Tony Cummings asked the questions. Bob and Jan Murphy of ONE WEEK OF DAYS provided the answers.

One Week Of Days

Tony: Many of our readers won't have heard of One Week Of Days. Can you give me the duo's history so far?

Bob & Jan: Well, that's a bit of a story! We actually knew one another for years and have played in tons of different groups! We gave our lives to the Lord about the same time and shortly afterward ended up in a group that had a major record deal. After a few years we felt the Lord pulling us away from that and went our separate ways for a while. Then to make a very long story even longer we ended up getting married! People just assumed we were playing together and would ask us to do music at their weddings and that kind of stufff; it just came together from that really, and other things.

Tony: What motivated you to start performing together?

Bob & Jan: It was the Lord, we believe - he did a real work on us. After the last band, Jan wasn't even sure if she wanted to do anything like that again but after just leaving it with him, a desire began to rise up.

Tony: What precisely are you trying to do with your music? Is it pitched at the Church or at the world?

Bob & Jan: Definitely both! Both are equally important to us. The world needs the Gospel in a palatable form and the Church needs decent alternatives to the world's entertainments. Also sometimes it seems like we (the Church) categorise things a bit too severely, especially in terms of music - you have these argurments about Christian music/secular music, etc. In the end, it's what you get out of it that counts, if that's U2 or Graham Kendrick, it shouldn't matter - does it bless you and empower you to bless others? Does it challenge you to change your thinking? Does it draw you closer to God? When we do a gig or a concert, we don't want it to be just about getting people saved - that is very important - BUT, it's also important to nurture our own relationship with God. Sometimes that can mean taking a break and going out to a gig with your friends and nothing more - often it's in places like that that the Lord can get something across to us!

Tony: What opportunities for music ministry are there out in Ireland?

Bob & Jan: There are more and more all the time, glory to God! There's a great festival that has been going on every August for a number of years in Co Meath, In:fusion. There's Xposure. Then there's a good few smaller venues popping up around the country - coffee shops, clubs. We in particular feel a strong calling to take our music into the pub scene, which is really where Irish people hang out - all the time! So if the Lord opens up that area, then there's plenty of those!

Tony: Who have been your major musical infuences?

Bob & Jan: Jeff Buckley, Joni Mitchell, The Beatles, Kirk Franklin, Tom Waits, Radiohead, Nick Drake, John Martyn, Led Zeppelin, Tim Buckley, Tree63, David Gray, Kevin Prosch, Van the man, U2, Chasing Furies, Sting, Danniel Lanois, Nusratt Fatteh Ali Khan, Time Square Gospel, Phil Driscol, Delirious? - to name but a few!

Tony: Fast forward five years and imagine what you'll be doing then.

Bob & Jan: Living in our yet to be built house in the hills overlooking Kilkenny, a few kids running round the place, several albums and a film or two under our belt! So many blessings that we have to give things away!