A tale of two songs

This is a tale of two songs.

The first song was written before the Sept. 11 terrorist attack on the U.S. and scheduled to be recorded in the spring of 2002 at an all-star recording session. The schedule was accelerated after the terrorist attacks.

The other song was written shortly after the terrorist attacks and was recorded a day later with people from all walks of life singing on the choruses.

The writer of the first song, a controversial superstar, is angling to have the White House proclaim his song the official song of the audacious Sept. 11 attack.

The writer of the second song is simply trying to lift the spirits of Americans and remind them that united they can rise above any tragedy.

The first song is expected to be sold nationally by the McDonalds fast-food chain.

The other is available as a free download on the web – a gift to America, the writer says.

The first song will be shipped to every radio station in America by Sony Music – one of the world’s largest entertainment conglomerates.

The other is being hand-delivered to local radio stations by volunteers who pay for the copies themselves.

The first song, “What More Can I Give?” is by Michael Jackson.

The other, “There’s An Eagle” is by Steve Vaus.

Clearly, Michael Jackson and Sony music have more than enough artistic, corporate and financial clout to guarantee chart success for his tune.

But if you measure a song by how it touches people, Jackson may have a hard time matching Vaus’ success.

Witness the hundreds of e-mails Vaus receives every day.

For instance, Sherri from California wrote: “I heard ‘Eagle’ while driving home from work today. I had to pull over to the side of the street as tears began flowing down my cheeks because the song was so beautiful and moving. It is awesome.”

Gary wrote: “We are missionaries in the prisons of Mexico in the states of Durango, Coahuila and Tamaulipas. I came across your song ‘There’s an Eagle’ and wanted to let you know that it is one of the best patriotic songs that I have ever heard.”

“Thank you so much for ‘There’s An Eagle,'” a retired military officer wrote. “Your song made this old ‘Nam vet stand a little taller.”

Vaus’ song touches Americans down deep, where they live. It has been downloaded from the web over 100,000 times – putting it firmly in the Top 10 of the Internet charts for three weeks running.

According to Vaus, much of the credit for the song’s success goes to the army of volunteers who have been personally delivering copies to their local radio stations along with a plea for airplay.

“Early on people were making their own copies to take to radio stations,” he said. “So I decided to offer a package of six compact discs and press releases on my website to make it easier for people to help.” “Folks have been getting those and delivering them to stations far and wide. Music and program directors aren’t going to know what to make of that. They’re used to being wined and dined by the big labels. But one listener who takes the time to personally deliver a copy of a song and make an impassioned plea for air play can have a powerful impact.”

Vaus continued, “God has blessed this song from the very beginning. Now my prayer is for 1,350 more people to step forward and partner with me in this effort by getting six copies on CD and delivering them. That would allow us to reach virtually every radio station in the nation. I doubt any song has ever been promoted by such a patchwork grass-roots army of promoters. But ‘There’s An Eagle’ isn’t just any song.”

So, in the tale of two songs, though Michael Jackson has the big names, the big money and the big conglomerates behind him … his song will never match the success that Steve Vaus’ “There’s An Eagle” already has achieved.

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You can join Vaus’ army of promoters – just as I have – by ordering Eagle Promotional Six Pack.