

Breathing New Life into Rock n’ Roll and Making it
Reverential!
Meet the Band

Pastor Carl

God put a song in my heart (and a Bible in my hand) when He saved me from my sins on June 10, 2000. The Bible says, "The Lord your God is in your midst, the Mighty One, will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness, He will quiet you with His love, He will rejoice over you with singing!” (Zephaniah 3:17)
Singing over me??? That's crazy! I'm not worth it. But then He goes more extreme with His love - He exchanges His perfect life for my wretched one on the cross! Wow! Now I gotta' sing!
Jeremiah the Prophet said, "if I say I will not speak anymore in His Name, then in my heart it becomes like a burning fire shut up in my bones and I am weary of holding it in! (Jeremiah 20:9)
Ha! Me too! ... so instead, I wrote VICTORY, a 30 song Rock Opera knit together with threads of varying colors, emotions, sounds and voices that coalesce into a Divine tapestry of Praise! World class musicians unified in Christ with a passionate desire to lead the redeemed from every nation, tribe, people and tongue to worship our King in song and rejoice before His throne!

John "Ace" Albino is a Guitar Gunslinger! One of the most talented musicians I ever worked with. Bass? Acoustic? Electric? Mandolin? No matter, he slaughters them all!
Give thanks to the Lord with the lyre; sing praises to Him with a harp of ten strings. Sing to Him a new song; play skillfully with a shout of joy! (Psalm 33:3)
John has worked with top producers and musicians from many of the biggest names in the music business over the years, including KISS, The Pretenders, Wings, Billy Joel and Foreigner to name a few. But what impresses me the most is that he loves Jesus and is not shy to let it be known in an arena where God is sometimes relegated to being an afterthought. John continues to utilize his talents in Rock, but also blesses churches with worship!
To find out more about John and his studio click here: absolutemusicnj.com

John "Ace" Albino


Kevin Reeves

At church we call Marybeth the songbird because she is always praising God with a joyful heart and a contagious chuckle of gladness! Oftentimes, you will find her ministering to others less fortunate in nursing homes and outreaches.
Give praise to the Lord, proclaim His Name; make known among the nations what He has done, and proclaim that his name is exalted. Sing to the Lord, for he has done glorious things (Isaiah 12:3)
She comes from a musical family so it is no wonder that she is quick with a harmony, inventive in her singing style and proficient in playing her keyboard.
To find out more about Marybeth and her CD click here: MarybethDiAngelo.com
Yea, the guy on the right is pretty OK...but that dude on the left, is a sweetheart of a man with humility to match his talent! Now what Phil Collins might not know is how good a drummer Kevin is, but we who are blessed enough to witness it, call him The Hammer!
The ground thunders with his seismic kicks and people run for cover when he cracks the snare! When the assault is over, I could swear I hear the drums rightfully acknowledge, "Thank you Mister Reeves." BOOM!
Sing for joy to God our strength; Shout joyfully to the God of Jacob. Raise a song, strike the timbrel! (Psalm 81:1-2)
Praise Him with loud cymbals; Praise Him with resounding cymbals. Let everything that has breath praise the Lord. Praise the Lord! (Psalm 150:5-6)

Marybeth DiAngelo



Phil "Baby" Long

Phil "Baby" Long has this incredible gift in his playing that I like to call, "loose tight". He is tight in the pocket and yet, not like a machine that is technically correct, but boring.
His creativity arises naturally and spontaneously... he is not at all contrived in his approach which gives it its organic and imaginative appeal!
We have fun in the recording process and Phil is unflappable while crafting and perfecting the right feel and emotion for each individual song. It's awesome to work with someone who is so easy going, hard working and expressive - and no drama!
God is his sanctuary and the recording studio his altar where he plays to an audience of One.
He who dwells in the shelter of the Most High will abide in the shadow of the Almighty. I will say to the Lord, "My refuge and my fortress, My God, in whom I trust!" (Psalm 91:1-2)

Dave Dipietro is a controlled tornado with fast fingers, creative licks and yes, classically trained as well! You'll hear him on "The Church Bell Rang" on this VICTORY Rock Opera!
Here is Grammy Award-winner Zakk Wylde’s take on his guitar teacher:
"Without a doubt Dave was huge on me! In my development, seeing Dave play every night was like a guitar lesson hands down. I mean I
could play fast and everything like that, but I was just watching him going, “But I can’t do that!”. Plus, I wasn’t hearing Dave, I was FEELING him! And that was a huge thing to me too, it opened my eyes up to a whole new world that I didn’t know,
just a whole bunch of different colors."
When Dave played in front of 300,000 people with his band T.T. Quick, he was expecting it to deliver to him ultimate satisfaction, but he was found wanting, even after reaching what he though was the apex of his dreams. In his hotel room, he cried out to God and gave his heart to the Lord.
Dave can play with the best of them and still lights it up on occasion, but now all the more, he shines the light of Jesus His Savior as a worship leader at church!
Meanwhile, David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the Lord with all kinds of instruments made of fir wood, and with lyres, harps, tambourines, castanets and cymbals.
(2 Samuel 6:5)

Dave Dipietro


J.R. was simply the most important person for me to complete this Rock Opera. We spent many an hour together in that recording studio which became like a sanctuary where we could unwind, create, and yes, sometimes get on each others nerves... which I like to call "intense fellowship!".
He got more out of me than I ever imagined! I never felt intimidated or discouraged but only lifted up and able to leap a tall building in a single bound! I don't trust my music to many people but his engineering, mixing and incredibly gifted ear was up to the task.
Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God. (Colossians 3:16)
Together we developed a technique of stacking layers of sound upon a broad based foundation, building it upward and inward to a apex. In the Mastering process the tones were then flared outward which “colours” the mix and gives extended clarity and depth to the recording ...and "Voila!"

Mixed with a
Sledgehammer!
Music, Lyrics and Sound Recording © 2020 Carl Gurbisz
PUBLISHER: Reverential
LEAD VOCALS: Carl Gurbisz
BACKING VOCALS: Carl Gurbisz, Marybeth Diangelo
GUITARS: John Albino, Carl Gurbisz, Dave Dipietro
BASS: John Albino
KEYS: Carl Gurbisz, Marybeth Diangelo
SAX: Tommy LaBella
DRUMS: Phil Long, Kevin Reeves
ENGINEER: J.R. Sanson
PRODUCER: Carl Gurbisz assisted by J.R. Sanson
MIXED: J.R. Sanson assisted by Carl Gurbisz
MASTERED: Kevin Reeves, Universal Music