Wishing everyone a blessed and prosperous new year!

 (This song gets tagged as one of the worst of all time by some people.  I happen to love it.)

My Top Ten Favorite Christmas Albums

This post is not to tell you about the newest Christmas CD's available this year, but rather to tell you what my all time favorites are that I keep coming back to year after year.   Most of them are special to me because they have songs by some of my favorite artists that aren't available elsewhere. In no particular order, we have:

Noel

Produced and arranged by Steve Hindalong and Derri Daugherty, (The Choir,)  this is more or less the third disc in their "At The Foot Of the Cross" worship series, or so I've always viewed it.  Steve and Derri's original tune "Babe In The Straw" is a highlight, but my favorite is Michael Pritzl and Jenny Gullen's rendition of "Silent Night."

The Broken Christmas

When a CD contains otherwise unavailable tracks by the likes of Undercover, Riki Michele,Adam Again and 4-4-1, you know it's a must have for me.  I bought this one as a new release, along with Sparrow Record's "Christmas," back in 1988, and I don't think a Christmas season has gone by that I haven't played them.  Too many highlights to hit here, but "Born In A Stable" by Level Heads is not only the best song on the disc, it's one of the greatest songs ever written.  Period.

Bruce Cockburn-Christmas

As much as I would disagree with Mr. Cockburn politically and theologically, I have loved his music for years, and when I heard he was releasing a Christmas CD, I couldn't pass that up.  Includes a lot of standards and a lot of obscure seasonal tunes, all performed in Cockburn's usual flawless style.  Bonus points for taking on "I Saw Three Ships," a song not many artists are willing to record.  "Three Ships" has been my favorite Carol for many years, and I can't explain why.  I've never been able to figure out what it's about.  But I've never heard a better performance than this one.

Sparrow Christmas

Whiteheart's "Little Drummer boy."  Enough said.

Okay, the rest of the disc is great, too!  It just wouldn't seem like Christmas without Steve Camp's "O' Holy Night, Michael Card's "What Child is This," and Steve Taylor's wonderfully twisted Mariachi style "Winter Wonderland."  Classic!

Jon Anderson-Three Ships

No, not John Anderson of "Swingin'" fame, but Jon Anderson, lead singer for Prog Rock giants, Yes.  Progressive Rock this isn't, and I have to admit the production is stuck smack in the 80's, but I love this album.  "Where Were You," and "Day Of Days" are beautiful, and his rendition of "O' Holy Night," featuring Sandra Crouch is amazing.  And of course, he recorded my favorite Carol.

First call-An Evening In December

Absolutely beautiful and relaxing Acapella, this is the album that actually introduced First Call, being released a year or so before their "debut" album, "Undivided."

Our Christmas

Sort of a follow up to the popular "Our Hymns" disc, this featured exclusive songs by Michael W. Smith, Mylon Lefevre, Bryan Duncan, Russ Taff and many other then popular artists.  David Meece's first recording of his perennial "One Small Child" steals the show for me.

The Gift-A Colours Christmas

Beautiful instrumental versions of popular Carols,  three tunes by the late great Tom Howard make this one a necessity for me.

Mannheim Steamroller-Christmas

No offense to anyone, but the Steamroller are in a rut.  I'll always love this one, though.

Christmas With George Beverly Shea

Yes, I'm serious.  Bev's voice has a relaxing, worshipful tone that I need sometimes.  Probably also nostalgia from all the Billy Graham Crusades I watched on TV as a kid.  Whatever the reason, I love this album.

Probably won't post anymore until after Christmas, so:

May the love of Christ dwell in your hearts, now and always.

Sam

Captured In Time And Space

In 1986 Petra released this excellent live album recorded on the" Beat The System" tour.  Originally released as a double lp set or a double length cassette, it was edited quite a bit for a single cd release in the early 90's.  The cassette version is the best, most complete version if you can find one. I recorded my cassette to two cd-r's, and that's what I listen to.

The concert was also released on vhs, and much later was finally released on dvd, which is sold on Petra's web site, petraproductions.com.

The complete video is also on youtube.  Not the best quality, but watchable, if you can ignore the sub titles. ;-)

Band Website:  http://www.petraproductionsinc.com/store/

Weird, Strange, Odd, Unique...Part 4

Lust Control

A "joke" band with a serious message, Lust Control was the creation of HM Magazine editor Doug Van Pelt.  Musically very raw, intense punk rock, akin to bands like the Ramones, Dead Milkmen or Nobody Special, but with far less production values.  Members, which at one time included guys on loan from One Bad Pig, wore ski masks to hide their identities, ostensibly due to their music's controversial content, but most likely it was just a gimmick.  That's not a stab at the band, I thought the mask thing was pretty cool!

Christian Rock bashers loved to hate on this band.  A "fundamentalist, KJV Only" type website gave my favorite review of one of their albums; "The album is titled "We Are Not Ashamed."  They should be.  With a name like Lust Control, you just know these guys are spiritual giants."  Well, I believe they are, at least more so than the individual with the wooden contact lenses who wrote that review.

The subject matter of the songs, which was radically biblical, delt with everything from sexual abstinence to marriage to child abuse to abortion to holiness to the second coming of Christ.  They were called the "Josh McDowell of the Christian Rock world" by CCM Magazine (October, 1991.)  They were also named "Worst Band of the Decade (1990's) by HM Magazine. (Interesting, since the editor of HM is also the bandleader.)  :-)

The band hasn't released any new material since 1994's "Feminazi" ep, but have recently reissued an expanded version of "We Are Not Ashamed," including some tracks from the "Fun, Fun Feeling" cd, plus some commentary segments. 

  

  

Band website:  http://home.earthlink.net/~vanpeltfamily/

Weird, Strange, Odd, Unique...Part 3

One Bad Pig

When a Christian bands live show is described as "kind of like a carnival/revival run amok," (CCM Magazine, October, 1990,) you know you're in for a good time!  Their live show was known to include plastic swimming pools filled with water, water guns and lots of silly string. Punk/Thrash band One Bad Pig grew from lead "screamer" Carey "Kosher" Womack's street ministry.  They released their first album, the home made recording "A Christian Banned," in 1986.  They were signed to Pure metal and released "Smash" in 1989.  In 1990, they were signed to Myrrh Records, where they stayed for the rest of their career, releasing three more albums in the early 90's.

Despite the silly image, OBP was a top notch metal band, with a focus on ministry.  Carey Womack was an ordained Baptist minister, and original bassist Brian "Streak" Wheeler was an Assembly of God evangelist.  Womack summed the band up with one statement in an interview in CCM Magazine:  "God has seen fit to use a very foolish thing to proclaim His message." (CCM Magazine, October 1990.)

Although they haven't released any new studio material since the early 90's, they have never officially broken up, and still play reunion shows occasionally.

I first discovered the Pig on Star Song's old Metal compilation cd "Ultimate Metal" back in 1989.  The song "Let's Be Frank" from the "Smash" cd was included, and it sounded like nothing else I'd heard in Christian music at that time.  I've been a fan ever since, and "Let's Be Frank" remains one of my favorite Metal songs of all time. Sung from the perspective of an atheist who "won't believe till they slam hell's gates,"  my favorite line is:"I can't believe that Jesus ever came to save!  I even tried to find Him, He wasn't in His grave!"

On their 1991 cd "I Scream Sunday," OBP recorded a Punk/Metal version of Johnny Cash's "Man In Black" with Cash himself on vocals, proving that Johnny was a good sport with a great sense of humor!

Band website: http://www.onebadpig.com/Pig_Pen.html

Next post: Lust Control.  Got a ski mask on you?

Philly & Landon

Working on a post about pioneering Punk/Thrashers One Bad Pig.  Meantime, kick back, relax and listen to our friend Philly Phil and my son Landon.  Great stuff!

Weird, Strange, Odd, Unique...Part 2

Frank's Enemy

Okay...Yeah.  If the band pic above didn't scare you off, the music may.  Just a little warning here: this band is NOT for everyone.

Not sure what to call this..Death Metal/Grind-core/Hardcore/Punk/Funk/Noise. Even Ambient, at times. One album (Illumination) starts off with a Ska tune. All the ingredients to terrify and offend die hard Adult Contemporary fans, and send them running for the hills.  As much of a Metal fan as I am, I have to be in the right mood for F's E, but there are times I absolutely love this stuff.

Frank's Enemy started off as a one man band solo project for Julio Rey, guitarist/vocalist for the groundbreaking '80's Punk/Thrash band, The Lead, a great band that will get their own post sometime in the future. The name came from a statement Frank Zappa made following the PMRC Senate hearings in the mid 1980's. He said "When you see a car with a Christian fish on it, you've seen the enemy."  Thus, Christians are "Frank (Zappa's) Enemy."  

The origin of the name bother's me, because the fact that he considered Christian's his enemy means he never truly heard the Gospel from any he came in contact with. It indicates that Frank Zappa never heard that Jesus loved him, unless it was thrown out as a challenge, or a brick intended to hurt. That saddens me.  

However, musically, this is a one of a kind band.  Anyone into Extreme Metal should do themselves a favor and check them out.

Band info here:

http://www.sing365.com/music/lyric.nsf/Frank's-Enemy-Biography/E0E45425198F695648256E9D000A9FB6


Next post: One Bad Pig...break out the silly string!