J. Jackson, lead singer and lyricist for ApologetiX here again. 

Here are the stories behind the songs on our 23rd single of 2025:  

 

Another ApX parody about Christ's Resurrection? Well, is there any more important topic? Consider what Paul wrote: "For what I received I passed on to you as of first importance: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures ..." (1 Corinthians 13:3-4). 

After we released this single, I started hearing from ApX fans who saw the title and immediately thought of the 1989 hit "Back to Life (However Do You Want Me)" by British R&B-dance group Soul II Soul (#4 U.S. pop, #1 U.K. pop), but it's actually a spoof of the 1959 hit "Mack the Knife" by American pop/rock singer Bobby Darin (#1 U.S. pop, #1 U.K. pop). It topped the Hot 100 for nine weeks (the same amount of time as another '50s blockbuster that we spoofed on our previous single, "All Shook Up" by Elvis Presley), making it one of the biggest hits of the early rock era. 

There are seven verses in all, but most of the words in the first four verses came to me very quickly, along with the last line of the seventh verse, which references yet another ApX parody about Christ's Resurrection. Déjà vu!

"Back to Life" features J. Jackson on lead vocals, Rich Mannion on keyboards, and Jimmy "Vegas" Tanner on drums and percussion.

 

The two parodies I hesitated most to write in 2025 had very similar titles — "Divorce" and "Diversity." It wasn't that I thought the vocals would be hard; it's just that both dealt with controversial topics, and I didn't want my messages to be misconstrued. However, in each case, I felt like God gave me the title and was leading me to follow through, and I'm glad I did. 

When I decided to spoof "Driver's Seat," my first idea was "Five, Verse Three." There were five Bible passages I thought had potential: 

Psalm 5:3 ("In the morning, Lord, you hear my voice; in the morning I lay my requests before you and wait expectantly"), Proverbs 5:3 ("For the lips of the adulterous woman drip honey, and her speech is smoother than oil"), Matthew 5:3 (“Blessed are the poor in spirit, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven”), Romans 5:3 ("Not only so, but we also glory in our sufferings, because we know that suffering produces perseverance"), or 1 Thessalonians 5:3 ("While people are saying, “Peace and safety,” destruction will come on them suddenly, as labor pains on a pregnant woman, and they will not escape"). 

But once "Diversity" popped into my head, I knew it was better. And I still got to use five (other) Bible passages ... and read them aloud in the actual recording. The gist is that we're all descended from the same father and mother, Adam and Eve. Not only that, we can all trace our genealogy to Noah and his wife, nine generations later, too. We may look different, but we're all family. 

"Diversity" features J. Jackson on lead vocals, Rich Mannion on keyboards and backing vocals, Tom Tincha on guitars, Keith Haynie on bass, and Jimmy "Vegas" Tanner on drums and percussion.

To get the complete ApologetiX library, ApX USB thumb drives, and/or the new ApX digital songbook — or to get more info about them — just click on the item(s) you want below.

We began our latest trip through the Bible on Wednesday, April 3. 

Note: If you don't have a Bible handy, you can look up these passages for free on Bible Gateway. They have about 60 different English translations/versions there to choose from, plus translations in many other languages, many of which also have multiple translations/versions.

CLICK HERE to see the reading plan for the whole year.

If you'd like to donate to the ministry of ApologetiX, there are a couple ways you can do it. 

If you prefer to mail a check or money order, please make it out to "ApologetiX" and send it to: 

ApologetiX
208 Charlemma Drive
Pittsburgh PA 15214-1414

Although the donations are not tax-deductible, they will be received very gratefully and used immediately. Thank you!