Tag: Margaret Becker

Compassion All Star Band – 1 By 1 Live! – 1989

The Compassion All Star Band was a collection of great CCM artists recorded live at 1989’s Creation Festival. The album was a fund raiser for the charity organization Compassion International and though recorded in June the album includes a few “Christmas” songs as the album was scheduled as a Christmas release. The band was Phil Keaggy, Randy Stonehill, Margaret Becker, Rick Cua, Joe English, Mike Mead and John Andrew Schriner. I had read about this album but honestly hadn’t listened to it when it was released. That’s too bad because I really enjoyed it. It’s not a musical wonder by any stretch as I’m guessing there wasn’t much rehearsal BUT that’s what makes projects like this so great. The unpolished sound gives the tracks more meaning and you can really get a feel for what was a fantastic performance. Strangely the crescendo track “Who Will Save The Children” had to actually be recorded in studio as the concert was rained out. These types of compilation albums are my favourites and it’s too bad CCM music didn’t have more of them.

Tracklist
1 – Randy Stonehill – Defender – 3:022
2 – Rick Cua – You Can’t Stand Too Tall – 4:07
3 – Margaret Becker – Sacred Fire – 7:06
4 – John Andrew Schreiner – Silent Night – 4:54
5 – Randy Stonehill – Christmas Must Be Tonight – 3:58
6 – Margaret Becker – Find Me – 3:31
7 – Joe English – Yield To The Spirit – 4:18
8 – Phil Keaggy & Randy Stonehill – Ain’t Got No – 3:35
9 – Randy Stonehill – Crossroads – 6:12
10 – Randy Stonehill – Rap – 5:11
11 – Randy Stonehill & Phil Keaggy – Who Will Save The Children – 5:04

Credits
Bass, Vocals – Rick Cua
Co-producer [Production Assistance] – John Andrew Schreiner
Crew [Stage Assistance] – Bill Goings
Design [Cover Design] – Kugizaki Design, Inc.
Directed By [Musical Director] – Lynn Nichols
Drums, Percussion – Mike Mead
Drums, Percussion, Vocals – Joe English
Engineer – Gary Heddon
Engineer [Additional] – Jim Kaiser
Engineer [Live Monitor Engineer] – Jody Nachtigal
Engineer [Live Sound Engineer] – Mike Nachtigal
Executive-Producer – Devlin Donaldson
Guitar, Vocals – Margaret Becker, Phil Keaggy, Randy Stonehill
Keyboards, Vocals – John Andrew Schreiner
Photography By [Cover Photos] – Russ Harrington
Photography By [Inside Photos] – Keith Baum
Producer – Gary Heddon

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Compassion International
Copyright © – Compassion International
Distributed By – Sparrow/Star Song Distribution
Distributed By – Sparrow/Star Song Distribution
Published By – Stonehillian Music
Published By – Word Music, Inc.
Published By – Undone Tunes
Published By – Screen Gems-EMI Music Inc.
Published By – MCA Music
Published By – His Eyes Music
Published By – John Andrew Schreiner Music
Published By – Medicine Hat Music
Published By – Norman J. Clayton Publishing Co.
Glass Mastered at – Nimbus, Virginia

Margaret Becker – Immigrants Daughter – 1989

After a wonderful debut and solid sophomore effort something happened to Margaret Becker that would change the direction of her musical progression for the better and help her create one of the truly great female rock albums in CCM history. Someone introduced her to Charlie Peacock. With Peacock’s help Becker created “Immigrant’s Daughter,” a thoughtful, and rock filled pop album with alternative underpinnings. Sounding now a little more like Annie Lennox than Ann Wilson, Becker’s vocal chops expanded and sounded more current and original. Subdued when needed and blowing up when necessary, her vocals here would not be matched until much later on some independent releases. Also with Peacock’s oversight, the songwriting became more introspective and universal. Christian themes combined with real human experiences to create a more passionate and authentic record. The personal expression is found immediately with the title track and continues throughout the project. The album also sounded more “current” and pulled Becker out of the “Chick Rocker” track and allowed to expand and grow as an artist and songwriter. Wonderful rockers and paired with ballads and “modern” musical expressions that also found radio to be quite responsive. Not every ballad has to be “These dreams” or “Alone” as sometimes the softer side provides a more memorable and authentic experience. There are so many strong songs here but a few worth receiving special notation include: Solomon’s Shoes, This Is My Passion, Stay Close to Me and the title track. The cover of “People Get Ready” is also a nice touch to close the album.

Contributor David Lowman – https://ccms500bestalbums.wordpress.com/

Tracklist
1 – Immigrant’s Daughter – 4:25
2 – This Is My Passion – 4:03
3 – Stay Close To Me – 3:08
4 – The Hunger Stays – 4:06
5 – Just Come In – 4:25
6 – I Commit – 4:22
7 – Honesty – 3:44
8 – Solomon’s Shoes – 3:13
9 – Laugh A Little – 3:42
10 – People Get Ready – 3:39

Credits
Acoustic Guitar – Jimmy Abegg, Margaret Becker
Art Direction – Barbara Hearn, Larry Vigon
Backing Vocals – Annie Stocking, Brent Bourgeois, Charlie Peacock, Jeanie Tracy, Margaret Becker, Vince Ebo
Bass – Larry Tagg
Design – Larry Vigon Studio
Drums – Mike Urbano
Electric Guitar – Jimmy Abegg
Engineer [Additional] – Bill Deaton, David Houston
Executive-Producer – Peter York
Liner Notes – Margaret Becker
Mastered By – Doug Sax
Mixed By – Jeff Balding
Mixed By [Assistant] – Derek Marcil, Jared Held
Organ [Hammond B-3] – Roger Smith
Photography By – Mark Tucker
Piano, Keyboards – Charlie Peacock
Producer, Arranged By – Charlie Peacock
Recorded By – Rick Sanchez
Recorded By [Assistant] – Jim “Watts” Vereecke
Written-By – Charlie Peacock (tracks: 1, 3, 4, 8, 9), Curtis Mayfield (tracks: 10), Leonard Ahlstrom (tracks: 6), Margaret Becker (tracks: 1 to 9), Mike Demus (tracks: 6)

Companies, etc.
Recorded At – Studio D
Recorded At – Moon Studios, Sacramento
Recorded At – Gold Mine Studio
Recorded At – Studio 55, Los Angeles
Mastered At – The Mastering Lab
Phonographic Copyright (p) – The Sparrow Corporation
Copyright (c) – The Sparrow Corporation
Published By – His Eyes Music
Published By – SBK Blackwood Music Inc.
Published By – Andi Beat Goes On Music
Published By – Paragon Music Corp.
Published By – Sunday Shoes Music
Published By – Warner-Tamerlane Publishing Corp.
Glass Mastered At – Nimbus, Virginia

Larry Howard ‎– Larry Howard’s Cornerstone Blues Jam – 1992

Larry Howard was joined on stage by several other performers at the Cornerstone Festival in 1992 for this fantastic blues session. The album is actually credited to Larry but really this is a various artists album. The last 6 tracks are credited as “Tribute To Mahalia Jackson”. If your a fan of the blues this is a must listen to. I had not heard this one before we recently received it and it was an excellent addition to our collection.

Tracklist
1 – Larry Howard – Good News Blues – 3:38
2 – Larry Howard – Love Will Make You Change Your Ways – 3:35
3 – Margaret Becker – Lean On Me – 4:19
4 – Larry Howard and Darrell Mansfield – Evangelistic Blues – 5:02
5 – Larry Howard & Glenn Kaiser & Darrell Mansfield – Presence Of The Lord – 4:36
6 – Guardian – Take Up Your Cross – 4:59
7 – Mark Farner – Judgement Day Blues – 4:55
8 – Larry Howard – Trouble No More – 3:49
9 – Eddie DeGarmo & Larry Howard – Here Am I – 3:49
10 – Mark Farner & Margaret Becker – Some Kind Of Wonderful – 4:42
11 – Jessy Dixon – Operator – 5:32
12 – Elsa Harris – If We Ever Needed The Lord Before, We Sure Do Need Him Now – 2:13
13 – Jessy Dixon & Elsa Harris – Keep Your Hand On The Plow – 2:39
14 – Margaret Becker – Walk Over God’s Heaven – 1:56
15 – Mark Farner – Search Me Lord – 3:13
16 – Elsa Harris & Vernessa Mitchell – Precious Lord – 4:22
17 – Larry Howard – Nobody But You – 4:19

Credits
A&R [A&R Manager] – Lisa Stutts
Backing Vocals – Clare Ford, Phyllis Duncan
Bass Guitar – Slim Powell
Design – Franke Design Co.
Drums – Willie Smith
Engineer – Malcolm Harper, Roger Heiss
Engineer [Dyaxis Engineer] – Pat Scholes
Engineer [Live Engineer], Technician [Technical Advisor] – Doug Jones
Engineer [Monitor Engineer] – Chris Michaelessi
Engineer [Sound Production] – Phil Zeo & Zeo Brothers
Engineer [System Engineer] – Tom Wilson
Guitar – Roscoe Meek
Illustration [Cover Illustration] – Susan DeGarmo
Keyboards – Lester Snell
Mixed By – Greg Morrow
Mixed By [Assistant] – Dave Perkins, Russ Weaver
Other [Custom Tailoring] – Jane Cowan
Other [Light Contractor] – Tone Zone
Producer, Executive-Producer – Eddie DeGarmo
Saxophone – Mark Townsend
Stage Manager – Denny Keitzman
Technician [Crew Chief & Stage Technician] – Tony Capacchione
Technician [Larry’s Guitar Tech] – Tory Torstenson

Companies, etc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – The ForeFront Communications Group, Inc.
Copyright (c) – The ForeFront Communications Group, Inc.
Distributed By – Star Song Communications
Recorded At – Cornerstone Festival

Margaret Becker – The Reckoning – 1988

This was Margaret’s third album and probably her most Rock oriented one. Sparrow gave her some latitude on this album and she took full advantage of it. We knew she had a good voice but here we learn she can do Rock also. To say the album was a success is an understatement. It had 4 singles, “Find Me”, “Who Am I”, “Streets Of Innocence”, and “Come Quickly Lord”. “Find Me” made it to #3, “Streets Of Innocence” to #4, “Who Am I” to # 5, and “Come Quickly Lord” to # 23. Three top 10 hits on one album is no easy feat. Oh and guess who appears as a guest on the album? Dann Huff, I think he was on 90% of the best albums of the era.

Tracklist
1 – Light In The Darkness – 3:28
2 – You Can’t Take It With You – 3:49
3 – Find Me – 3:42
4 – Take Me Away – 3:23
5 – Pico Boulevard – 4:22
6 – Who Am I – 4:52
7 – Start The Fire – 4:20
8 – ‘Til My Feet Don’t Move – 4:05
9 – I Don’t Want To Be Without You – 4:19
10 – Come Quickly Lord – 4:43
11 – Streets Of Innocence – 3:40

Credits
Acoustic Guitar – Dann Huff, Margaret Becker, Tim Pierce
Art Direction – Barbara Catanzaro-Hearn
Backing Vocals – Andrea Robinson, Bob Carlisle (track 10), Kurt Howell, Margaret Becker, Tommy Funderburk
Bass – John Pierce
Cello – Kevin Toufec
Design – 5 Penguins Design, Inc.
Drums – Mike Baird
Electric Guitar – Dann Huff, Tim Pierce
Executive Producer – Peter York
Keyboards – Alan Pasqua, Smitty Price
Mastered By – Bob Ludwig
Percussion [Additional] – David Huff
Photography By – Mark Tucker
Producer – Dan Posthuma
Recorded By [Rhythm Tracks], Mixed By – Csaba Petocz
Recorded By [Vocals And Overdubs] – Dan Garcia

Various – The Rock of Gospel – 1987

This is a fascinating sampler album (CD). It came out on Arrival Records, which is a Sublabel of K-Tel International. I had no idea until I found this album that K-Tel had distributed Christian albums. Even more of a surprise for me is that there were several of these albums. The quality of the CD is horrible, but I’ve cleaned up the recordings as best I could. K-Tel’s vinyl releases were well known for their horrible quality which was a result of cheap vinyl and cheap pressing. This album was released on CD so there was no need for the poor quality. I’ve always suspected that the licensing agreements for these songs included a stipulation that the quality be horrible in hopes people would buy the original album.

Include below is the info on which album the songs were released on

Tracklist
1 – Michael W. Smith – You’re Alright – 4:39 – The Big Picture
2 – Petra – Back To The Street – 4:17 – Back To The Street
3 – Leslie Phillips – Love Is Not Lost – 4:03 – Black And White In A Grey World
4 – White Heart – The Beat Of A Different Drum – 4:17 – Don’t Wait For The Movie
5 – David Meece – All Is God’s Creation – 3:48 – Candle In The Rain
6 – Kim Boyce – Love Resurrection – 4:11 – Kim Boyce
7 – Randy Stonehill – Defender – 3:02 – The Wild Frontier
8 – Mylon LeFevre & Broken Heart – Crack The Sky – 3:59 – Crack The Sky
9 – Rick Cua – This Raging Fire – 3:53 – Wear Your Colors
10 – Steve Camp – Cheap Grace – 5:11 – One On One
11 – David & The Giants – Cold Lonely Nights – 3:37 – Magnificat
12 – Margaret Becker – Fight For God – 4:06 – Never For Nothing

Companies, etc.
Copyright (c) – K-Tel International (USA), Inc.
Distributed By – K-Tel International (USA), Inc.
Phonographic Copyright (p) – K-Tel International (USA), Inc.

Sparrow Christmas – 1988

It’s Christmas time so here’s Sparrows 1988 Christmas album. Highlights on this album are, White Heart – Little Drummer Boy, Steve Taylor – Winter Wonderland, and Geoff Moore & The Distance – Jingle Bell Rock.

Track Listing:
1 – Bebe & Cece Winans – Silent Night, Holy Night – 5:43
2 – Margaret Becker, Steven Curtis Chapman, Geoff Moore, Bebe & Cece Winans, White Heart And Steve Camp – Home For The Holidays – 4:18
3 – White Heart – Little Drummer Boy – 4:12
5 – Michael Card – What Child Is This? – 2:47
6 – Deniece Williams – Do You Hear What I Hear? – 4:13
7 – Steve Taylor – Winter Wonderland – 1:56
8 – Margaret Becker – O Come, O Come Emmanuel – 4:52
9 – Steve Camp – O Holy Night – 4:09
10 – Tim Miner – The First Noel – 4:35
11 – Geoff Moore & The Distance – Jingle Bell Rock – 2:59
12 – Steven Curtis Chapman – Away In A Manger – 4:18
13 – Margaret Becker, Steven Curtis Chapman, Geoff Moore, BeBe Winans And White Heart – Angels We Have Heard On High – 3:31

Margaret Becker – Never For Nothing – 1987

This is the introductory album from Margaret Becker.

While usually classified as easy listening I think it’s one notch closer to Rock & Roll though you won’t hear any screaming guitars. I do detect a Patty Smyth and Scandal sound but with less lead guitar riffs.

Track Listing:
1 – Fight For God – 4:02
2 – Standing On Top Of The World – 3:31
3 – Never For Nothing – 3:43
4 – Break The Silence – 3:32
5 – Sacred Fire – 4:32
6 – Love Was Waiting – 3:27
7 – What You Feel – 3:42
8 – Make It Right – 5:19
9 – Giants Will Fall – 4:09
10 – For The Love Of You – 4:24

Credits:
Art Direction – Barbara Catanzaro-Hearn
Design – Stan Evenson Design*
Engineer – Brent King, Doug Sarrett, Jeff Balding, Joe Bellamy, Mike Psanos
Executive-Producer – Peter York
Mastered By – Steve Hall
Mixed By – David Schober
Photography By – Steven A. Heller
Producer – Billy Smiley

Steve Camp – One on One – 1986

This 4th offering from Steve Camp was more of the same.

This album has a distinctly 80’s sound and is slightly more up tempo than previous ones. If I had to pick one track to listen to it would be “Foolish Things”.

Tracklist
1 – Foolish Things
2 – Other Side Of The World
3 – Judgement Begins With The House Of God
4 – One On One
5 – He Covers Me
6 – Cheap Grace
7 – Mr. Brokenhearted
8 – Threshing Floor
9 – He’s All You Need

Credits
Backing Vocals – Bill Champlin, Bob Carlisle (2), Jason Scheff, Steve Lively, Tamara Champlin, Tommy Funderburk
Bass – Lee Sklar*
Drums – Jeff Porcaro
Engineer [Additional] – Dan Garcia, David Schober, Mike Ross*, Peter Hayden
Engineer [Rhythm Tracks] – Dennis Mackay
English Horn – Jon Clarke
Keyboards – Smitty Price
Mixed By – Bill Schnee
Percussion – Dan Greco*
Producer, Arranged By, Drum Programming [SP-12 Drum Machine Programming] – Steve Camp
Producer, Arranged By, Orchestrated By – John Rosasco
Rhythm Guitar – Michael Landau
Rhythm Guitar, Lead Guitar – Dann Huff
Vocals [Female Vocal, Duet] – Margaret Becker (tracks: A4)