.

Tens-of-thousands are experiencing the tones of Tomlin's Avalon as more than 65,000 units of his critically acclaimed CD, Arriving, have sold in just eight weeks since its release. Receiving a mention in USA Today for its sales success, Knight Ridder News Service also gives the album a four-out-of-four star rating as Amazon.com, CCM, RELEVANT, Worship Musician, ChristianityToday.com and others similarly applaud the album.

With the album's hit single, "Indescribable," garnering the No. 1 position for two consecutive weeks on the R & R AC Monitored chart, seven consecutive weeks on the PDAdvisor AC chart and hitting No. 1 for the first time last week on the CRW AC chart, numerous others are hearing Tomlin's music over the airwaves. Tomlin is further connecting with music listeners live on Steven Curtis Chapman's 70-city, six-month All Things New tour, which began last month. Tomlin is performing in the middle slot with opener Casting Crowns on this major market tour. Rooted in Passion's collegiate movement that the New York Times calls "Christian Music's New Wave," Tomlin will also be leading worship for thousands at the international Passion '05 gathering in Nashville Jan. 2-5. He releases his first book as well, The Way I Was Made, on Multnomah early next year.

History Of Avalon Guitars

Avalon is a new name in guitars but one with an established history and quality heritage. The company that now bears the name Avalon Guitars came into being in the 1980s as the Lowden Guitar Company. Through the years, the company's reputation for producing the very highest quality acoustic guitars was widely acknowledged, although production remained small. The highly skilled team of craftsmen also grew in stature as their experience and know-how developed. Avalon guitars are all about their contribution to the acoustic guitar world and their statement about acoustic guitar design, quality and above all, tone. More information can be found at www.avalonguitars.com.

Additional Chris Tomlin information, tour dates, etc., can be found on www.christomlin.com, as well as at www.sixstepsrecords.com and www.emicmg.com.

Founded in 2000 by Louie Giglio, sixstepsrecords (www.sixstepsrecords.com) is a young worship label and a division of Choice Resources, the parent ministry for Passion Conferences. In addition to Tomlin, sixstepsrecords' artist-worshippers include David Crowder Band (Illuminate), Charlie Hall (On The Road To Beautiful) and Matt Redman (Facedown). The label partners with Sparrow Records for marketing, sales and distribution operations.

For more information on Chris Tomlin, click here.