Month: March 2026

Michael Sweet – Unstryped – The Post Stryper Sessions – 2000/1992

While this album was released in 2000 the material was apparently recorded in 1992. Things were a little more complicated for Stryper in 1992 with Michael announcing his departure and the joining/not joining of Dale Thompson. Apparently they did hit the studio in 1992 and recorded these 5 tracks but with all the turmoil they never got released. Somehow Michael got the rights to these songs and self released them in 2000. Anyway let’s not get hung up on the turmoil and give the EP a listen. These are excellent tracks and are pretty well produced. Tony Palacios (Guardian) played lead guitar on the first 2 tracks. I really enjoyed these 5 tracks, they have a great arena rock feel and I’m sure would have sold well in 1992 if they could have been released. Michael rerecorded/remixed “All I Wanna Do” for his self titled album in 1994.

Tracklist
1 – Love You Crazy – 3:55
2 – Give What You’ve Got – 4:53
3 – All I Wanna Do – 3:57
4 – When I’m Lonely – 4:05
5 – I Need You Now – 4:13

Credits
Bass – Baba Elephante
Drums – Jamie Wollam
Guitar – Tony Palacios (tracks: 1,2)
Keyboards – Terry Usler
Lead Guitar – Michael Sweet
Lead Vocals – Michael Sweet
Piano – Terry Usler
Producer – Michael Sweet
Rhythm Guitar – Michael Sweet

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – MSP Prod, Inc. – MSPCD 772
Copyright © – MSP Prod, Inc. – MSPCD 772
Manufactured By – Artist Development Associates

Petra – Washes Whiter Than – 1979

Washes Whiter Than is the third studio album by Petra and would mark the beginning of the chaos that became membership in the band. First, Greg Hough and John DeGroff left the band during the previous tour for “Come and Join Us” so Bob Hartman brought in Rob Frazier as a guitarist and vocalist. Then as they were starting to record this album drummer Bill Glover also left. Bob now invited Greg X. Volz who had been entertaining an offer from REO Speedwagon but decided Petra was for him. So the root of the band for this album was Bob Hartman, Rob Frazier, and Greg X. Volz while studio musicians rounded out the band for this recording. During all this chaos the band had taken a 9 month sabbatical to ponder their future. The band actually started recording this album while not even having a record deal in place. While recording and touring they were able to secure a record deal from Star Song Records. Now we’re not really too sure if it was Star Song or the band but the album took a mellow turn. It wasn’t an entirely mellow album but much more mellow than their previous 2 albums. I’ll be honest here that this is probably my least liked Petra album because of this turn. Even though this album had some great tracks it generally sat on the shelf in our listening room. The album did have 2 successful singles. “Why Should the Father Bother” made it to #3 on the CCM AC charts and stayed on the charts for 25 weeks while “Yahweh Love” made it to #20 on the CCM AC charts and stayed on the charts for 4 weeks. As usual for the CCM charts these were probably my 2 most disliked tracks. While Greg and Rob were sharing the lead vocal duties there is little doubt that Greg had the better tracks. That said I kind of like Rob’s vocals and it would have been interesting to see what direction he would have taken the band in. But anyway, Greg ended up with the vocalist job and Petra history would have him at the forefront until John Schlitt would take over in 1986. So that’s the interesting story behind this album making it historically one of the great story behind the album stories in CCM music.

Tracklist
1 – I’m Thankful – 2:41
2 – Why Should The Father Bother? – 3:46
3 – Morning Star – 4:47
4 – Magic Mirror – 3:27
5 – Mary’s Song – 4:00
6 – Yahweh Love – 5:38
7 – (Couldn’t Find Love) Without You – 4:19
8 – Taste And See – 3:23
9 – Magic Words – 3:31
10 – Deep Love – 3:57

Credits
Arranged By – George Atwell, Bob Hartman, Robert Frazier
Bass – Chip Meyers
Design, Artwork – George Werth
Drums, Percussion – Randy Nichols
Engineer – Andy deGanahl
Guitar – Gerald “Jit” Byron, Joel Balin
Guitar, Keyboards, Vocals – Robert Frazier
Keyboards – George Atwell
Lead Guitar, Rhythm Guitar, Vocals – Bob Hartman
Lead Vocals – Greg X. Volz (tracks: 1, 4, 6, 8), Rob Frazier (tracks: 1 to 3, 5 to 7, 9, 10)
Management, Booking – Dan Brock Associates
Mastered By – Allen Zentz Recording
Musician [“The Crown Of Sound”] – Bob Prince
Producer – George Atwell, Dan R. Brock

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) Star Song Records
Copyright (c) Star Song Records
Manufactured By Word, Inc.
Distributed By Word, Inc.
Published By Dawn Treader Music
Recorded At Bee Jay Recording Studio
Mastered At Future Disc

Geoff Moore and The Distance – Greatest Hits – 1996

We normally do not upload Greatest hits albums to YouTube but in this case we made an exception. The album contains 2 new tracks and the second of this two CD collection is entirely live so it’s also new material. Disc 1 consists of material from their 4 albums on the ForeFront label. It includes two new songs, More Than Gold and Today. Disc two is parts pf a concert recorded in Rome Georgia. A video was released to coincide with this release called Roadwork and is a more complete collection of the concert mentioned previously. The live tracks are well recorded and engineered which is more difficult than you may think as live mixes are completely different than album mixes. The live recording are what makes this album worth listening to as it was a great concert.

Tracklist
1 – More Than Gold – 4:19
2 – Life Together – 4:25
3 – Evolution … Redefined – 4:27
4 – The Vow – 4:08
5 – Good To Be Alive – 4:27
6 – If You Could See What I See – 4:18
7 – Listen To Our Hearts – 4:48
8 – House Of Faith – 4:22
9 – A Friend Like U – 3:44
10 – Simple Heart – 4:56
11 – Live To Tell – 4:34
12 – Today – 3:37
13 – Evidence Of God – 4:05
14 – Evolution … Redefined – 3:22
15 – Life Together – 3:54
16 – Best Days – 3:59
17 – Good To Be Alive – 4:18
18 – Home Run – 5:18
19 – New Americans – 5:18
20 – Why Should The Devil Have All The Good Music – 4:26
21 – When All Is Said And Done – 2:50

Credits
Art Direction, Design – Tom Davis, Tonya Presley
Engineer [The Live Set], Mixed By [The Live Set] – Richie Biggs
Executive-Producer – Dan R. Brock, Eddie DeGarmo
Illustration [Jupiter Boy Cover Image By] – Steven Webster
Management – Brock & Associates
Mastered By – Ken Love
Photography By [Bus Image] – Shane Johnson
Photography By [Group Photography By] – John Chiasson
Photography By [Truck Image] – Jeff Frazier
Recorded By – RM Audio

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – The ForeFront Communications Group, Inc.
Copyright © – The ForeFront Communications Group, Inc.
Distributed By – Chordant Distribution Group
Distributed By – CMC Distributors
Mastered At – Mastermix
Glass Mastered At – EMI MFG.

Katsbarnea – Katsbarnea – 1990

This is the first official album from Brazil’s Katsbarnea. Most of the tracks on this album are from their demo and I have read both that they re-recorded them and that they were just remixed. I have no idea which it was. The track Extra was a huge hit in Brazil and won a prominent Brazilian music award. As I understand it Christian music was common on Brazil’s secular radio stations due to a very high level of Christianity in the population. Wouldn’t that have been nice in North America? Anyway, this would be the start of a long run for the band that is still touring today. Of course I don’t know a word of Portuguese so I can’t even comment on the lyrics but the music is fantastic. I really really enjoy their feel and sound and would have loved to have seen them live back in the 90’s. While we aim these foreign releases at our foreign fans I would actually suggest giving it a listen, it’s quite good.

Tracklist
1 – Extra – 3:46
2 – Sepulcro Caiado – 3:41
3 – Grito De Katsbarnea – 3:17
4 – Apocalipse “Now” – 4:05
5 – Viagem Da Oração – 6:03
6 – Consumo – 4:01
7 – Fumaça Arisca – 3:02
8 – Corredor 18 – 3:15
9 – Ver O Sol – 3:40
10 – Revolução – 4:20

Credits
Brother Simion – vocals, rhythmic guitar and harmonic
André Mira – solo guitar
Tchu Solomon – bass
Mauricio Domene – keyboard and music production
Paulinho Makuko – percussion and vocals on “Runner 18”
Marcelo Gasperini – drums
Alessandra Orlando – backing vocals
Cláudia Bastos – backing vocals
Sandra Simões – backing vocals
Marquinhos – saxophone
Hilquias Alves – saxophone
Márcio Fluffy – trumpet

Companies, etc.
Record Company – New Voice Gravações Eletrônicas Ltda.
Manufactured By – BMG Ariola Discos Ltda.

Charlotte – Fri – 1985

This is the first album from Charlotte that was released in the U.S. This is the Swedish version that was originally released in 1985. They went back into the studio to record the English version in 1987. The music scores are slightly different but I think it’s due to mixing and not due to rerecording them. There are 2 additional tracks on the English version and the Swedish version actually had 2 English songs. English songs on a Swedish release were not uncommon at the time. Being from Canada I had no idea about the existence of this album or even this artist. I discovered it as I was researching Frank Ådahl and discovered he sang backup on this album. Charlotte actually had several albums including many as a child with her brother Per Höglund. Charlotte’s parents are singers Lotten and Arne Höglund and were also travel evangelists with the Swedish Missionary Association in the early 1970’s. The album is a great Pop album with strong vocals and I really really like it. It’s easily as good as the female pop stuff that was on the lower end of radio playlists in 85/87. No real stand out tracks for me but a great all around album. Charlotte Höglund is currently the pastor of Immanuelskyrkan Church in Stockholm.

The English version of this album is here https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPcTOx34g9XQ1vdSt8rX1lGHxqCXcJa2v

Tracklist
1 – Fri – 3:45
2 – Dansa – 3:56
3 – Vem Är Du? – 4:08
4 – Känn Ingen Oro – 3:34
5 – End Of The Book – 3:47
6 – Stjärnorna – 3:36
7 – All I Needed To Say – 3:21
8 – Vinna – Våga – 3:19
9 – Befria Mitt Folk – 5:01
10 – Konungen – 3:35

Credits
Arranged By – Peter Ljung
Backing Vocals – Björn Ström, Eva Axelsson, Frank Ådahl
Bass – Teddy Walther
Design – Camilla B.
Drums – Klas Anderhell, Per Lindvall
Engineer – Lennart Östlund, Paris Edvinsson
Guitar – Henrik Janson
Hair – Maria, KlippButiken
Illustration – Jan Sandström
Keyboards – Peter Ljung
Make-Up – Jean Pierre Barda
Photography By – Labe Allwin
Producer – Peter Ljung
Saxophone – Johan Stengård

Companies, etc.
Distributed By – EMI
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Verbum Förlag AB
Copyright © – Verbum Förlag AB
Pressed By – Audiodisc (3)
Printed By – SIB-Tryck AB, Norsborg
Recorded At – Polar Studios

Charlotte – Free – 1987

This is the first album from Charlotte that was released in the U.S. The Swedish version was released in 1985 but it looks like they went back into the studio to do this English version in 1987. The music scores are slightly different but I think it’s due to mixing and not due to rerecording them. There are 2 additional tracks on the English version and the Swedish version actually had 2 English songs. English songs on a Swedish release were not uncommon at the time. Being from Canada I had no idea about the existence of this album or even this artist. I discovered it as I was researching Frank Ådahl and discovered he sang backup on this album. Charlotte actually had several albums including many as a child with her brother Per Höglund. Charlotte’s parents are singers Lotten and Arne Höglund and were also travel evangelists with the Swedish Missionary Association in the early 1970’s. The album is a great Pop album with strong vocals and I really really like it. It’s easily as good as the female pop stuff that was on the lower end of radio playlists in 85/87. No real stand out tracks for me but a great all around album. Charlotte Höglund is currently the pastor of Immanuelskyrkan Church in Stockholm.

The Swedish version is here – https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLPcTOx34g9XQaZjAdoVEs-h_B1i-1WR_Z

Tracklist
1 – Free – 3:48
2 – Stand Up – 3:15
3 – Who Are You? – 4:08
4 – My Dance – 3:37
5 – Be Still – 3:33
6 – Up To The Stars – 3:41
7 – Love Is The Answer – 4:08
8 – Be A Winner – 3:18
9 – Set Them Free – 4:43
10 – The King – 3:34
11 – End Of The Book – 3:47
12 – All I Needed To Say – 3:21

Credits
Arranged By [Choir Arrangements], Conductor – L.O. Forsberg
Arranged By, Producer, Keyboards – Peter Ljung
Backing Vocals – Björn Ström, Eva Axelsson, Frank Ådahl, Håkon Iversson, Sigvard Dagsland
Bass – Teddy Walter
Design [Album Design] – Anders Bühlund
Drums – Klas Anderhell, Per Lindvall, Åke Sundqvist
Engineer – Lennart Östlund
Engineer [Assistant] – Paris Edvinsson
Engineer, Mixed By – Janne Ugand
Guitar – Henrik Jansson, Håkan Mjörnheim
Photography By – Labe Allwin
Saxophone – Erik Häusler, Johan Stengård

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Cantio Records
Copyright © – Cantio Records
Recorded At – Polar Studios
Recorded At – Atlantis Studio
Mixed At – Atlantis Studio
Pressed By – CD Plant MFG
Glass Mastered At – CDM

Jim and Kim Thomas – Run For The Reason – 1984

This album was a hint of what was to come from Jim & Kim Thomas who would go on to be a band named Say So. I don’t know if this release was a demo or a straight up EP. It was self released and produced by Jim but only one name on the credit list went on to be in Say So, Chris McHugh on Drums. The album definitely has a Say So feel and sound but it’s a little more raw and I love the sound. If you liked Say So give this a listen to see where the idea came from.

Artwork and credits courtesy of Christian tape underground

Tracklist
1 – Run for the Reason
2 – Break Through
3 – Somehow
4 – Made A Change
5 – Straight From The Heart
6 – Christmas This Year

Credits
Jim Thomas – Lead vocals, background vocals
Kim Thomas – Lead vocals, background vocals
John Harrelson – Guitars
Curtis Dowd, Jr. – Synthesizers, piano, Rhodes
Randy Cantor – Synthesizers
Glenn Barratt – Rhodes, percussion, background vocals
Jack Faulkner – Bass
Jim Salamone – Drums, Linn drum
Chris McHugh – Drums

Companies, etc.
Published By – JKT Music Publication

Birtles & Goble – The Last Romance – 1980

This is an album that I had no idea existed until someone brought it to my attention a few weeks ago. This album is Beeb Birtles (Gerard Bertelkamp) and Graeham Goble who were from Little River Band. In 1980 they approached the Manager of Little River Band Glenn Wheatley if they could do an album as a duo using songs they had written that had not been chosen for LRB to do. Apparently the idea caught and the guys went into the studio with a combination of studio musicians and other LRB members. Several of the chosen tracks were of a religious nature and that’s why this ended up on our channel. The album was released by Capitol records but apparently had little or no promotion. The theory goes that Capitol did not want the duo to split from LRB and as such never promotes the album. I can attest to this as my family were huge LRB fans but I have never heard of this album. The album is fantastic. It has a LRB sound in places but other tracks have a more independent sound from the guys. All the tracks were written by the duo with the exception of “He Gives Us All His Love” which was written by Randy Newman. So here is a lost classic that you should hear.

Tracklist
1 – Lonely Lives – 3:31
2 – Last Romance – 3:02
3 – I’m Coming Home – 3:50
4 – I Didn’t Stand A Chance – 3:07
5 – He Gives Us All His Love – 4:56
6 – The Netherlands – 5:02
7 – Into My Life – 5:39
8 – You’ll Never Change Your Mind – 4:07
9 – How I Feel Tonight – 3:25
10 – Whales – 3:57

Credits
Arranged By [Strings] – Rick Formosa
Arranged By [Strings], Conductor [Strings] – Graeme Lyall
Bass – Barry Sullivan, Clive Harrison, George McArdle, Joe Creighton, Michael Clarke
Clavinet, Piano, Synthesizer – Mal Logan
Design – Ian McCausland
Drums – Jerry Kroon
Drums, Percussion – Derek Pellicci, Mark Kennedy
Engineer – Brown Bannister, Ross Cockle
Engineer [Additional] – Ian McKenzie, Jim Barton*, Roger Savage
Flute – Don Burrows
Guitar [Electric Rhythm], Guitar [Lead] – David Briggs
Keyboards – Steve Nathan
Lacquer Cut By – Wally Traugott
Photography By – Derek Hughes
Piano [Acoustic], Keyboards, Electric Piano [Fender Rhodes] – Peter Jones
Producer – Beeb Birtles, Ern Rose, Graham Goble
Saxophone – Bill Harrower
Synthesizer [Oberheim] – Alan Zavod
Vocals, Acoustic Guitar – Beeb Birtles, Graham Goble

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Capitol Records, Inc.
Copyright © – Capitol Records, Inc.
Manufactured By – Capitol Records, Inc.
Recorded At – AAV
Recorded At – Goldmine Studio, Brentwood, TN
Recorded At – T.C.S. Studios
Mastered At – Capitol Mastering
Pressed By – Capitol Records Pressing Plant, Los Angeles

Petra – Unseen Power – 1991

Petra was still going strong in 1991 with this their thirteenth studio album. They turned up the Rock and Roll sound on this one and this album has a far more Arena Rock sound than their previous work due in no small part to the production of the Elefante brothers. It is said that Bob Hartman was dragged to this sound by the Elefante brothers but apparently he was happy with the final sound. The album won the Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album in 1992 and the Dove Award for Rock Recorded Song “Destiny” in 1993. I would never have thought they could have won the Dove award but they did. While “Destiny” won the Dove award I actually prefer “Secret Weapon” which has a great arena rock sound which may have been a little late in 1991 but it’s a great rock anthem. Again Arena Rock is not my preferred genre but this is a great album and I still enjoy listening to it.

Tracklist
1 – Destiny – 4:31
2 – Who’s On The Lord’s Side – 3:53
3 – Ready, Willing And Able – 4:14
4 – Hand On My Heart – 4:26
5 – I Need To Hear From You – 4:04
6 – Dance – 3:45
7 – Secret Weapon – 4:01
8 – Sight Unseen – 3:57
9 – Hey World – 3:51
10 – In The Likeness Of You – 4:51

Credits
A&R – Lynn Keesecker
Arranged By – Bob Hartman, Dino Elefante, John Elefante, John Lawry
Art Direction – Ed Goble, Loren Balman, Patrick Pollei
Backing Vocals [Addtional Background Vocals] – Alfie Silas, Alfred McCrary, Doug Beiden, Howard McCrary, Jamie Rowe, Olivia McClurkin, Perry Morgan, Rob Rock, Ron Gollner, Rose Stone, Sara Tennison, Tony Palacios
Bass – Ronny Cates
Coordinator [Art Production Coordinator] – Amy Linde
Design – Michael Goldenberg, Patrick Pollei, Steve Fryer
Drums – Louie Weaver
Engineer – Dino Elefante, Doug Beiden, J.R. McNeely, John Elefante
Guitar – Bob Hartman
Keyboards – John Lawry
Management – Management-Moress-Nanas-Golden
Mastered By – Chris Bellman
Mixed By – Niel Kernon
Mixed By [Assisted By] – Doug Beiden, J.R. McNeely
Other [Hair] – Helena Occhipinti
Other [Make-Up] – Margaret Kimura
Other [Stylit] – Keiki Mingus
Photography By [Band And Individual Photography] – Jeff Katz
Photography By [Cover Concept Photography] – Neill Whitlock
Producer – Dino Elefante, John Elefante
Vocals – John Schlitt

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Word, Inc.
Copyright © – Word, Inc.
Manufactured By – Word, Inc.
Distributed By – Word, Inc.

Children Of The Day – Come To The Waters – 1971

With a gift of $900 four young “hippy” converts went into a studio with friend Buck Herring and recorded what many claim is the first “group” album in CCM history and the Jesus Movement and Music in Southern California was born. Predating Love Song’s classic debut by nearly a year, Come to the Waters by Children of the Day birthed a genre and a “scene” in Southern California that would not be duplicated. And before the band finished their decade long career, they would also be a part of CCM’s first great scandal. Four friends from Calvary Chapel, Costa Mesa joined forces to create a tight harmony driven folk quartet and called themselves, Children of the day. The name of the band also comes from a line in one of the songs on the debut album. The album would also contain one of the true classic anthems of the generation and possibly the most popular worship song of the Jesus Music era. Leader and songwriter Marsha Carter and sister Wendy along with friends Peter Jacobs and Russ Stevens joined forces to create an American folk band that was even recognized and received critical acclaim from those outside the tine Jesus Music movement. Carter and Steven would marry soon after the albums release. They began performing regularly at coffee shops, Calvary Chapel Churches and elsewhere throughout the southern California region. Immediately requests for their music poured in and the quartet approached Pastor Chuck Smith about borrowing some money to record their debut album. That album would be the first on Maranatha Music, though its catalog number would be 777. The Everlasting Living Jesus Music Concert would actually be released first as this album was held up until the compilation album was released, though the finishing of the album was several months before the compilation. Come to the Waters starts with a beautiful acoustic mid-tempo ballad called “New Life” and would serve as the definitive sound for the project and the group. Acoustic piano and limited electric instruments support brilliantly tight harmonies with all four members sharing lead vocals throughout. Buck Herring would recreate a similar sound with 2nd Chapter of Acts. The acoustic piano solo is wonderful when one considers the limited budget and the fact that their use of the piano was limited by Larry Norman breaking the same piano during his recording session at the same studio.

“As a Child” sports a classical intro and a contemplative, worshipful sound throughout. The six-minute song shows the diversity that is found throughout the album with its more classical approach both musically and vocally. While the following track, “Children of the Day,” has a more acoustic folk rock sound similar to The Seekers or even the Monkees. Interestingly one would expect a Mamas and the papa sound, but it really isn’t there as the vocals are more classical sounding than “California cool.” The vocal bridge on this song is a great evidence of this. The male vocals take front and center stage on “The Search.” Written at a time and for a generation that was constantly searching for truth or the next high, the song is perfect snapshot of that generation. Here again Herrings piano arrangement is just perfect. “Two Hands” is a Tommy Coomes/Chuck Butler composition that would also be later recorded by Love Song on their debut. The arrangement is similar on both versions. The rockiest (and nearly progressive) “Jesus Lives” is a real standout both musically and vocally. I can only imagine how “radical” this must have sounded in 1970. There are even a few vocal “issues” left in that are actually endearing and creates more of a live sound. A little Bach follows with the a capella “All Breathing Life.” Again the groups musical and vocal versatility shines through here. Imagine all those rock music critics confused by some classical a capella vocals. Brilliant. Especially considering the two sisters were still in High School. “Jesus” would have worked perfectly on a Love song album as well. The arrangement and vocals just sound like Love Song, especially the transition at the two-minute mark. Even vocally Peter Jacobs sounds a bit like Tommy Coomes on this one. The album closes with a song that would be covered by more artists during the 70’s than just about any other song outside of “Easter Song.” It is also the song from which the album receives its name and was used at countless seaside baptisms over the years. Yet the song has had several critics because of the questionable theology it contains. The song, “For Those Tears I Died,” became an anthem for an entire generation though it was written by Carter when she was just 16. It is a very sentimental ballad that has Jesus proclaiming that He died for the tears accompanying repentance. The song contains the line “Come to the waters,” and that has made it such a popular baptism hymn.

Contributor David Lowman – https://legacyccmsgreatestalbums.wordpress.com/

Tracklist
1 – New Life – 4:18
2 – As A Child – 6:03
3 – Children Of The Day – 2:23
4 – The Search – 5:27
5 – Two Hands – 3:59
6 – Jesus Lives – 3:51
7 – All Breathing Life – 2:14
8 – Jesus – 3:58
9 – For Those Tears I Died – 5:10

Credits
Design – Kernie/Malone
Drums – John Mehler
Engineer – Buck Herring
Flute – Linda Conner
Musician – Bill Keene, Frank Chavez, Larry Oppenheim
Performer – Marsha Carter, Pete Jacobs, Russ Stevens, Wendy Carter
Photography By – Gary Conniff
Producer – Holy Spirit