#289 WHISTLIN' IN THE DARK by Bryan Duncan (1987)

WHISTLIN' IN THE DARK by Bryan Duncan (1987)
Modern Art Records 7-01-460060-5

Producer: Larry Brown

File Under: Blue-Eyed Soul/CCM

Time Capsule-Worthy Track:

Help Is On The Way

I don't think Bryan Duncan would be offended if I referred to him as "the little man with the BIG voice." He's somewhat small in stature. And he certainly does have a big voice. One of the biggest in all of music.  

In his Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music, author Mark Allan Powell calls Duncan a "Christian music superstar" and says that Duncan's post-Sweet Comfort Band albums are "masterpieces in their own right." Powell writes that Duncan's solo albums "have, in fact, set the standard for blue-eyed soul music." 

Sweet Comfort Band
L-R: Rick Thompson, Kevin Thompson, Bryan Duncan, Randy Thomas

Born in 1953 in Ogden, Utah, Duncan was an Assembly of God preacher's kid (you can read all about Bryan's backstory on our 70s blog). The family eventually settled in North Carolina. Duncan tried to fulfill his family's expectations by heading off to Bible College inFlorida, but he was a square peg trying to fit into a round hole and eventually dropped out. News of the Jesus Movement made its way across the country and soon drew Duncan like a moth to a flame. There, he met the Thompson brothers (Kevin and Rick) and, later, a guitarist named Randy Thomas. The quartet became known as the Sweet Comfort Band and brought a new benchmark of quality musicianship to the fledgling CCM genre. SCB's

catalog of six albums (not counting greatest hits compilations) is among the very best that rock and roll has to offer. They began with a strong jazz influence and an exuberance befitting young believers in Jesus...evolved to more of an arena rock sound and lyrics that explored deeper issues, included painful aspects of life...and ended their career with a harder-edged sound thanks to the production of the Elefante brothers.   

It's been said that the members of Sweet Comfort Band grew frustrated by their failure to achieve a level of acceptance and success commensurate with the group's talent and ability. So SCB came to an end and gave birth to two new musical incarnations: Randy Thomas formed a band called Allies with his friend Bob Carlisle, and Bryan Duncan embarked on a solo career.

Whistlin' in the Dark was the third release in Duncan's solo catalog. I had a chance recently to talk to Bryan about the album. 

"Whistlin' in the Dark went gangbusters," he said. "My first debut of the record was at Knotts Berry Farm Theatre, and everyone already knew all the lyrics."

"It also marked my tendency for flamboyant outfits on stage," Duncan remembered. "I came out in a white jacket with zebra stripes, shoes and sunglasses that matched, and leather pants!"

He smiled and added, "Let's just say that was a big change from the usual Christian presentations."

I asked him about the producer, Larry Brown -- a name not usually associated with CCM records. "Larry was the first non-believer I ever worked with," Duncan answered. "He was a real soft-spoken guy; more engineer than producer, I think. But he had worked with a favorite band of mine: Tower of Power. Plus he had everything 'in house' in the way of recording, and I was budget limited!" 

The title track was trademark Bryan Duncan from a musical and vocal standpoint, with an upbeat, danceable groove...but the lyrics took on a somewhat darker tone. "I wrote Whistlin' in the Dark in my truck," Duncan revealed, "just driving around thinking about all the answers I didn't have in response to faith questions. Acknowledging doubt was a change of direction in my Christian career," he admitted. The song was relentlessly open and honest, and found Duncan in a mood to no longer pretend that he was an expert on spiritual matters...

I spent my time between the answers
And I swear there's nothin leaves you more alone
Tracing your faith through fact and fiction
Whatever it takes to draw that line

You know that I hate to wait

I'm someone that feels
That I can't fake the answers
And I don't make believe
I just keep praying
God don't fail me now!
I hardly know the questions
But I'll stand rest assured
That You won't leave me
Whistlin' in the...

I'm just a man, nobody's hero
And left alone I stand on feet of clay
Counting the cracks found in this armor
So all of my strength must come from you
To carry me through the night

I can't fake the answers
I don't make believe I'm whistlin' in the dark
But I stand rest assured that you won't leave me
Whistlin' in the dark

"I can't fake the answers." That's about as brutally honest as any CCM artist was prepared to be in 1987.

The bouncy Paradise brightened the mood a great deal, and is a favorite from this record. It's almost as if this song is an R&B update on all those songs about Heaven that Bryan grew up singing in his daddy's church. In it, he playfully describes Heaven as "my favorite choice for a relocation." Duncan's old SCB mate Randy Thomas played guitar on this track, and if you listen, you can pick out the voice of Bob Carlisle on backing vocals.

All My Life was a pop ballad that served as a good vehicle for Duncan's powerful voice.

"The best lyric on the record for me was Break Out Of Chains," Duncan told me. One reviewer called that song "an R&B celebration of how the truth will set you free."

Above me gather legions who've stood the test of time
A cloud they are who witness a master's grand design
I find myself surrounded, a threat on every side
I've just begun to suffer where greater men have died
To stand and face the challenge, to quench the fiery dart
Won't find your strength in numbers
In a struggle for the heart
The prisoner of your mind

The lure of secret vices, integrity let slide
Discreet, misplaced affection, a self-indulgent pride
Addictive taste of power, the smell of sweet success
Whatever makes you stumble will be your only test
To stand and face the challenge, to quench the fiery dart
Won't find your strength in numbers
In a struggle for the heart
The prisoner of your mind

Break out of chains
Find the lock and turn the key
Break out of chains
Know the truth will set you free
Break out of chains
One more time, now do it right
Break out of chains
If I have to fight all night
Break out of chains

Break Out Of Chains is especially poignant in light of Bryan's own battles with addiction, a subject about which he has been very open in recent years (more about that in a moment). By the way, John Mitchell turned in a nice sax solo on this track.

When I Think of Home was a memorable ballad from this record. With a different production approach, this song would've fit on an SCB album.

When I told him that Every Heart Has An Open Door was probably my favorite song on the album, Bryan Duncan laughed and admitted, "Every Heart was completely written on the fly! The title was taken out of my journaling and the hook was added last minute. I needed something and I just made it fit!" He also acknowledged that most of the songs on Whistlin' In The Dark "were completely built from loop patterns."

At least one reviewer thought that You Can Rely On Me compared favorably to the Eagles' Heartache Tonight, only with much more hopeful lyrics. The horn section (John Mitchell, Glen Myerscough, Don Markese, Larry Hall, Stu Blumberg) shines on this track.

Another standout track is a funky gem called Help Is On The Way. The memorable bridge recalls Christian Skate Night at the local roller rink.   

Dot dot dot, are-you-O-K? Are-you-O-K?
Oh no! Oh no! S-O-S! Help is one the way!

After almost a full side of Duncan-esque funkiness, it was time to close out the album with another ballad. You're Never Alone, cowritten with Chuck Barth and producer Larry Brown, is a source of encouragement that Jesus is always with us.  

I asked Bryan Duncan if, looking back, he is pleased wit the album Whistlin' in the Dark. "I don't know," he answered,"but it was the best I could do at the time!" He says that WITD marked the beginning of a period of co-authoring more songs with other writers, as opposed to going it alone.

In fact, Chuck Barth co-wrote more than half of the songs on WITD; Brown co-wrote 2; while Don Cason and Gary Whitlock helped out on All My Life.

After Whistlin' In The Dark, Bryan Duncan continued to tour and record...and tour and record...and tour...and record...to the point of burn-out. He eventually became a "star," landing 10 #1 songs on Christian radio in the 1990s. So he found the music industry success that had eluded the Sweet Comfort Band...and yet it was not fulfilling. Even though he ended up selling well over a million albums during a career that has spanned more than 30 years, the pressures of performing 200 dates a year, constantly being away from home, and always having to promote himself wreaked a lot of havoc for Bryan. A marriage dissolved along the way, and he has been quite open about his bouts with addiction and depression. He explains that people (even Christians) engage in self-medication when they rely on something other than God to bring comfort. And when that something becomes unmanageable, it's an addiction. For some it's drugs or alcohol; for others it's food or work or acclaim; still others become addicted to sex or unhealthy relationships. Whatever the coping mechanism, it can be a destructive force. Duncan understands all of that from personal experience. He's now able to reach out to others who have similar issues and point them toward hope and healing. 

Bryan Duncan still writes and records, sings and tours. He'll come to your church, maybe even do a house concert or private event. To learn more about scheduling an event or obtaining Bryan's newest music, visit www.bryanduncan.com. The Sweet Comfort Band even released a reunion album a few years back and they reunite to do select dates now and then. 

On songs like Whistlin' in the Dark and Break Out of Chains, we began to get clues that Duncan was aware of his own shortcomings, his own limitations. Growing up in a pastor's home, he says he was given answers at a very early age to questions no one was even asking. So, during his years with SCB and his solo career, he felt pressure to be an expert on all things spiritual, but he knew that he wasn't.

In a 2009 interview with The Christian Examiner, Duncan said, "I think of all the years I expounded Scripture through music and talked about God's marvelous grace and those kinds of things. I never had much experience on it. I just borrowed what I said and I just cut and pasted what needed to be there to be acceptable in Christian circles."

Over time, that changed. Bryan became very open and honest in his music concerning the fact that he doesn't have all the answers. And he's no longer chasing "success." 

"I don't have to be acceptable in Christian circles any more," he told The Christian Examiner. "Not sure I ever will be. I can only give to God what I have and what I am. It's up to Him to do something from there. The world is clearly not revolving around me."

I hardly know the questions
But I'll stand rest assured
That You won't leave me
Whistlin' in the...

#290 FIRST HAND by Steven Curtis Chapman (1987)

FIRST HAND by Steven Curtis Chapman (1987)
Sparrow Records SPR-1139

Producer: Phil Naish

File Under: CCM

Time Capsule-Worthy Track:

My Redeemer is Faithful and True

I'll confess that I've never quite understood Steven Curtis Chapman's immense popularity. And immense is an understatement, by the way. He's the most popular and most heavily decorated male artist in CCM history. But why?

Chapman has always been sort of an "everyman." In his early career, he was the boy-next-door type that a father would trust with his daughter. He was the kind of non-threatening troubadour that teens tolerated and moms loved. He doesn't possess an amazing voice and is not known as an exceptional guitarist. His live shows draw hordes of fans, but he's really not a very exciting performer. His between-song banter can be earnest and folksy in a concert setting, but he's unlikely to say anything that you'll still remember by the time you get to the car. He's written some memorable songs, but many more that are quite pedestrian. Many of the uptempo songs Chapman has written are too wordy and have begun to sound quite a bit alike over the years, but his army of devotees aren't bothered by that at all. Eleven million albums sold...eight gold or platinum albums to his credit...five GRAMMY Awards®...an American Music Award...48 No. 1 singles...and 58 Gospel Music Association Dove Awards. Let me repeat that: FORTY-EIGHT #1 hit songs and FIFTY-EIGHT Dove Awards. That's ridiculous, y'all. And all of that just since 1987. He's got to be doing something right. Maybe his musical abilities examined separately, are not that exciting...but the sum of his musical parts add up to something unique and amazing. Like I said, his appeal has always mystified me a bit. But the appeal is undeniable. And it is massive. Eleven MILLION albums sold? That's a staggering number for a guy who doesn't play like Phil Keaggy, doesn't sing like Matthew Ward, and doesn't write like Bob Bennett.

   

Judy and Herb Chapman had a baby boy in November of 1962 and named him Steven Curtis. Herb was a music teacher in Paducah, Kentucky, so Steven and his brother Herb Jr. fell in love with singing and playing guitar and piano at an early age. A college dropout, Steven took off for Nashville to make it in the music business. Like many other young hopefuls in Music City, he scored a gig at an amusement park known as Opryland, and wrote original songs in his spare time. His first big break came when a legendary CCM group known as The Imperials agreed to cut one of his songs (Built to Last). That led to a songwriting contract with Sparrow Records which resulted in artists as diverse as Sandi Patty, Glenn Campbell, the Cathedral Quartet and Roger Whitaker recording his songs.

Several different labels expressed interest in signing SCC to a recording deal in his own right; he decided to go with the late, great Billy Ray Hearn and Sparrow Records in 1987. The result was First Hand, a record produced by Phil Naish. Musically, Chapman's debut was a mixture of soft rock, pop and adult contemporary ballads. The album boasted a strong supporting cast with Jon Goin on electric guitar, Mike Brignardello on bass, Mark Hammond on drums, and Naish on keyboards. Chapman sang, of course, and contributed electric and acoustic guitars. Background vocals were handled by an all-star cast of Chris Rodriguez, Wayne Kirkpatrick and...wait for it...Herb Chapman.

Carl Gorodetzsky and the Nashville String Machine were employed on First Hand, with string orchestrations by Alan Moore. Greg Nelson was the album's executive producer, and Jeff Balding engineered, assisted by Bill Whittington. Mark Tucker took the pictures while Buddy Jackson and Barbara Catanzaro-Hearn designed the album cover. Beth Middleworth drew up the title illustration, and Jane Golden supplied the cover image of the Santa Monica mural. 

Lyrically, this record has a focus on discipleship, which would serve as SCC's main theme for the majority of his albums. Overall, it's a call for listeners to get engaged in the Christian life.

Understandably, SCC was just finding his footing on this, his debut outing. While there are catchy tunes and clever hooks on First Hand, some have said that it took about 3 albums before Chapman began to find his own voice and style. First Hand is more of a one-size-fits-all, light rock, Nashville Machine type album. The record has received a fair amount of criticism for being too derivative. It's been said that he "borrows" too heavily on this album from folks like Huey Lewis, Kenny Loggins, and Richard Marx. The good news is that if you like those artists (and millions do), you'll find plenty to like about First Hand.

The album starts with four strong songs. The title track hearkens back to 50s pop and strikes some listeners as a Footloose clone. One reviewer noted that "It's not hard to sing 'Cut footloose!' several times during First Hand." Another reviewer wrote, "It would probably be lawsuit material if it had been popular enough to gain Kenny Loggins' notice." Ouch. I don't know...I think those criticisms are overblown. There are a limited number of notes and time signatures, and people are always going to hear things that, to them, sound similar to something else they've heard. Do I think SCC sat down and intentionally came up with a plan to rip off Huey Lewis or Kenny Loggins? No. Is his performance on this record reminiscent of those artists? Sometimes. And there's nothing wrong with that.

First Hand may be as dated as SCC's late-80s mullet...but it's an upbeat, feel-good song, and a pleasant way to start the album.

Co-written with James Isaac Elliott, Weak Days was centered around a clever play on words. It was a breakout hit, reaching #2 on the CCM airplay charts. 

An early Chapman family portrait

Another rainy Monday,
Looks like I'm gonna be late again
Why does the race I'm runnin' never seem to have an end
A day away from Sunday
Feels like I'm already losing ground
Funny sometimes how quickly my emotions get turned around
They're letting me down

I gotta keep my eyes on Jesus
Through the weak days
In a world where we really don't belong
I've discovered if I keep my eyes on Jesus
Through the weak days
Then even on the weak days, He'll make me strong

Weak Days is one song that most folks remember from this album; Hiding Place is the other.

A much-loved ballad, Hiding Place has stood the test of time. Providing solace and comfort, it describes God as a loving Defender and Protector, striking a positive chord in the hearts of believers the world over. 

In the distance, I can see the storm clouds coming my way
And I need to find a shelter before it starts to rain
So I turn and run to you, Lord
You're the only place to go
Where unfailing love surrounds me
When I need it most

You're my hiding place
Safe in Your embrace
I'm protected from the storm that rages
When the waters rise
And I run to hide
Lord in You I'll find my hiding place

I'm not asking You to take away my troubles, Lord,
Cause it's through the stormy weather I'll learn to trust You more
But I thank You for the promise
And I have come to know
Your unfailing love surrounds me
When I need it most

Co-written by Chapman and Jerry Salley, Hiding Place is a song that Chapman wouldn't be allowed to stop playing in his live concerts, even if he wanted to. 

Run Away told us, in no uncertain terms, how to escape temptation: 

Don't even look the direction of a thought you should not entertain

It was a catchy, midtempo tune that became one of the album's most popular tracks. Run Away would reach #8 on Christian radio airplay charts.

At the end of the album, Chapman recorded a song that is as profound as any he's recorded during the intervening years. If it's not already there, My Redeemer Is Faithful and True belongs in hymnals. It should be sung by bodies of believers, in unison, on Sunday mornings, in houses of worship from coast to coast. Co-written by Chapman and James Isaac Elliott, it's a beautiful description of the character and attributes of God. Steven Curtis Chapman has said that if he could sing only one song for the rest of his life...My Redeemer Is Faithful and True would be the one. "It's just been a song that, through all of our journey, through losing our daughter, and even before that, sums up everything that I hope my music has communicated over the years," Chapman said. One reviewer called My Redeemer "simply beautiful" and "easily the best cut on the album."

As I look back on the road I've traveled
I see so many times He carried me through
And if there's one thing that I've learned in my life

My Redeemer is faithful and true

My Redeemer is faithful and true
Everything He has said He will do
And every morning His mercies are new
My Redeemer is faithful and true

My heart rejoices when I read the promise
'There is a place I am preparing for you'
I know someday I'll see my Lord face to face
'Cause my Redeemer is faithful and true

Chapman recently re-recorded Hiding Place and My Redeemer Is Faithful and True on a project called Deep Roots, a country and bluegrass-tinged collection of hymns that also includes new versions of some of SCC's most-loved ballads from his early catalog. Produced and recorded in conjunction with Cracker Barrel restaurant in 2013, Deep Roots features performances from Chapman's Dad, his brother, his eldest son, and a daughter-in-law. Ricky Skaggs also makes a guest appearance.

Just a few short years after the release of First Hand, Steven Curtis Chapman would be crowned King of CCM. He would go on to write a love song for the ages (I Will Be Here) and sell a gajillion albums. He probably built a new wing onto his home in order to house all of the awards that came his way. 

On a very tragic note, Steven and his family were visited by unspeakable grief when an adopted daughter lost her life in an accident. The Chapmans were already vocal supporters of adoption, and continue to do wonderful work through a nonprofit organization known as Show Hope. 

Many hairstyles later, Chapman's still doing his thing. I attended a show he did alongside Amy Grant about one year ago, in the winter of 2016. He didn't amaze me with vocal gymnastics that night...he did not dazzle the crowd with his guitar skills...he didn't say anything between songs that I can still remember...but he did sing Hiding Place and My Redeemer Is Faithful and True. And that right there was worth the price of admission. 

#291 LET THE MUSIC START by Chris Christian (1984)

LET THE MUSIC START by Chris Christian (1984)
Myrrh Records - SPCN 7-01-679906-9

Producer: Chris Christian

File Under: Worship/CCM

Time Capsule-Worthy Track:

Clap Your Hands

Chris Christian always seemed to be in the right place at the right time.

He was born Lon Christian Smith in 1951 in Abilene, Texas. After attending Abilene Christian College, he headed for Nashville with $100 in his pocket. He started performing at the Opryland amusement park, met a few notables in the music industry, and ended up writing a song that would be recorded by none other than Elvis Presley. Stories like that were possible back in those days. From there, he became part of the group Cotton, Lloyd and Christian, then an artist in his own right, as well as a sought-after producer. He not only discovered Amy Grant, he also practically invented the soft-rock CCM sound that became so pervasive in the late 70s and beyond. In the Seventies, Christian was instrumental in either launching or helping to sustain the careers of many artists, including B.J. Thomas, The Imperials, Dogwood, Fireworks, Dan Peek, and many others. His songs were recorded by many secular performers as well. 

Fast-forward to the Eighties. Christian was still very busy writing songs and producing albums for the likes of Mark Heard, White Heart, Steve Archer, Olivia Newton-John, Hall and Oates, Natalie Cole, The Pointer Sisters, The Carpenters, Dionne Warwick, Donnie Osmond, and many more. His musical instincts were always right in line with what was popular on Top 40 radio in any given year. But in '84 there was a new sound brewing...a fresh wind of the Spirit blowing. 

First, let's back up just a bit.

Before the 1970s, our idea of "praise and worship" consisted almost exclusively of congregants singing in churches from hymnals. Slowly, that began to change. First, Maranatha! Music released a string of "praise" albums in the 70s and early 80s. Then Keith Green's Songs For The Shepherd and Phil Driscoll's Sound the Trumpet were widely regarded as "praise" albums in 1982. 

By 1984, the trickle of praise became a flowing river of worship.

Dricoll's I Exalt Thee and Kelly Willard's Psalms, Hymns and Spiritual Songs moved decidedly toward reverence and awe. But a "recovering" CCM artist by the name of Terry Clark can truly be credited (although he would want no credit) with devising a new way for the body of Christ to worship God. His Living Worship and Let's Worship albums, in '84 and '86 respectively, allowed us to first eavesdrop on, and then participate in a musical conversation with Jesus...which led to authentic spiritual intimacy and transparency before the Lord. These were deeper waters.  

And then, there was Let The Music Start, also recorded in 1984 by Chris Christian, a member of the "CCM establishment" if there ever was one. He was certainly not known as a worship artist, but in '84 Chris Christian joined Clark, Willard and Driscoll in predicting a trend, not following one. After all, these "worship" albums were released long before "worship" became a genre...long before worship music dominated the airwaves of Christian radio stations...and well before a modern worship revival swept through America and the U.K.

"It was quite a unique kind of album at the time of release," agreed songwriter Dwight Liles, who penned several songs on the record. "The thing that made Let The Music Start even more unique was that the production values were almost totally synth-pop. There was simply no worship music being done in that up-to-the-minute, radio-friendly style at the time other than Michael W. Smith's hit, Great Is The Lord and some of Twila Paris' early worship songs." 

Indeed, Chris Christian brought the same soothing, radio-friendly production values to this "vintage" praise album that he did to all of his other records. Keyboards were dominating most soft rock and pop music of that era; they were capably handled here by Keith Thomas, Mark Gersmehl and Christian himself. Gary Lunn and Jimmie Lee Sloas (later of The Imperials) supplied the bottom end along with drummers David Huff and Dennis Holt. David's brother Dann played guitar, as did Jon Goin. The talented Jack Joseph Puig engineered the album with help from Jeff Balding.

The record kicks off with Clap Your Hands. If you were a Christian in your teens or twenties in 1984, you probably saw the memorable video for this track on TBN's Real Videos. From a video production standpoint, it's Eighties all the way, complete with shots of Chris Christian "playing" a keyboard scarf on the beach and inserting a cassette of his own album in his car's tape player. If you were a stickler for realism, you were probably bothered by the fact that Christian was playing a Kawai acoustic grand piano over what should have obviously been a synthesizer during the "recording studio" scene. But hey...creative license, right?

Musically, Clap Your Hands would've felt right at home on a Sandi Patty or Larnelle Harris album. It's also somewhat reminiscent of the aforementioned Great Is The Lord by Michael W. Smith. Lyrically, it set the tone for what was to follow.

Some "wonderfully 80s" keyboard parts get us into Lift Up His Name, a song that prescribes praise as the key to discovering true love, lasting peace and joy.

Blessed Be the Lord sounds like something early White Heart might've recorded, with lyrics that seem to be taken mostly from Scripture. 

Every Good and Perfect Gift is a smooth, pop-oriented repackaging of James 1:17. It's one of the record's more memorable tracks, with a hook that stays with you. 

We Are An Offering, an inspirational ballad written by Dwight Liles, closes out Side One and definitely moves away from praise and toward worship. It has a hymn-like quality and expresses total devotion to the Lord.

"I wrote We Are An Offering and Clap Your Hands on the same day, May 12, 1983," songwriter Dwight Liles revealed. "I had gone over to my parents' house that morning specifically to do some songwriting on my mother's upright piano. I had just finished writing Clap Your Hands and was still feeling creative when I looked through my title list, and decided to work on one of the titles there, We Are An Offering." 

Liles continued: "Once I started playing some chords, the words and melody just seemed to 'fall from heaven,' and I literally came up with the entire song in the time it takes to sing it. I stopped and scribbled down the words as they came to me. It is probably the one song I ever wrote that I can say came to me entirely without effort on my part. It was as if I were taking dictation." 

Songwriter Dwight Liles

Sing With Joy is a celebration of praise, with lyrics that sound very much like they could've been penned by King David himself. It's another song that was written by Dwight Liles. 

"Sing With Joy was co-written with Niles Borop," Liles said. "We didn't write it specifically for this project. Chris Christian was my publisher at the time, and he received worktapes and lyrics of all of my songs, so he selected them because he considered them appropriate for what he was doing. The phrase 'let the music start' is from the first verse of Sing With Joy, so you could say that Sing With Joy is the 'title track' of the album in the sense that the lyric of that song provided Chris with the idea for the album's title." 

Musically, Sing With Joy has a 'Smitty" vibe (as in Michael W.). 

With the Name of Jesus is a bit of a departure -- the only track on the album that isn't technically a praise or worship song. It's a bouncy pop track that serves as an exhortation to fellow believers regarding the power that is found in the name above all names. Like many of the record's other tracks, this song borrows much from the words of Scripture. And that's a good thing.

On Oh Magnify The Lord, Christian takes a praise chorus that was popular in charismatic church circles at that time and transforms it into an 80s pop tune. Like almost every track on Let the Music Start, this one is drenched in synthesizers. No complaints here. 

Early White Heart lineup. Yeah, that's Steve Green, 2nd from the left...

Make A Joyful Noise continues much in the same vein, musically and lyrically, as the rest of the album. This one is definitely reminiscent of early White Heart...probably because the group actually performs with Chris on this track.

In the Scriptures, the word selah occurred frequently at the end of a verse in Psalms and Habakkuk, probably as a musical direction (or so scholars say). A short instrumental by that same name wraps up Let the Music Start. It's about 90 seconds long, and there's an interesting story that goes with it.

"While Chris was recording the project," recalled Dwight Liles, "he let me hear another song of mine and Niles Borop's that he had recorded for the album called Immortal Invisible (not to be confused with the classic hymn of the same title). The track had a very, very long fade. I didn't like what he had done with the song. We'd written it as a mid-tempo hymn, and he'd recorded it as an uptempo synth-pop piece. Of course, I didn't complain to Chris about that. But as it turned out, Chris chose not to include the song on the album. Instead, he clipped off the long fade-out, and that section became Selah. Since he used no lyrical or melodic material from Immortal Invisible, Niles and I were not credited as writers of what became Selah." 

So there you have it...an early entry in the worship catalog from an unlikely artist. One reviewer described this album as "the perfect companion when you are seeking to reflect and meditate on simple Biblical truths and promises."

Chris Christian had a bit of a complicated reputation among Christian artists. He was seen by some as difficult, too self-serving and a little too focused on material gain (let's just say it that way). He and Larry Norman had a similar reputation where business dealings were concerned. But there's no denying his talent and we cannot overlook the oversized role he played in developing and packaging what came to be known as "contemporary Christian music." 

Christian's involvement in the music industry led to four Grammy Award wins and nine nominations as a producer, artist and publisher. He was also nominated for seven GMA Dove Awards, winning five. He's been inducted into the West Texas Music Hall of Fame, as well as the Christian Music Hall of Fame in 2007.

Several years into the future, Christian shifted gears and switched from music to media companies and sports; he is an owner of a WNBA team in Texas. 

So it has been quite a ride, a very full and diverse career for the guy with the funny name from Abilene. But he had his finger on the pulse of what God was saying to His church in 1984. And there's a record to prove it.

From the album's liner notes: 

"It is my desire that the melodies and words of these songs will find their way to the worship times of bodies of believers around the world; and that the praises, and ideas that they offer, live far beyond this record. Sing along with joy." 

-Chris Christian