More About The Band Members

Nathanael’s Creed’s music can broadly be defined as “adult contemporary” or “contemporary Christian,” but within those style lies a wide range of influences, including classic rock, jazz, blues, musical theatre, folk, classical sacred, and contemporary praise & worship. The band performs mainly original music but also covers contemporary Christian and classic rock standards.

The four baby-boom musicians who have performed and recorded two CDs as Nathanael’s Creed since 2000 (keyboardist Phil Cooper, drummer Pat Dillender, lead singer Steve Givens and bassist Gerry Kasper) have recently been rejoined by guitarist and multi-instrumentalist Jim Russell, who was a founding member of the band in 1999 and co-wrote a number of the band’s songs.

The band’s first CD, 2001’s “Fire Against the Cold,” gained airplay on independent Christian radio and Internet stations around the world, including UCB-Europe satellite radio, the EWTN Radio Network, Vatican Radio and stations in England, Canada, Australia, the Philippines, Poland, Los Angeles, Detroit, St. Louis, Louisville, Philadelphia, Omaha, Austin, Nome, and many other cities large and small.

Its sophomore 2005 release, “Brighter Still,” revealed a new level of maturity in both songwriting and performing. In a review written for the United Methodist Church’s national website, music journalist Steve Morley wrote:

Whether the guys are turning out sprightly, rhythmically complex foot-tappers or solemn ballads, their words resonate richly with spiritual truths that uplift and edify….Solid musicianship, inventive and varied arrangements and a spirit of collaboration take “Brighter Still” above its modest means, production-wise, leaving its listeners with enriching spiritual food and a reminder of what can be accomplished when a team of believers unite in service of a common goal.

At the end of the day, Nathanael’s Creed’s music is all about the struggles and glories of life and faith. This isn’t candy-coated Christianity—it’s real adult music that reflects the real lives of people of faith, complete with strained relationships with others and God, moments of despair, frustration, sickness, prayer and solitude, and instances of sheer joy and excitement.

The Band Members  

Songwriter and lead singer Steve Givens, 47, has written for and performed and recorded with several successful groups over the past 25 years, including Ephphatha, Spare Parts and Grand Avenue Streetcar. He has produced and recorded seven collections of music, and his songs have been recorded by several other independent artists, including Michael Zabrocki and Georgy Rock. His voice and his music have been used in many video and audio productions, and in 2004 a song he co-wrote and performed with band member Phil Cooper was featured on the CINE Golden Eagle and Emmy Award-winning documentary film “The World’s Greatest Fair,” broadcast nationally on PBS. In 2007, two compositions he co-wrote with band mate Jim Russell were featured in the Telly Award-winning documentary "The Gateway Arch: A Reflection of America," also broadcast nationally on PBS. His songwriting has been recognized by the Kerrville Music Foundation, the “Song of the Year” contest, Billboard Magazine Songwriting Contest, and the St. Louis Songwriting Contest. He is also a widely published essayist, journalist and children’s book author.

Composer-pianist Phil Cooper, 48, has been a praise and worship leader and keyboardist for many years and currently heads the Celebration & Praise band at St. Peters United Church of Christ in Ferguson, Mo. He co-wrote several of the songs on the band’s first CD and wrote or co-wrote half the songs on “Brighter Still,” including an elegant solo piano meditation entitled “Prayer Time.” His piano playing and composing skills were featured on the CINE Golden Eagle and Emmy Award-winning documentary film, “The World’s Greatest Fair,” and a song he composed with Steve Givens, “Consider the Nails,” was included on recording artist Lynn Geyer’s “Journey to Forgiveness.” He is a classically trained pianist who also is the coordinating leader of the Men’s North County Community Bible Study in St. Louis, MO.

Bassist-guitarist Gerry “Ghost” Kasper, 53, is a seasoned veteran of the St. Louis music scene, having played with many successful bands over the past 35 years, including Nugget, Butch Wax & the Hollywoods, the Russ David Orchestra, the Bob Kuban Orchestra, and Brothers, Sisters & Me. Gerry has “sat in” with many touring and St. Louis artists and bands, including The Original Knights of Swing, Matt Maher, Adam Bitter, Tom Kendzia, the Ink Spots, Forrest Tucker, Charlie Callas and legendary Rock 'n' Roll Hall of Fame piano player Johnnie "Be Good" Johnson. He sings in the choir at St. Peters United Church of Christ in Ferguson, Mo. Both his intricate bass lines and his soulful and jazzy lead guitar playing are featured on the band’s first two CDs.

Pat Dillender, 44, is a multifaceted drummer and percussionist with many years of experience with various St. Louis bands, including the Bonnevilles and Traffic Jam. He also performs as a percussionist with the contemporary choir at Immaculate Conception Catholic Church in Dardenne, Mo. He and bassist Gerry Kasper create the rhythm section arrangements for the band, and the duo’s composing and playing skills are featured on “Brighter Still” in the jazz instrumental, “Yeah Buddy.”

Jim Russell, 40, a founding member of Nathanael's Creed, recently returned to the band as a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter and singer. He has co-written with Steve Givens some of the band's signature songs, including "Step Out of the Boat," "For the Least of These," and the rousing swing-infected favorite, "That's How I Feel." Jim is a published writer and radio commentator, and works full time in pastoral ministry at Incarnate Word Catholic Church in Chesterfield, Mo. He has also written and performed with the St. Louis area groups Ephphatha and Grand Avenue Streetcar and is a musical collaborator with Incarnate Word's youth music director Adam Bitter.