by Trinity Gruenberg
trintiy@inhnews.com
Coming to the annual Eagle Bend Days celebration are the iconic songs of Johnny Cash performed by Jay Ernest and his band the Church of Cash.
Originally from New Ulm, Jay Ernest is a life long musician that has toured the globe as well as visiting his relatives, the Thorson and Meierding families, in Eagle Bend.
“I have spent many summers in Eagle Bend,” said Jay Ernest.
He started singing at the age of five at school. A cousin gave him his first acoustic guitar and by the age of 13 he bought his first electric guitar with hard earned money working on the farm.
He followed his musical ambitions and spent most of his younger years touring around the globe.
“When you tour enough you see a good cross section of the human experience,” he added.
He lived in Hawaii from 2006-2010 where he was hired to play music. It was there that he started the Church of Cash.
“It was a wonderful time and it was a nice place,” he said.
He took the leap from being in the background to being the frontman and lead singer.
“I wanted to start transitioning to be more of a front person, a leader, and I needed to take certain steps. Some of those steps were just performing solo in front of people,” he said.
He started to learn more songs as well as writing some.
“I got gigs playing acoustic guitar for four hours at bars,” he said.
At his acoustic shows he would play a wide variety of music including some Irish tunes, new wave and Johnny Cash.
“Every time I played Johnny Cash, people would put down their beer and start staring at me,” he shared.
He had been told by many he sounded just like Johnny Cash.
“The light bulb went off and I decided I would start a Johnny Cash tribute band,” said Ernest.
The Church of Cash was formed and it was an instant success.
“A lot of kids coming back from Iraq and Afghanistan wanted to hear American music and hadn’t seen any live music in a while. They would fill up every dance hall we played at,” he said.
He had been away from Minnesota for almost 10 years and decided to move back home.
“I got to tour all over the world. I got to tour in China, Europe, Japan. I was satisfied that I got to do what I wanted to do. I decided to move back to Minnesota and take all the experience I gained over the years playing, performing and recording music and bring it back to Minnesota and see what I could do on a different level,” he explained.
He retuned to Minnesota and in 2011 he re-formed the Church of Cash with some friends.
“We started to get our feet wet in the region. It took a little time, but as we played on, the word of mouth spread and more people came up to see us and our schedules just filled up,” he said.
Johnny Cash is a musical icon with his unforgettable songs and his Man in Black persona.
“Realistically, most of America loves Johnny Cash. He is such a player in the American fabric. He is an American storyteller, he just embodies what America is all about. People want to experience that again. Now that he is not around, fans want to re-live those memories they have of him,” he shared.
Last year, the Church of Cash performed at 186 shows. He expects they will perform even more shows this year including a European tour in November.
The 41-year-old tends to tour more regionally these days to be closer to his family.
“I toured pretty hard and have played about 4000 shows in my life. I don’t need to tour like I did in my 20s and 30s. I have this custom tailored way of playing music and still having a good home and family life. It’s like this beautiful equilibrium between both and I love it,” he said.
His wife Christa and step-son Vincent, who is a drummer, fully support his music and touring.
“By this time, I have been touring and playing music for 20 years. They are so much a part of me that settling into an office job would be weirder for them than me playing music. They are very supportive and if I am playing in the area, they come out every time. My parents are proud and very supportive of my musical endeavor. It’s a harder life when you’re younger and their support was integral to continue with my career,” he shared.
“My favorite Cash song right now is this beautiful, sad song called Dark as a Dungeon,” he said. “My favorites change weekly,” he added.
Ernest learned there are over 1500 recorded songs by Johnny Cash.
“Currently we can play about 170 of them, so I have many, many more to learn if I am really going to conquer his catalog,” he said.
The Church of Cash is a four man band led by singer and acoustic guitar player Jay Ernest, including a drummer, electric guitar player and an upright bass player.
He likes to interact with the audience, asking them what song they would like to hear.
The Church of Cash is a busy band with a full schedule, but he is also working on being a solo country singer.
“I want to be a country singer with this Johnny Cash -like voice writing old, classic style country songs,” he said.
He is in the process of recording his solo album that should be released in the coming year.
The Church of Cash will be performing on Saturday, June 18, from 6 to 8 p.m. during the celebration in Eagle Bend.
“I am looking forward to seeing family and new faces in Eagle Bend,” he said.
To learn more and listen to his music, visit www.churchofcashmusic.com.
Official
