Mark Lowry
Encyclopedia
Mark Alan Lowry is a Christian
comedian
, songwriter
, and singer, best known for co-writing the song “Mary, Did You Know?
”. Lowry performed with the Gaither Vocal Band
from 1988–2001 and, in January 2009, he re-joined the group along with other "GVB" alumni Michael English and David Phelps
. Lowry has recorded twelve albums, both music and comedy.
, Texas
to Charles, an attorney, and Beverly Lowry. He often uses anecdotes of his young life in his comedy, as well as speaking of his experience with hyperactivity and Attention Deficit Disorder
in his performances. Lowry is the self-described “Poster Boy for Hyperactivity
), Lowry joined a college evangelistic team made of Charles Hughes and David Musselman and began singing. Lowry's comedy career inadvertently began from here. There would be an elongated pause in his singing performance while he waited for the soundtrack to be changed. Lowry began to fill this pause with a monologue
. Lowry soon realized that the audiences at his performances were laughing not at him but at his monologues.
In 1978, Lowry was badly injured in an car accident near Carlisle, PA
, while touring with a college evangelistic team. He sustained eleven broken bones, and spent a good deal of time in physical therapy recovering from the accident.
. These questions were used in between the scenes of the play. Over the next decade, Lowry tried to find the music that would complete the song. Twelve years after writing the lyrics, musician and songwriter Buddy Greene
wrote the music to the song. The Christmas play script became the song.
The song has become a popular Christmas song performed by more than thirty artists including, Clay Aiken
, Kenny Rogers
, Wynonna Judd
, Michael English
, Daniel Childs, Natalie Cole
, and Michael Crawford
among others.
as the baritone
. Lowry's career with the Gaither Vocal Band spanned thirteen years during his first stint with the group. During this time Lowry's on-stage antics became popular with audiences. As a result, Lowry became the co-host of the many concerts and shows performed by Gaither and the Vocal Band with Gaither playing the straight man
to Lowry's antics.
In June 2001, Lowry resigned from the Gaither Vocal Band after performing longer with the group than any previous member except Bill Gaither himself. After that, Lowry released several solo albums, including I Love to Tell the Story, A Hymns Collection
.
On January 14, 2009, it was announced that Lowry would be returning to the Gaither Vocal Band.
in 1994. Then, after that, he made Mark Lowry: Remotely Controlled in 1995. Mark Lowry On Broadway was performed and captured to DVD at the Beacon Theatre in NYC in 2000, and Mark Lowry Goes to Hollywood was performed and captured to DVD at the Cerritos Center in Cerritos, CA, in January 2005.
. Lowry is also co-hosting "Bill Gaither's Homecoming Radio" with Bill Gaither and Phil Brower.
Starting in March 2011, he has been a frequent co-host of the TV show "Red Letter Christians" with Tony Campolo
.
, Virginia
and a younger sister, Melissa "Missy" L. Carter also of Lynchburg. He refers to his siblings as "perfect" at different times ("my older brother Mike, who is perfect... Melissa came along and she was perfect, too...") He also has three nieces and three nephews.
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
comedian
Comedian
A comedian or comic is a person who seeks to entertain an audience, primarily by making them laugh. This might be through jokes or amusing situations, or acting a fool, as in slapstick, or employing prop comedy...
, songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
, and singer, best known for co-writing the song “Mary, Did You Know?
Mary, Did You Know?
"Mary, Did You Know?" is a Christmas song and Marian hymn with lyrics written by Mark Lowry and music written by Buddy Greene.-Background:Mark Lowry wrote the words in 1984 "when his pastor asked him to write the program for the living Christmas tree choir presentation. The music was written by...
”. Lowry performed with the Gaither Vocal Band
Gaither Vocal Band
The Gaither Vocal Band is a Grammy award-winning Christian music vocal group, headed by Bill Gaither. They originally recorded contemporary Christian music, but after the popularity of the Gaither Homecoming videos, the group has become known for southern gospel.-Group history:The Gaither Vocal...
from 1988–2001 and, in January 2009, he re-joined the group along with other "GVB" alumni Michael English and David Phelps
David Phelps
David Norris Phelps is an American Christian vocalist, songwriter and vocal arranger, who is best known for singing tenor in the Gaither Vocal Band. He has also released several solo albums, including four Christmas collections...
. Lowry has recorded twelve albums, both music and comedy.
Early life
Lowry was born in HoustonHouston, Texas
Houston is the fourth-largest city in the United States, and the largest city in the state of Texas. According to the 2010 U.S. Census, the city had a population of 2.1 million people within an area of . Houston is the seat of Harris County and the economic center of , which is the ...
, Texas
Texas
Texas is the second largest U.S. state by both area and population, and the largest state by area in the contiguous United States.The name, based on the Caddo word "Tejas" meaning "friends" or "allies", was applied by the Spanish to the Caddo themselves and to the region of their settlement in...
to Charles, an attorney, and Beverly Lowry. He often uses anecdotes of his young life in his comedy, as well as speaking of his experience with hyperactivity and Attention Deficit Disorder
Attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder
Attention deficit hyperactivity disorder is a developmental disorder. It is primarily characterized by "the co-existence of attentional problems and hyperactivity, with each behavior occurring infrequently alone" and symptoms starting before seven years of age.ADHD is the most commonly studied and...
in his performances. Lowry is the self-described “Poster Boy for Hyperactivity
Early career
While attending Liberty Baptist College (now known as Liberty UniversityLiberty University
Liberty University is a private Christian university located in Lynchburg, Virginia. Liberty's annual enrollment is around 72,000 students, 12,000 of whom are residential students and 60,000+ studying through Liberty University Online...
), Lowry joined a college evangelistic team made of Charles Hughes and David Musselman and began singing. Lowry's comedy career inadvertently began from here. There would be an elongated pause in his singing performance while he waited for the soundtrack to be changed. Lowry began to fill this pause with a monologue
Monologue
In theatre, a monologue is a speech presented by a single character, most often to express their thoughts aloud, though sometimes also to directly address another character or the audience. Monologues are common across the range of dramatic media...
. Lowry soon realized that the audiences at his performances were laughing not at him but at his monologues.
In 1978, Lowry was badly injured in an car accident near Carlisle, PA
Carlisle, Pennsylvania
Carlisle is a borough in and the county seat of Cumberland County, Pennsylvania, United States. The name is traditionally pronounced with emphasis on the second syllable. Carlisle is located within the Cumberland Valley, a highly productive agricultural region. As of the 2010 census, the borough...
, while touring with a college evangelistic team. He sustained eleven broken bones, and spent a good deal of time in physical therapy recovering from the accident.
Mary, Did You Know?
In 1984, Lowry wrote the lyrics to the song "Mary, Did You Know?. He was asked to write a script for a church Christmas play. Lowry wrote a series of questions that he would like to ask Mary, the mother of JesusMary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
. These questions were used in between the scenes of the play. Over the next decade, Lowry tried to find the music that would complete the song. Twelve years after writing the lyrics, musician and songwriter Buddy Greene
Buddy Greene
Buddy Greene is an American singer, songwriter, guitarist and harmonica player. Most of his recordings consist of gospel music, with a distinctly Southern flavor. Much of his music is influenced by country music and bluegrass music. Greene grew up in Macon, Georgia...
wrote the music to the song. The Christmas play script became the song.
The song has become a popular Christmas song performed by more than thirty artists including, Clay Aiken
Clay Aiken
Clayton Holmes "Clay" Aiken is an American singer, songwriter, actor, producer and author who began his rise to fame on the second season of the television program American Idol in 2003. RCA Records offered him a recording contract, and his multi-platinum debut album Measure of a Man was released...
, Kenny Rogers
Kenny Rogers
Kenneth Donald "Kenny" Rogers is an American singer-songwriter, photographer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur...
, Wynonna Judd
Wynonna Judd
Wynonna Ellen Judd is an American country music singer. Her solo albums and singles are all credited to the singular name Wynonna. Wynonna first rose to fame in the 1980s alongside her mother, Naomi, in the country music duo The Judds...
, Michael English
Michael English
Michael English is an American Christian singer. Initially, he was a member of his family's singing group, and is currently a member of The Gaither Vocal Band. During his solo career, he recorded eight studio albums. English's highest-charting solo single was "Your Love Amazes Me", which reached No...
, Daniel Childs, Natalie Cole
Natalie Cole
Natalie Maria Cole , is an American singer, songwriter and performer. The daughter of jazz legend Nat King Cole, Cole rode to musical success in the mid-1970s as an R&B artist with the hits "This Will Be ", "Inseparable" and "Our Love"...
, and Michael Crawford
Michael Crawford
Michael Crawford OBE is an English actor and singer. He has garnered great critical acclaim and won numerous awards during his career, which covers radio, television, film, and stagework on both London's West End and on Broadway in New York City...
among others.
The Gaither Vocal Band
In 1988, Lowry was approached by Bill Gaither and asked to join the Gaither Vocal BandGaither Vocal Band
The Gaither Vocal Band is a Grammy award-winning Christian music vocal group, headed by Bill Gaither. They originally recorded contemporary Christian music, but after the popularity of the Gaither Homecoming videos, the group has become known for southern gospel.-Group history:The Gaither Vocal...
as the baritone
Baritone
Baritone is a type of male singing voice that lies between the bass and tenor voices. It is the most common male voice. Originally from the Greek , meaning deep sounding, music for this voice is typically written in the range from the second F below middle C to the F above middle C Baritone (or...
. Lowry's career with the Gaither Vocal Band spanned thirteen years during his first stint with the group. During this time Lowry's on-stage antics became popular with audiences. As a result, Lowry became the co-host of the many concerts and shows performed by Gaither and the Vocal Band with Gaither playing the straight man
Double act
A double act, also known as a comedy duo, is a comic pairing in which humor is derived from the uneven relationship between two partners, usually of the same gender, age, ethnic origin and profession, but drastically different personalities or behavior...
to Lowry's antics.
In June 2001, Lowry resigned from the Gaither Vocal Band after performing longer with the group than any previous member except Bill Gaither himself. After that, Lowry released several solo albums, including I Love to Tell the Story, A Hymns Collection
I Love to Tell the Story, A Hymns Collection
I Love to Tell the Story, A Hymns Collection is a studio album released by Christian singer Mark Lowry. The album was released by EMI Christian Music Group on July 17, 2007...
.
On January 14, 2009, it was announced that Lowry would be returning to the Gaither Vocal Band.
Videos
Lowry's first video was Mark Lowry: My First Comedy Video made in 1988. Next, he made Mark Lowry: The Last Word in 1992 at the Tivoli Theatre in Chattanooga, TN. Next, he taped Mark Lowry: Mouth in Motion in 1993 at Carpenter's Home Church in Lakeland, Florida. The album won a Dove Award for Long Form Music Video of the Year at the 25th GMA Dove Awards25th GMA Dove Awards
The 25th Annual GMA Dove Awards were held on April 28, 1994 recognizing accomplishments of musicians for the year 1993. The show was held at the Grand Ole Opry House in Nashville, Tennessee, and was hosted by Amy Grant.-Award recipients:*Artist of the Year...
in 1994. Then, after that, he made Mark Lowry: Remotely Controlled in 1995. Mark Lowry On Broadway was performed and captured to DVD at the Beacon Theatre in NYC in 2000, and Mark Lowry Goes to Hollywood was performed and captured to DVD at the Cerritos Center in Cerritos, CA, in January 2005.
Current projects
Lowry continues to tour the United States performing his music and comedy concerts as well as recording music and comedy CD albums and videos. In addition, Lowry records and publishes several iPod podcasts; in particular, Saturdays with Mark and Tony, a weekly podcast with Tony CampoloTony Campolo
Dr. Anthony "Tony" Campolo is an American pastor, author, sociologist, and public speaker known for challenging evangelical Christians by illustrating how their faith can offer solutions in a world of complexity. With his liberal political and social attitudes, he has been a major proponent for...
. Lowry is also co-hosting "Bill Gaither's Homecoming Radio" with Bill Gaither and Phil Brower.
Starting in March 2011, he has been a frequent co-host of the TV show "Red Letter Christians" with Tony Campolo
Tony Campolo
Dr. Anthony "Tony" Campolo is an American pastor, author, sociologist, and public speaker known for challenging evangelical Christians by illustrating how their faith can offer solutions in a world of complexity. With his liberal political and social attitudes, he has been a major proponent for...
.
Family
Lowry is single and has no children. He has two siblings - an older brother Mike of LynchburgLynchburg, Virginia
Lynchburg is an independent city in the Commonwealth of Virginia. The population was 75,568 as of 2010. Located in the foothills of the Blue Ridge Mountains along the banks of the James River, Lynchburg is known as the "City of Seven Hills" or "The Hill City." Lynchburg was the only major city in...
, Virginia
Virginia
The Commonwealth of Virginia , is a U.S. state on the Atlantic Coast of the Southern United States. Virginia is nicknamed the "Old Dominion" and sometimes the "Mother of Presidents" after the eight U.S. presidents born there...
and a younger sister, Melissa "Missy" L. Carter also of Lynchburg. He refers to his siblings as "perfect" at different times ("my older brother Mike, who is perfect... Melissa came along and she was perfect, too...") He also has three nieces and three nephews.
External links
- The "ReMARKable" Site - MarkLowry.com, Lowry's official website
- Gaither.com - home of Gaither records and the Gaither Vocal Band