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Journey Brings Christian Musician Home

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By GEOFF FOX, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 2, 2007

DADE CITY - Warren Barfield got to his Nashville home Wednesday, after traveling 10 hours from a gig in Joplin, Mo. It was his first time home in about a month, and it didn't last long.

Thursday, he performed in Jacksonville.

Today, the Christian musician, who travels about 200 days a year, plays at the inaugural Florida Journey Fest at Sertoma Youth Ranch, northwest of Dade City, just over the Pasco-Hernando county line.

Besides Barfield, Todd Agnew, a fellow staple on contemporary Christian radio, and born-again rock 'n' roll legend Rick Derringer are among the 20 or so artists scheduled to perform at the three-day festival, which begins this evening.

Event organizer Greg Herndon, a member of the ranch's board of directors, said he wanted to establish a fundraiser for the ranch because it receives no outside funding. Herndon also runs Mojoe Productions, a staging and lighting company.

"Sertoma is free for any youth group to use, be it Boy Scouts, Girl Scouts, church groups," he said. "But, it just gets money from a few events and donations. I wanted to do a Christian event and they were OK with that.

"I've been working on this since March. The ranch has been up there for 30-some years and they need some help."

Besides music on three stages, families can camp at the event. There will be children's activities, such as bubble-gum blowing contests, Bible stories and a parade.

To friends and family of Barfield, it probably was no shock that he became a professional Christian artist. According to information on his Web site, www.warrenbarfield.com, his father was a Pentecostal minister known for his powerful singing.

He began singing and playing guitar as a child and has been a full-time musician for about 10 years.

Barfield, 28, and his wife, Megan, have a Yorkshire terrier named Sophie. Travel often keeps the couple apart.

"Megan travels when she can, but the bottom line is, if she really wants to be there, I'll do what I can to get her there," he said. "A lot of times, she might not necessarily want to be there. If it's a tour, it's traveling every day and playing every night. It's not as glamorous as it may seem. The road's not always the best place for an OCD clean freak.

"The road's just a tough place, when you haven't been home at all in over a month. You get so removed from reality. You're away from all kinds of little things, like getting the mail and paying your light bill. You can go months and months at a time and not have any real touch in reality. You're always eating out, and in a different hotel every night."

Despite the rigors of the road, Barfield said fans can expect an energetic one-hour performance tonight. His second album, "Reach," was released last year and another one is scheduled for release next year.

"It's definitely pop music, but a lot of people tag my style as a little bit of soul, too," he said. "It's just exciting. When we're going at it, I'm singing with all I've got. I'm passionate about what I do. It's music for the whole family."

IF YOU GO

WHAT: Florida Journey Fest, a three-day Christian music festival to benefit the Sertoma Youth Ranch
WHERE: Sertoma Youth Ranch off Clay Hill Road, seven miles northwest of Dade City, north of the Pasco-Hernando county line

WHEN: Today, Saturday and Sunday

COST: Weekend tickets are $80 for adults and $70 for teens; children 12 and under free; day tickets are $15 Friday, $20 Saturday and $10 Sunday

INFORMATION: Visit www.mojoeproductions.com and click on "Journey." Or call (941) 758-7585

Reporter Geoff Fox can be reached at (813) 948-4217 or gfox@tampatrib.com.

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