The Church Of Gary Numan: A Dark Celebration
Welcome to the Church's home on the NAGNFC Website. The brainchild of Jim Collins and Rick Franklin from Ohio, The Church Of Gary Numan is North America's answer to Random. This much-asked about Numan covers CD will be released soon. In the meantime, help yourself to the appetizers on this page in the form of exclusive artwork, sounds and news relating this enthusiastic mission by two very dedicated Numan fans.
Click here for the latest and hottest news on CGN
Have your own Dark Celebration with some Sound Samples here
Check out the folks making this CD in this behind-the-scenes gallery
The Machman interviews Front Churchman Jim Collins
The first online review of Church Of Gary Numan 1/24/00
Following are some words by Jim Collins himself about the construction of this future Numan collectible:
The Church of Gary Numan: A Dark Celebration
A Brief History :
The Church of Gary Numan: A Dark Celebration is a project that I have dreamed about recording for quite some time now. After seeing Gary live at Shepherds Bush Empire on November 9, 1997, I knew that I must record a tribute album. Being there and experiencing Gary live was all the motivation and inspiration I needed to begin my quest. My lovely wife, Anabel and I flew from Pittsburgh, PA to London, England just to catch the last show of the Exile tour in England before Gary and the band headed off to tour the rest of Europe. I was fortunate enough to meet Ade Orange (who is one of the nicest guys I've ever met) and Gary's wife Gemma. She was absolutely friendly and courteous as possible to the both of us. We told her that we had flown all the way from the United States just to see the show. She was disappointed to tell us that Gary was far too tied up for us to meet that night. None the less, the show was great, Gemma and Ade were wonderful to meet and talk with. It was no loss whatsoever. Then, the greatest thing for all Numan fans occurred in the United States and Canada... Gary Numan himself would finally tour our continent after so many years away! I still remember how excited I was. The anticipation was fantastic. The energy I received was enormous. Just to think that Gary Numan would be here in Philadelphia, New York, Pittsburgh, Cleveland, etc., was electrifying! Numan fans all over were going insane with this news. Anabel and I rescheduled two weeks of our lives and dug up the cash to follow the Exile tour for 4 dates: the opening night in Philadelphia, New York city the following night, and the next week in Pittsburg and Cleveland, Ohio. I nearly died a thousand deaths that opening night. I wasn't sure if I was dreaming, If I had died and transcended into the great beyond, or if this was real and I was there! It was real alright. Very real. To make a long story short, we met Gary thanks to Gemma being so kind to us and actually remembering us from Shepherds Bush Empire. I had no words to share with him. All of the rehearsing (i.e. "Hello Gary. You were great tonight. Can I just drop dead right now?") failed me. I was speechless... so I hugged him and welcomed him to America. What would you have done? Each night was bliss. Meeting Gary, Gemma and the band after each gig. My desire to put together a tribute album grew stronger and I promised myself that I was going to get this project off the ground soon. There are the Random releases and Fear Factory has just released Cars as a single. But, I thought that a tribute album released from a regular, everyday, non-famous fan would be a wonderful idea. It should be a collection of songs that are significant to me from my childhood and adulthood. It should be an interpretation of Gary's songs the way I feel them to be. It should be a celebration to Numan fans everywhere who love his music or who wanted to perform Gary's music in some way. I've worked very hard on this project and will continue to give everything I can until I am finished recording The Church of Gary Numan: A Dark Celebration. I have finished three songs: Cars (hard, punchy and guitar driven version), Cars II (contemporary jazz instrumental) and Down in the Park (heavy, dark, spoken version). I am working on 8 to 10 more songs, which I will announce a little later. I want to be sure about them before I announce them. I hope to have this done in the next couple months (December - January). My goal is to have the CD ready to release before Gary's next tour this spring (hopefully) here in the United States. My dream is to create a tribute to Gary's music which has inspired me greatly for 20 years. I am the musician I am today, I feel, because of his influence and originality. I hope that Numan fans will embrace this effort and gain some satisfaction because I am just like you... a fan.
Jim Collins
Poland, Ohio
United States
jcoll81871@aol.com
www.cesltd.net