Dave Clark / Felicia Shiflett

This was recorded by Gold City on their “Movin Up” CD in 1987. One of the biggest game changers for me as a young songwriter happened when I began to co-write. To this day, I don’t know that I ever write with someone that I don’t learn something. Because there is always more than one right answer, I love watching how other writers get to the same idea and I’m always a better writer for the having gone through the process.

My first publisher at the Benson Company back in the 80s was John Barker and he was always setting me up with new writers. One of those was a lady named Felecia Shiflett. Even though I knew her name and some of her songs, we had never met. She came in and we wrote three songs together in the two days she was in town. One of them was a called “Servant’s Heart” and was recorded by a group called the Greenes. “Holy Anointing” was the second of the three songs. The third was probably the better song but will never be recorded. (I’ll save that story for another post).

Holy Anointing was originally pitched to Jimmy Swaggart who passed on it. I didn’t know a lot about Gold City at the time but was thrilled when they decided to record it. For those who remember the song, there are a couple of interesting trivia notes. In the group at the time were names like Mike LeFevre and Brian Free. I had no idea then how much both of these incredibly talented men would come to mean to me in the years ahead. Honored to call them both friends.

Another interesting note is that the original demos were done by a young guitar player named Steven Curtis Chapman. For $100 a song, he played all the instruments and sang all the parts. I doubt we could get him for that amount anymore. 😀 It’s worth noting I saved the demos and they still hold up well decades later. As for the co-writer, I see her name on songs but I've never crossed paths with her again.