Jesus music, known as
gospel beat music in the
United KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is a sovereign state located off the northwestern coast of continental Europe. It is an island country, spanning an archipelago including Great Britain, the northeastern part of Ireland, and many small islands...
, is a style of
Christian musicChristian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely across the world....
which originated on the
West Coast of the United StatesThe "West Coast", "Western Seaboard", or "Pacific Coastline" are terms for the westernmost coastal states of the United States. It most often comprises California, Oregon and Washington...
in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This musical genre developed in parallel to the
Jesus movementThe Jesus movement was a movement in Christianity beginning on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s and spreading primarily through North America and Europe, before dying out by the early 1980s. It was the major Christian element within the hippie counterculture,...
. It outlasted the movement that spawned it and the
Christian music industryThe Christian music industry is a small part of the larger music industry, that focuses on traditional Gospel music, Southern Gospel music, Contemporary Christian music, and alternative Christian music. It is sometimes called the gospel music industry, although this designation is not a limitation...
began to eclipse it and absorb its musicians around 1975.
History
Jesus music primarily began in population centers of the United States where the Jesus Movement was gaining momentum—Southern California (esp. Costa Mesa and Hollywood), San Francisco, Seattle, and Chicago—around 1969-1970. Large numbers of
hippieThe hippie subculture was originally a youth movement that began in the United States during the early 1960s and spread around the world. The word hippie derives from hipster, and was initially used to describe beatniks who had moved into San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district...
s and street musicians began converting to born-again
ChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as presented by the revelations in the New Testament....
. A number of these conversions, especially in
southern CaliforniaSouthern California, or SoCal, is defined as the southern portion of the U.S. state of California. Its population centers around three major metropolitan areas, each of which have over 3 million people; the Los Angeles Metropolitan Area with over 12 million inhabitants, the San Bernardino-Riverside...
, was due largely to the outreach of
Lonnie FrisbeeLonnie Frisbee was an American Pentecostal evangelist and self-described "seeing prophet" and mystic in the late 1960s and 1970s. Despite his hippie appearance and being a closeted gay man, Frisbee had notable success as a minister and evangelist.Contemporary accounts attributed his...
and
Pastor Chuck SmithCharles Ward “Chuck” Smith, born , is the senior pastor of Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa. He is widely credited as founding Calvary Chapel Costa Mesa, though he was the second pastor. Smith was born in Ventura, California to Charles and Maude Smith. His wife, Kay, directs Costa Mesa's women's ministry...
of
Calvary ChapelCalvary Chapel, a non-denominational, Evangelical fellowship of Christian churches, began in 1965 in Southern California. It presents itself as a "fellowship of churches" in contrast to a denomination. Churches that apply and qualify for affiliation through an extensive and thorough application...
in
Costa Mesa, CaliforniaCosta Mesa is a suburban city in Orange County, California, United States. The population was 116,479 as of January 1, 2009 . Since its incorporation in 1953, the city has grown from a semi-rural farming community of 16,840 to a suburban city with an economy based on retail, commerce and light...
. In the aftermath of such conversions, these musicians continued playing the same styles of music that they had been playing prior to their conversion, though they now infused their lyrics with a
ChristianA Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth, who Christians believe was the Messiah prophesied in the Old Testament/Hebrew Bible, and the Son of God.The term "Christian" is also used adjectivally to...
message. Most of these early bands gigged whenever asked, usually for whatever money could be collected at the passing of a hat or basket. This was known as a
love offering. Few, if any, made a living from playing in the years 1970 - 1973, nor did they expect to. Most viewed their music as a means of sharing their newfound faith and encouraging listeners to commit their lives to Jesus, no matter the sacrifice. Of the many bands and artists that came out of this time-period, some became leaders within the Jesus movement. Most notably among them
Larry NormanLarry David Norman was an American Christian musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and humorist. Norman's recordings are noted for their Christian and social subject matter, and he is often described as the "father of Christian rock music"...
,
Barry McGuireBarry McGuire is an American singer-songwriter best known for the hit song Eve of Destruction, and later as a singer and songwriter of Contemporary Christian Music.-Early life:...
,
Love SongLove Song was one of the main Jesus music bands, one of the first Christian rock bands. It was founded in 1970 by Chuck Girard, Tommy Coomes, Jay Truax, and Fred Field. Additionally, the earliest members included David Ingram on keyboards, Ernie Earnshaw on drums and Jack Schaeffer on bass. It was...
,
Second Chapter of ActsThe 2nd Chapter of Acts was a Jesus Music and early Contemporary Christian Music group composed of sisters Annie Herring and Nelly Greisen and brother Matthew Ward. They began performing in 1973 and enjoyed their period of greatest success during the 1970s...
,
Randy StonehillRandy Stonehill is an American singer/songwriter from Stockton, California, best known as one of the so-called "fathers of contemporary Christian music." His music is primarily folk rock in the style of James Taylor, but he has assayed other styles, with various albums focused on new wave, pop...
,
Randy MatthewsRandy Matthews is a Christian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and pioneer of Jesus music. He was born into a family with at least five ordained ministers, including his father, Monty, a founding member of the Jordanaires...
, and during the mid-1970's,
Keith GreenKeith Gordon Green was an American gospel singer, songwriter, musician, and Contemporary Christian Music artist originally from Sheepshead Bay, New York. Green is best known for his strong devotion to Christian evangelism and encouraging others to the same...
.
Much of the music
was a blend of
folk musicThe term folk music originated in the 19th century as a term for musical folklore. It has been defined in several ways; as music transmitted by word of mouth, music of the lower classes, music with no known composer...
and
folk rockFolk rock is a musical genre, combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
(
Children of the DayChildren of the Day was a Contemporary Christian music group that recorded and toured from 1971 to 1979. It is considered by many to be the world's first contemporary Christian music group.-Beginnings:...
,
Paul ClarkPaul Clark is a musician who specializes in Christian praise and worship oriented music. He was born in Kansas City and recorded his first album in 1971, Songs from the Saviour Vol 1. Its songs became one of the first signs of the growing "Jesus Movement" of the early 70's.He went on to record a...
, John Fischer,
Nancy HoneytreeNancy Honeytree is an American Christian musician.-Biography:Honeytree was born into a family of professional classical musicians. Honeytree was drawn toward the hippie kids at school...
,
Mark HeardJohn Mark Heard was a record producer, folk-rock singer, and songwriter originally from Macon, Georgia.Mark Heard released 16 records in his lifetime, and produced and performed with many other artists as well, such as Sam Phillips , Pierce Pettis, Phil Keaggy, Vigilantes of Love, Peter Buck of...
, Noel Paul Stookey),
soft rockSoft rock is a style of music which uses the techniques of rock and roll to compose a softer, more toned-down sound for listening. Soft rock songs generally tend to focus on themes like love, everyday life and relationships...
(
Chuck GirardChuck Girard and moved to Santa Rosa, CA in his young teens) is an American musician, and was a member of The Castells, The Hondells and later, Love Song, one of the pioneer Christian rock groups. He later enjoyed a solo career as a performer of Contemporary Christian Music...
,
Tom HowardTom Howard is an American pianist, musical arranger and orchestral conductor.In 1983, Howard helped the rock band Daniel Amos form the Alarma! Records label.-Solo:* View from the Bridge, 1977, Solid Rock Records...
,
Phil KeaggyPhilip Tyler Keaggy is an American acoustic and electric guitarist and vocalist who has released more than 50 albums and contributed to many more recordings in both the contemporary Christian music and mainstream markets...
, Mustard Seed Faith,
Salvation Air ForceSalvation Air Force is Canada's first Christian rock and roll band. During their thirty-year history they toured widely in the US and Canada, and recorded a number of well-received albums on the Myrrh Records label, and worked extensively with Larry Norman....
, Pat Terry),
R&BRhythm and blues is the name given to a wide-ranging genre of popular music created by African Americans in the late 1940s and early 1950s...
(
Andraé Crouch (and the Disciples)Andraé Edward Crouch , is an American Gospel musician, recording artist, songwriter, arranger and record producer.- Early childhood years :...
),
Soul musicSoul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
/
Jazz fusionFusion or, more specifically, jazz fusion or jazz rock, is a musical genre that developed in the late 1960s from a mixture of elements of jazz such as its focus on improvisation with the rhythms and grooves of funk and R&B and the beats and heavily amplified electric instruments and electronic...
(
Sweet Comfort BandSweet Comfort Band was a Christian rock band that first performed in 1972 in Riverside, California, and were active until 1984. The band was composed of keyboardist/lead vocalist Bryan Duncan, guitarist/vocalist Randy Thomas and brothers Kevin and Rick Thomson...
),
country rockCountry-rock is a musical genre formed from the fusion of rock with country music, with its country origins being initially referenced to the rockabilly music of the 1950s....
(
BethlehemBethlehem was a Christian country rock band in the 1970s, during the Jesus Music era, before the rise of the CCM industry. The group released one self-titled album in 1978 under the Maranatha! label. The group's sound has drawn comparison with The Eagles....
,
Daniel AmosDaniel Amos is a rock band formed in 1974 by Terry Scott Taylor on guitars and vocals, Marty Dieckmeyer on bass guitar, Steve Baxter on guitars and Jerry Chamberlain on lead guitars. Current members include Bassist Tim Chandler, guitarist Greg Flesch and Drummer Ed McTaggart...
,
Gentle FaithGentle Faith was a Christian country rock band in the 1970s, during the Jesus Music era, before the rise of the CCM industry. The group formed in 1974 and released one self-titled album in 1976 under the Maranatha! label....
, The Talbot Brothers -
John MichaelJohn Michael Talbot is an American Roman Catholic singer-guitarist who is founder of a monastic community, the Brothers and Sisters of Charity.-Biography:...
and Terry Talbot,
The WayThe Way was a Jesus music band who were active during the early seventies who released two albums on Maranatha! Records. They first appeared on the classic Maranatha! compilation albums, The Everlastin' Living Jesus Music Concert and Maranatha 2 . Their debut album was a smooth mixture of folk and...
),
and
hard rockHard rock or heavy rock is a sub-genre of rock music which has its earliest roots in mid-1960s garage and psychedelic rock and is considerably harder than conventional rock music...
(Agape, The All Saved Freak Band,
PetraPetra was a prominent Christian rock band, regarded by many as a pioneer of the Christian rock and of the Contemporary Christian music genres. Petra was formed in 1972, in Fort Wayne, Indiana by Bob Hartman, Greg Hough and John DeGroff while they were students of the Christian Training Center...
,
Resurrection BandResurrection Band, also known as Rez Band or REZ, was a Christian rock band formed in 1972. They were based out of the Jesus People USA Christian community in Chicago, Illinois, and most of its members continue to be part of that community to this day...
,
ServantServant was a Christian rock group that grew out of the counter-culture Jesus Movement of the sixties and seventies. The band was founded by evangelist Jim Palosaari in Victoria, British Columbia in 1976 and performed to audiences throughout North America, Europe and Australia for over 12 years. ...
).
The music was quite often both lyrically and musically simple as well as theologically immature. It was also seen by many as
worldly music at best or as "the Devil's music" in the worst case. This latter position was held by conservatives such as
Bill GothardWilliam W. Gothard is an American minister, speaker and writer, and the founder of the Institute in Basic Life Principles.-Biography:...
as taught in his Basic Youth Conflicts Seminars. These were some of the main factors that caused many
AmericanThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
churches to largely reject the movement and these artists at the time. This suited many artists as they wanted to bring Jesus to non-Christians, not only to church youth.
Jesus music pioneer
Larry NormanLarry David Norman was an American Christian musician, singer, songwriter, record producer, and humorist. Norman's recordings are noted for their Christian and social subject matter, and he is often described as the "father of Christian rock music"...
addressed this culture clash in his 1972 song, "Why Should The Devil Have All the Good Music?"
http://www.christianguitar.org/csong2867/Larry-Norman-Why-Should-the-Devil-Have-All-the-Good-Music.
On the West Coast of the United States, Jesus music festivals began to emerge in the summer months of the early 1970s, featuring many of the artists listed above. While the music was often loud and the venue similar to the
Monterey Pop FestivalThe Monterey International Pop Music Festival was a three-day concert event held June 16 to June 18, 1967 at the Monterey County Fairgrounds in Monterey, California. Monterey was the first widely-promoted and heavily-attended rock festival, attracting an estimated 6,000 total attendees with to...
and Woodstock, the atmosphere was decidedly different and attracted large crowds of camping families as well as teenagers and young adults.
By 1973, Jesus music was receiving enough attention inside the mainstream media that an industry began to emerge. By the mid 1970s, the phrase "
contemporary Christian musicContemporary Christian music is a genre of popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
" had been coined by Ron Moore and the first edition of
CCM MagazineCCM Magazine was a monthly magazine published by Salem Publishing, a division of Salem Communications. It was first published in July 1978, and it has always been a Christian music magazine. On January 16, 2008, Salem announced that the April 2008 issue would be the final printed issue of the...
was published in July, 1977.
CCMContemporary Christian music is a genre of popular music which is lyrically focused on matters concerned with the Christian faith...
now was a combination of traditional
gospel musicGospel music is music that is written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life, as well as to give a Christian alternative to mainstream secular music....
, Southern Gospel Music, Jesus music artists, and in some cases a style of big-band music with Christian lyrics. By 1976, it was apparent that a new generation of performers who had grown up in the church wanted to play non-secular pop and rock music for other Christians. By the end of the 1970s the term "Jesus music" fell out of use as
the movement was replaced by
the industry.
Outside of California
Contemporaneous with the Jesus movement, from 1967 to 1970, on the
East Coast of the United StatesThe East Coast of the United States, also known as the "Eastern Seaboard" or "Atlantic Seaboard", refers to the easternmost coastal states in the central and northern United States, which touch the Atlantic Ocean and stretch up to Canada...
, the first documented Christian Rock band,
Mind GarageMind Garage is a five-man psychedelic rock and roll band from Morgantown, West Virginia, and progenitor of Christian rock music.-The Mind Garage 1967-1970:...
, was taking rock music with Christian lyrics into church, although their music was not widely known to those following Jesus music. In the UK,
Malcolm and AlwynMalcolm and Alwyn were a popular British gospel beat music group in the 1970s. They played Beatles-influenced rock music with lyrics reflecting their conversion to Christianity. The duo was composed of Malcolm Wild and Alwyn Wall, who had been performing together in a band called The Zodiacs prior...
were the most notable agents of the gospel beat.
Jesus People USAJesus People USA is a Christian intentional community in Uptown, on the North Side of Chicago, Illinois. It was founded in 1972, coming out of Jesus People Milwaukee in the Jesus Movement, and is the largest of the few remaining communes from that movement...
is an
intentional communityAn intentional community is a planned residential community designed to have a much higher degree of teamwork than other communities. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, religious, or spiritual vision and are often part of the alternative society. They...
and ministry, currently located on the North Side of Chicago. Two of the first influences of JPUSA were
Cornerstone magazineCornerstone was a newspaper and later a magazine published by Jesus People USA, focusing on topics of evangelical Christian faith and engagement with politics and culture....
and
Resurrection BandResurrection Band, also known as Rez Band or REZ, was a Christian rock band formed in 1972. They were based out of the Jesus People USA Christian community in Chicago, Illinois, and most of its members continue to be part of that community to this day...
.
Jim PalosaariJames "Jim" Michael Palosaari was an evangelist and one of the leaders in the Jesus Movement of the late 1960s and 1970s. Jim was a first generation Finn whose father emigrated through Ellis Island, N.Y., born in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan...
was one of Britain's influential Jesus people and one of the founders of the group that became JPUSA,
ServantServant was a Christian rock group that grew out of the counter-culture Jesus Movement of the sixties and seventies. The band was founded by evangelist Jim Palosaari in Victoria, British Columbia in 1976 and performed to audiences throughout North America, Europe and Australia for over 12 years. ...
's Highway Ministries, and
Greenbelt festivalGreenbelt is festival of arts, justice and faith held annually in England since 1974. Greenbelt has grown from a music event with an audience of 1,500 to its current more broad festival attended by nearly 30,000....
in England, the largest Christian rock festival in the world.