Joni (Joni Eareckson Tada) is a very interesting story. Unfortunately she became a quadriplegic at the age of 17 due to a diving incident. However she didn’t let this slow her down and was able to record several popular albums over the years mostly on Word records. This is her first and it’s pretty good though it’s not really my style. It’s pretty easy listening and has a bit of a jazz feel in places. She is a very good vocalist though and the album is a very relaxing album and there’s a few good tracks you could consider for Sunday service. Joni has dedicated her life to helping the disabled especially children and for that she has my deepest respect.
Tracklist 1 – Spirit Wings – 4:43 2 – Hosanna – 2:13 3 – The Only Thing I Want – 3:51 4 – Portrait Of Jesus – 2:27 5 – My Jesus As Thou Wilt – 3:07 6 – Run That Race – 2:38 7 – When Pretty Things Get Broken – 2:23 8 – Take My Life – 2:59 9 – Heaven – 3:32 10 – He Careth For You – 2:44
Credits Arranged By – Bill Pursell, David Diggs Cover [Cover Design] – Dennis Hill Engineer, Mixed By [Mixdown] – Chris Banninger Photography By – Harry Langdon Producer, Conductor – Kurt Kaiser
The Technos actually started out as the Techno Twins in the secular market. They released their first album in 1982 with the single “Falling in love again” which did very well in the European market. The band is generally credited with being the origin of the term “techno” which is something to be proud of. It’s pretty cool when your band name becomes a international term for a style of music. Anyway, after a couple of fairly successful secular releases they put out this one and only Christian release. It is actually a little different in that the songs are social/political oriented and they touch on subjects that weren’t often touched on by Christian artists. I don’t know if this was a popular album or not but I really like it.
Tracklist 1 – Friends & Frontiers – 4:02 2 – Dare To Dance – 3:47 3 – Share Food Like The Bees – 3:29 4 – Beat The Wings – 3:37 5 – Mechanical Ballet – 4:23 6 – Half A Story – 3:39 7 – War: One Voice – 4:18 8 – Pioneer´s Song – 4:02 9 – Walk Into The Light – 4:27 10 – What You Believe – 3:33
Credits Backing Vocals – Bev Sage, Carolyn Nieto, Cynthia Rizas, Martin Bass, Steve Fairnie Drums – David Prater Engineer – Doug Oberkirker Engineer [Assistant] – Dan Rudin Guitar – Ronnie Drayton Keyboards, Arranged By – George Small Photography By – David Rose Producer – Joey Powers Saxophone [Sax] – Sydell Carter
Depending on your definition of first this is the first album from Perry & The Poor Boys. Now that said they had 3 demo’s and an album released in Estonia before this one. While this album was released on the Spark label in Europe it was a self release in the U.S.A. Apparently the album did quite well for a self release which doesn’t surprise me as the quality of this album is fantastic. The album was produced by Mike Roe and he helped out on a few tracks on guitar and background vocals. The album is a mix of reworked previous tracks and some new ones. The re-recorded tracks really improved with some proper production. Lead vocalist Perry Springman when asked about the bands influences said “It’s like Elvis Costello meets REM meets God!” Personally I don’t hear the Costello influence but I can hear the REM influence. To some extent this band was kind of an urban legend but they did exist and they were great. Be sure to give this one a listen if you missed it back then.
Tracklist 1 – Guns – 3:23 2 – LADA – 4:04 3 – Live Like You Mean It – 5:23 4 – The Picture Of Laura – 5:01 5 – Where Can I Hide From You – 3:31 6 – Winter – 4:30 7 – It Must Be Hard For God – 4:04 8 – No Fear In Love – 4:01 9 – I Am Where You Stand – 3:41 10 – Ransom – 5:55
Credits Arranged By – The Poor Boys Artwork By – Mark Stay Backing Vocals – Mike Roe Bass – Stef Loy Bass, Recorder, Acoustic Guitar, Backing Vocals – Magnus Sjölander Drums – James D. Orvis Engineer – Craig Long, Kirt Shearer Guitar [Additional] – Mike Roe Guitar [Guitar Abuse], Harmonica, Backing Vocals – Bo Hallbeck Keyboards, Accordion, Vocals – Stef Loy Layout, Photography By – Olli Tuomola Photography By – Paul Markert Producer – Mike Roe Vocals, Rhythm Guitar, Electric Guitar –
This was Michael And Stormie’s first release using both of their names. Stormie had appeared on Michael’s previous albums but this is the first album she did lead vocals on. They actually married the same year they released this album so I guess we could consider this album a celebration of their partnership. If you hear a bit of darkness in some of Stormie’s writings she has previously shared that before Michael she was actually in a disastrous marriage and that her childhood wasn’t that great either. As such she wrote many songs reflecting her life experiences. While Michael was the musical driving force of the marriage without a doubt Stormie was the lyricist. Together they made a great musical couple from whom we would enjoy many more albums. Nice to see Matthew Ward and Phil Keaggy helping out with the album, I’ve been told they were all great friends.
Tracklist 1 – Ms. Past – 4:09 2 – Travel On With Me – 5:27 3 – Gonna Write Me A Song – 2:39 4 – More Like You – 3:19 5 – Where I Been – 4:08 6 – It All Comes Down To You – 3:46 7 – Heaven Will Wait For Me – 4:15 8 – Seasons Of The Soul – 6:47
Credits Backing Vocals – Matthew Ward, Myrna Matthews Bass – Abraham Laboriel Drums, Congas – Paul Leim Engineer – Buck Herring, Wally Duguid Engineer [Mixdown] – Jay Graydon Lead Guitar – Phil Keaggy Lyrics By, Vocals, Backing Vocals – Stormie Omartian Music By – Stormie Omartian (tracks: A3) Photography By [Back Cover & Sleeve] – Harry Langdon Photography By [Front Cover] – Bob Anderson Producer, Arranged By, Music By, Vocals, Keyboards, Percussion [Tuned] – Michael Omartian Rhythm Guitar – Bud Nuanez Saxophone, Flute – Larry Wilson Saxophone, Flute, Horn [Solos] – Kim Hutchcroft Trumpet – Jerry Hey
Companies, etc. Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Word, Inc. Published By – See This House Music Recorded At – Buckskin Studio Recorded At – Garden Rake Studio Mastered At – The Mastering Lab
Apparently Jamie Rowe and some of the rest of the band were fluent in Spanish and decided to release a few albums in Spanish for the Mexican and South American market. One of the things I have learnt through this project is that CCM music was huge in South America. In fact Brazil has the 3rd most listeners on our YouTube channel followed by Mexico placing them above The U.K. and Australia. Most of these tracks are actually just Spanish covers of previous tracks but the went back into the studio to re-cut the music. I really like Spanish music and was delighted to discover these Spanish Guardian releases. The quality is fantastic and these tracks do not come off as just a new language cover.
Tracklist 1 – Que El Mundo De Su Gloria Llene – 5:02 2 – Todos Vamos Ja – 4:52 3 – Te Veo en el Cielo – 4:39 4 – El Capitán – 4:21 5 – ¿Sabes Que Es El Amor? – 4:51 6 – Nunca Te Diré Adiós – 4:54 7 – Toma Tu Cruz – 4:49 8 – Uno Para el Otro – 4:03 9 – Como el Sol – 5:24 10 – Creo en Ti – 5:10
I am full convinced that more than even the Beatles, the most influential band on Jesus Music was The Eagles. The Way, Parable, Daniel Amos and countless others always seem to be compared to The Eagles. My thesis is that they country/folk/rock was considered “safer” within Church walls than the Beatles, Beach Boys and Rolling Stones. That being said the band that pulled off the comparison best was easily Bethlehem. The songwriting seems legitimate and band leader, Danny Daniels, had the perfect voice for the job. The band released one album on Maranatha Music in 1978 and disbanded shortly after. One reviewer noted that “Desert Song” was a dead ringer for “Peaceful, Easy Feeling” and he was right on. The band separated itself during its short tenure by incredible musicianship, wonderful harmonies and very memorable songs. The album also sported some of the finest production for the time with Jonathan Brown, Tom Stipe and Al Perkins. Side One is more melodic and pop/country influenced while side two demonstrates a bit more rock and creative influence. This is most notable on the album closer, Pilgrim, which features lengthy instrumental breaks, a wall of backing vocals and a more progressive arrangement. Side two also contain a personal and fan favorite, Night Rider, which has more in common with The Outlaws than the Eagles with a great story telling vocal and big chorus. Themes on the album are very consistent with music from the era with songs of repentance, community and more than a few obligatory “end times” songs. Of all of the bands from that era, Bethlehem was a notch above most on nearly all fronts from songwriting and production to musicianship and performance. Daniels went on to a great solo career as many of his solo albums are worth owning.
Contributor David Lowman – https://legacyccmsgreatestalbums.wordpress.com/
Tracklist 1 – Think It Over – 3:50 2 – Lover – 4:02 3 – Desert Song – 3:41 4 – Holy Ghost Blues – 2:39 5 – Dead Reckoning – 3:47 6 – Night Rider – 3:04 7 – This Road – 3:16 8 – No Good Excuses – 4:02 9 – Just A Prayer Away – 3:57 10 – Pilgrims – 4:43
Credits Acoustic Guitar – Danny Daniels Artwork [Leather Tooling] – Al Dugas Backing Vocals – Bethlehem, Bob Bennett, Cindy Simmons, Dan McCleery, Danny Daniels, Dom Franco, Gary Arthur, Jerry Chamberlain, John Falcone, John Wickham, Julie Paulsen, Kelly Willard, Lewis McVay, Lisa Irwin, Perry Hildebrant, Richie Furay, Sharon McLaughlin, Tom Coomes Banjo – Don Gerber Bass – John Falcone Clavinet – Randy Rigby Cowbell – Dan McCleery Design [Album], Art Direction, Layout – Neal Buchanan Dobro – Dom Franco Drums – Dan McCleery Electric Guitar – Danny Daniels, Randy Rigby Electric Piano – Randy Rigby Engineer – Al Perkins, Jonathan Brown, Peter Gregg Guitar [Pull-String Guitar] – Al Perkins Harmonica – Frank Loomis Keyboards – Randy Rigby Lead Guitar – Randy Rigby, Randy Rigby Lead Vocals – Danny Daniel, Dom Franco Mastered By – Bob Carbone Mixed By – Al Perkins, Jonathan Brown Percussion – Dan McCleery Photography By – Sam Emerson Photography By [Insert] – Mike Shoup Photography By [Tinting] – Neal* Piano [Acoustic Piano] – Randy Rigby Producer – Al Perkins, Tom Stipe Steel Guitar – Dom Franco Vocals – Dan McCleery, Danny Daniels, Dom Franco, John Falcone, Randy Rigby
Donn is one of my favourite soul artists at this point and I’m not a big soul music guy. This is his second album on Myrrh produced by David Diggs which was a recipe for success. This album had a CCM single with “The Keeper Of My Love” making it to #7. After this album David Diggs tried to get Donn onto a secular label with a secular release but unfortunately this didn’t work out so we didn’t hear from Donn again until 1992. He probably should have continued his Christian format as he was very good and you can hear that he was getting better every album.
Tracklist 1 – Believe – 3:44 2 – You’re The One – 4:25 3 – The Keeper Of My Love – 3:37 4 – Where Are You Going? – 3:59 5 – Something’ ‘Bout The Things You Do – 2:54 6 – How Can I Help But Love You – 3:02 7 – When He Comes – 4:02 8 – Any Other Love – 3:58 9 – You Are My Light – 3:27 10 – Don’t Lose Your Dream – 3:20
Credits Arranged By [Strings], Arranged By [Horns], Arranged By [Track], Arranged By [Vocals] – David Diggs Bass – Leon Gaer, Louis Johnson Drums – Ed Greene Electric Piano [Rhodes], Synthesizer [Prophet] – David Diggs Flugelhorn, Soloist – Larry Hall Guitar – Paul Jackson Jr. Lead Vocals – Donn Thomas, Edie Lehmann Piano – Charles Williams
This is Danny’s first solo album. Previously he was in Bethlehem and they had released a single album on Maranatha! Music in 1978. This album is pretty easy listening and you can hear that 70’s influence wandering in and out of several tracks. I wouldn’t say the album has a Rock feel but you can hear some pretty good rock influences especially on “Victims Of Pride” Strangely after this album Danny took a hiatus from making albums instead writing and working in the studio for other artists. Interestingly he wrote several excellent soul tracks performed by soul artists. Anyway he did eventually put out more album, and lots of them, when he returned to the studio in 1991. Bit of trivia for the album is that Rob Watson did some of the keyboard work and Jerry Chamberlain did some backing vocals for the album. Both of them from Daniel Amos of course.
Tracklist 1 – She’s A Dreamer – 2:53 2 – Snow – 4:07 3 – Flyer – 3:44 4 – Morning Sun – 4:03 5 – Victims Of Pride – 4:50 6 – Rainbow – 5:40 7 – Standing Together – 4:21 8 – It’s Your Love – 4:35 9 – Sailing On Silver – 3:42
Credits Danny Daniels – Vocal, Produced & Arranged Randy Rigby – Acoustic & Electric Guitars, Lead Guitar, Fender Rhodes, Hammond B3, Produced & Arranged Jim Fletcher – Bass Dave Spurr – Drums Rob Watson – Grand Piano, Fender Rhodes, Propher 5 & Hammond B3 Enrique Cabasa – Percussion Sherry Heath, Jerry Chamberlain, Jim Fletcher – Background vocals Jack Little – Rice Can Thom Roy – Engineer
Companies, etc. Recorded at Whitefield Studios, Santa Ana, California
Most of us know of Ken from Eternity Express but there’s much more to the story. In 1957 Ken and his family hit the road as a travelling tent ministry. When Ken would appear in a town his revival meetings would feature the Ken Gaub Family Singers but in the afternoons Eternity Express would hit the high schools at lunch and play their brand of Christian rock. This album however is a few moments of his ministry preaching. It is very strong on the humour and shows us that Ken had a great ministry voice. Unfortunately Ken passed away in 2023 so thankfully were left with this album so we can listen to his speaking talent. This album was released on a Canadian label so many of you may not have heard it before.
There is very little info on this album out there but I have put together a few things. The band included husband and wife team John & Sue Ritter. They went on to record another album in 1994 that included a couple tracks from this album. Unfortunately it is even more obscure than this album. Sue was a prolific writer in the 80’s and 90’s having written several Christian books. As for the album it’s kind of a mix of styles including some Ska and some new wave. I hear a lot of talent here and I wish they would have recorded another album which this lineup. The album was produced by Mark Williamson (Mark Williamson Band/Lyrix) but this was relatively early in his career and I don’t think he was a strong producer at this point. Maybe a more experienced producer could have lead this band to a more consistent album. That aside I actually really like this album for some reason. I definitely hear some things I like here.
Tracklist 1 – Laugh – 2:33 2 – Someone’s Hero – 3:41 3 – Face To Face – 3:01 4 – One Way Love – 3:47 5 – Bad Boy At School – 3:24 6 – Second Time Around – 3:10 7 – Shadows Falling – 3:13 8 – Rebel – 3:03 9 – The Moon Shines Red – 3:50 10 – Movin’ On – 2:17
Credits John Ritter = Lead Vocals, Guitar, Writter Sue Ritter = Lead Vocals, Keyboard, Writter Andy Clark = Guitar, Vocals. Paul Raper = Bass, Vocals. Jo Stephens = Drums, Vocals. Mark Williamson – Produce, Engineer Vladimir Vanazzawith & Max Waxahotti – Mix Wesley Mahan & Quest Graphics – Album Art
Companies, etc. All songs published through Thankyou Music. Kingsway Music record company
