Christian star brings first Christmas tour to Everett this week

Published 9:00 pm Thursday, December 1, 2005

After nearly 15 years as one of the leading contemporary Christian performers in the land, Steven Curtis Chapman is currently on his first Christmas tour, and Snohomish County fans will have a front seat.

Chapman and Mercy Me are bringing their brief but ambitious 21-date Christmas tour to the Everett Events Center at 7 p.m. Wednesday. The tour began Nov. 25 in Greenville, S.C., and ends Dec. 20 in Indianapolis.

“It should feel like a big Christmas party, with caroling, singing along and lots of fun,” Chapman said in a phone interview from his office in Franklin, Tenn. “I hope more than anything that people just walk out of there feeling like they’re so into the Christmas spirit.”

The holiday theme also takes some pressure off Chapman, who has more than a decade of material, including nine albums that have been certified gold or platinum sellers.

“We talk a little bit about incorporating maybe a song or two of the other familiar songs,” Chapman said. “But part of what’s so fun about this and exciting is we have an excuse to change all the rules.

“The hardest thing about doing concerts anymore, for me, is that we have 13 albums full of songs, and people there have got their favorites. It’s nice to have a tour where we’ve only got two albums full of Christmas songs.”

One of those is his most recent release, “All I Really Want for Christmas,” which hit the market Sept. 27.

The album cover features a photo of Chapman and his adopted daughter, Shaohannah, a huge inspiration for Chapman’s message about helping orphans worldwide.

“I want people to consider the gift of family, and what a precious gift that is for those of us that have it,” he said.

Chapman said he is looking forward to visiting the Pacific Northwest, the place where he shot his first live video.

“My immediate quest is always the perfect cup of coffee,” he said. “This is a great time to be there, too, at Christmas. I love the beauty of the mountains and the lakes and the ocean.

“It’s not a place that I get to, except on tour, pretty much, because it’s far away from where I am.”

Mercy Me, a multiplatinum band that hit the big time in 2001, is also supporting a new Christmas album, “The Christmas Sessions,” which it recorded at this time last year.

Reporter Victor Balta: 425-339-3455 or vbalta@heraldnet.com.