November 11 [12:15 EDT] -- Jars of Clay, a Christian rock band from Greenville, Illinois, put in some serious time on the road before they achieved chart success with Much Afraid and its lead single "Crazy Times."

The band -- Charlie Lowell, Dan Haseltine, Matt Bronleewe and Stephon Mason -- has been together since 1993 when they were "Contemporary Christian Music" majors at Greenville College. They copped the band's name from a biblical passage describing the human soul's frailty. After initial gigs at school area cafes, Jars of Clay hit the road, performing on the Christian academic circuit. With a few gigs at Great Adventures on the side, more Christian festivals followed before an ad for a talent contest in CCM provided Jars of Clay with the segueway to Nashville.

Success at the concert led to a record deal, and work with guitarist Adrian Belew (who has worked with Nine Inch Nails, David Bowie and the Talking Heads.) He produced Jars' debut Flood, a blend of rock and folk tunes given an orchestral quality by lush string arrangements. The album was a Christian radio hit. It was follow by The Drummer Boy Christmas, an EP released to raise money for the Child Abuse Center in Tennessee.

The title of their latest full-fledged disc, Much Afraid refers to Jars of Clay's fear of sophomore jinx.