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Groups

Like other fairly recent groups such as Jars of Clay and The Newsboys, the self-titled debut album by Sixpence None the Richer [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com] tends to sneak up on the listener. (In fact, the band snuck up on Hollywood, getting one of their cuts into the soundtrack of Not Another Teen Movie, an otherwise forgettable flick with a popular soundtrack album. So if "Kiss Me" sounds familiar, that's probably because you heard it on the radio.) That's not to say that the sound is boring. In fact, Leigh Nash's vocals tend to jump right out at you. She's unforgettable without being annoying. But the lyrics, most of which were written by Matt Slocum, are subtle, rather than overtly evangelistic. The music is moody and dark in places, as it explores the pain and confusion of life without Christ. For that reason, I tend not to leave this CD on "repeat all" as often as I do some of my other CDs. But musically, it's lush and precise, as you might expect, since it was produced by Steve Taylor and came out on his Squint Entertainment label.

One of the most original sounds from the early days of contemporary Christian music was a duo called Lamb. Joel Chernoff and Rick Coghill blended Jewish folk music and folk-rock to produce a sound which is at once unforgettable and unique. I have never heard any other group remotely like Lamb, and while I have a couple of Lamb LPs, I have been searching in vain for CD re-releases. (My search has been complicated by the fact that Lamb's first three albums were called simply Lamb, Lamb II, and Lamb III, and by the fact that there is a completely unrelated group, also called Lamb, which also put out an album called Lamb. Now, at long last, those first three albums from the 70s have been re-released as The Lamb Trilogy [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com]. (Unfortunately for me, Songs for the Flock, which has my two favourite Lamb songs, has still not been re-released on CD.)

One group which has changed its style pretty radically over the years is Daniel Amos. Their first album, Daniel Amos, is Country-Rock, while their second album, Shotgun Angel, reminds me of late Beatles albums like Abbey Road. Their third album Horrendous Disc, (the only one they did with Larry Norman's Solid Rock label), is still definitely rock, but is moving more towards the alternative sound of their later work, such as ¡Alarma!After many long years, Horrendous Disc has finally been re-released on CD. Colour me delighted. I definitely consider it one of the most important Christian albums of all time. Also available is a compilation album, the somewhat pretentiously-named Our Personal Favorite World Famous Hits [Amazon.com/Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com].

When I was in Croatia, there were a few things I wished I could have had available to me. These included ginger ale and peanut butter, both of which are pretty much unheard of there. Those were things I wished for myself. But there was something I wished I could have had for other people, and that is a copy of the Barenaked Ladies' first CD, Gordon [Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/Amazon.com]. Most people in Canada have heard the song "$1,000,000", but many others around the world have not been so fortunate. To me, that song in particular, and the Barenaked Ladies in general, are representative of Canadian music (and, for that matter, Canadians) as a whole: thoroughly competent, and yet not quite buying into this whole "star" thing. Even the name of the band is a joke. The band claims that it was the "rudest" name they could think of, and, in fact, they once got banned from a music festival in Toronto because of it. But when you compare "Barenaked Ladies" with some of the other band names going the rounds these days, you realise that it doesn't sound so much rude as like something a bunch of little boys might think up. And, in a sense, that is what the band is all about. The music is great, but the lyrics aren't quite... serious. When my Croatian friends asked me what Canadian music was like, this is what I wished I could have had to play for them. Since then, BNL have released a "greatest hits" album called Disc One [Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/Amazon.com], which has some of the best tracks from Gordon, and a few from their other albums to date, but most interestingly, a priceless cut called "Get in Line", which you can't find on any of their other albums.

Listening to a Jars of Clay song has an interesting effect on me: while it's going on, I enjoy the smooth production and the tight harmonies. It seems like nice, light, fluffy background music. It's only as it's fading away that I realise that the lyrics are actually quite deep and meaningful. (In this way, Jars of Clay is a sort of antitype of some bands, who sound impressive, but don't actually have anything to say.) I first heard their debut album, Jars of Clay [ChristianBook.com/Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/Amazon.com], while in Croatia. I was driving some visitors up to see the Hope Center, and on the way, one of them slid a cassette [Amazon.com/ChristianBook.com] into the van's stereo. As one of the songs was fading out, I realised how good it was, and asked who the band was. I took note, and promised myself I'd look for a copy when I got home. What I found was their second album, Much Afraid [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com]. (It, too, is available on cassette [Amazon.com/ChristianBook.com].) It also has a tendency to "sneak up" on me. (Once, in my local Safeway, I realised that I recognised the song playing in the background. It was "Five Candles." Talk about a pleasant surprise.) Since then, I have picked up yet another CD, If I Left the Zoo [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/ChristianBook.com/cassette], and found that it has the same power of imagination as the first two.

One CD which spent quite a while spinning on "repeat all" mode on Tertius' CD-ROM drive is Step Up To The Microphone [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com] by the Newsboys. Like Jars of Clay, Newsboys' lyrics don't always make perfect sense when you read them, but they acquire a whole new meaning when sung. The vocal harmonies are very tight, and the music is a good deal rockier than you may have been led to expect if you've only heard them on Christian radio stations (at least the ones around here. They'd never play the title cut, which is a shame, because it's one of the better cuts on the album.) At least one of the singers is from Australia, which, most notably on "Entertaining Angels", adds some fun to the music. (At least for me, but I've always loved Australian accents.) Probably the most moving song on the album is the last cut, "Always", which is addressed to a father who left his family. Take Me to Your Leader [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com] is also very strong. The title track is a call to evangelism, a theme which runs through several of the songs. ("God is not a Secret" is particularly strong.)

One group which had a big influence on contemporary Christian music in the early days was Love Song. They didn't last very long, only producing two albums: Love Song (which, besides the title track, features other classics like "Two Hands", "Little Country Church", and "Welcome Back") and Final Touch (until a reunion called Welcome Back a few years ago), but like Larry Norman and Randy Stonehill, they helped to redefine Christian music. That should not give you the impression that they are only important for historical reasons. The music is great, the vocals are tight, and the words are meaningful. In fact, a lot of bands which have come along later, with all the benefit of bigger production budgets and more Christian music influences to draw upon, don't come close the the excellence of Love Song.

Another long-time Christian band is Petra, probably the nearest thing to a Christian "supergroup." (The last time I went to a Petra concert, I was more deafened by the screaming of the teeny-boppers in the row behind me than by the music.) What most Petra fans don't realise is how much the band has changed over the years. Petra's first album, Petra [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca] features an absolutely hilarious novelty bluegrass piece called "Lucas McGraw." (One of my favourite sports is playing that cut to a Petra fan, and asking them to guess the band. Nobody ever gets it right.) Many of the older albums, such as Come and Join Us [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/ChristianBook.com/cassette] (which has the original version of "God Gave Rock and Roll to You"), More Power To Ya, [Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com] Beat the System [Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com], and a double CD of Never Say Die and Washes Whiter Than [ChristianBook.com] are available on reissue CDs. In 1996 they released a retrospective album called The Early Years [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/Amazon.co.uk/ChristianBook.com], which has many of the best songs from the first few albums. Another retrospective, with acoustic versions of some of their rockier songs, was released in 2000. It's called Double Take [Amazon.com/Amazon.ca/ChristianBook.com/cassette].

Another group which I discovered more recently is First Call. Their album The Early Years [Amazon.com/cassette] has a wonderful rendition of "All Creatures of our God and King" (called "O Sifuni Mungu") which grabbed my African-sensitised ears one night on the local Christian station, and I couldn't be satisfied until I called the station and found out where to find that song. (Actually, "O Sifuni Mungu" was originally on the album Somethin' Takes Over [Amazon.com], and was included on the retrospective album later.) First Call is more "pop" than rock, but they're still fun. (Another song which tickles my funny bone is the title track to Somethin' Takes Over, a novelty song with a serious point.)

Bob Dylan is but one of many secular musicians who converted to Christianity, put out Christian albums, and got roundly booed by their old fans. (Barry McGuire and B.J. Thomas spring to mind.) One secular band which touches on Christian themes fairly frequently – but have never put out a "Christian" album – is U2. "I still haven't found what I'm looking for", the second track on their iconic album The Joshua Tree [Amazon.co.uk/Amazon.ca/Amazon.com] says, in part, "You broke the bonds/You loosed the chains/You carried the cross/And my shame." However, their music is not explicitly Christian. Rather, it reflects more of a restlessness and searching for answers than a settled faith in Christ. Still, U2 even recorded a rock song based on one of the psalms. ("40", which is found, among other places, on the live album Under a Blood Red Sky [Amazon.co.uk/Amazon.ca/Amazon.com].)