Today's Praise Music

[stevegoad]

Originally Posted by dmot

Don't forget Uncle Larry.

Exactly... "Why should the devil have all the good music" Larry Norman, 1972ish.

[[Admin] danroth]

Originally Posted by osborn4

Just remember, the augmented 4th is of the Devil.

almost as much as syncopation is

[JLR]

Originally Posted by danroth

I'm pretty sure that's not what he's saying at all.

I'm pretty sure what he's saying is that in an ideal world, Christians would be creators and innovators rather than mere copiers or imitators.

Thank you Dan, I probably didn't word myself very well.
I really don't want or need to buy a CD of someone trying to catch a hit because it sounds like ______ (fill in the blank) I will listen to nearly any style of Christian music if it can stand on it's own merit (I have chosen to limit my listening purchases to Christian music because of a personal conviction, due to the way I allowed former music choices to work in my life).
I still don't know if I'm making sense or expressing my thoughts here very well but I hope it makes some sort of sense. If you look in my CD case or through my MP3 player full of legally bought music you will find Christian music covering every genre, classical, hymns, country, bluegrass, gospel, hip hop and rap, hard rock, soft rock, praise and worship, it's all there and I like each one... However my music purchases have slowed severely the last few years as I am finding it harder to find music that in my words has real heart to it. As I preview music online or on the radio, I feel like they are often cookie cutter quick we need a hit kind of deal rather than truly searching for the heart of God.

Originally Posted by lossforgain

On the other hand, don't counterfeit some other person's creativity -- God is bigger than that. If you have a heart to write music for God, pursue him and he will create it in you. Christians shouldn't have to look to what's popular for inspiration. God can create the best stuff right here, in us.

Yeah that is where I was trying to go...

A side note... isn't it amazing how easily we react when we feel the music we care about and love is being talked about? I find it fascinating how deeply music is ingrained with in each of us even the most musically challenged people tend to be on guard for their music choice.

[waynehoskins]

Originally Posted by JLR

However my music purchases have slowed severely the last few years as I am finding it harder to find music that in my words has real heart to it. As I preview music online or on the radio, I feel like they are often cookie cutter quick we need a hit kind of deal rather than truly searching for the heart of God.

Well put. I always had trouble answering the question "what kind of music do you like?", and only in the last few years have I been able to answer it well: I like music that has a reason to exist.

[lossforgain]

Originally Posted by JLR

A side note... isn't it amazing how easily we react when we feel the music we care about and love is being talked about? I find it fascinating how deeply music is ingrained with in each of us even the most musically challenged people tend to be on guard for their music choice.

Personally, I have tired so much of defending "my" music preferences that it has left me open to the possibility of using all varieties of music in ministry. I regularly use music in church that isn't my personal favorite, but it serves the purpose of connecting people with God, and that's what I'm called to do. I don't do it perfectly, but I give it my best.

[JLR]

Originally Posted by lossforgain

Personally, I have tired so much of defending "my" music preferences that it has left me open to the possibility of using all varieties of music in ministry. I regularly use music in church that isn't my personal favorite, but it serves the purpose of connecting people with God, and that's what I'm called to do. I don't do it perfectly, but I give it my best.

I think that is all we can do is our best. As I read the bible, I don't read that we have to be the best... but be willing to give our best... In my opinion anyone who has learned what you have stated is striving to put self away for the glory of God, that is awesome! The coolest part is when I have given my best (even as bad as it may have been) God has made it better than I could have ever done on my own.

[JLR]

Dan, I actually have a recording on a cassette tape of a group that visited the church I attended as a kid. I was the Sunday night sound boy and got to call the radio station then flip the switch to make it live on the air radio! The group gave me a copy of their "latest" cassette and by the sound of the Wauhobs I thought it was them. However I went and somehow found it but believe it or not another group was actually that ???good??? and not only did we broadcast them live, but we took up a LUV offering as well!

[voyager529]

I have thought along this same vein myself, and I came to a few realizations:
1. In the "Pre-Shout to the Lord" era, there was "Contemporary Christian Music". There was no "worship" genre, because that was the intent of the genre as a whole. I think of those landmark songs like Twila Paris' "God is in Control", Kathy Trocolli's "Go Light Your World", dc Talk's "In The Light", Rich Mullins' "Sometimes by Step"...those songs that back in the 80's and 90's every Christian knew all the words to. There was no genre specific to worship, because that was the intent of Christian music as a whole! Then, Shout to the Lord hit. The song was big. So big, that a genre once considered a cottage industry for a niche market caught the eye of secular record labels. They saw that there was a market for this, and it was big enough to turn a buck. The likes of EMI, Sony BMG, Universal, and Warner Music started to purchase the smaller Christian labels like Sparrow, Reunion, and Word. Check the back of the last CD you got, odds are that you'll find one of these logos on it.
Once this happened, there was a (cliche warning) paradigm shift within the Christian music industry. Christian music got the funding and business strategies that secular music had enjoyed for many years, but it also got its worldly marketing schema. When Larry Norman et al founded CCM as we know it, the rally cry was the phrase said here: "Why should the devil have all the good music?" Back then, people were getting into producing Christian music because they desired to use the talents that God gave them in a way that honored Him. Personal convictions, ministry, and a no-nonsense message were all important in the first quarter-century of Christian music. Now that the major secular labels were holding the purse strings, they were doing so for a much different purpose: they want to make money. In order to do so, one must sell to the widest possible audience. How did they accomplish this? simple. First, you have a "worship" genre that talks about how wonderful and loving God is. Don't bother with balancing that with His holiness and justice, because people don't want to hear that they're wrong. On the other side, make "positive music". It doesn't have to say God that much, but just allude to a nebulous "him" that could refer to either God or a guy. Have positive moral messages without referring to Jesus. In both cases, there's no need for a person to have a long-term contract; all that's needed is 2-3 singles and an album to make it break even, just like the secular top 40. When I buy CDs, I get similar ads for ringtones as I do in the secular CDs I buy. There are a few glimmers out there; I love Rebecca St. James, and KJ-52's message is a wonderful blend of entertaining and a clear message of Christ's love coupled with our need to repent. Overall though, when I can get a Christian CD and sift through the liner notes and over the course of an entire album not see a single direct reference to Jesus, my head starts to wonder. I understand having an "Esther Song" on an album, referring to the fact that throughout the entire book of Esther, there is not a single direct mention of God. My axe to grind is that there has been a consistent, slow erosion of the clarity of the message being conveyed in Christian music today.

Okay, it's 3:10 in the morning and I'm sure that you guys are sick of reading this by now. Hopefully it makes some sense.

Joey

[Lucas]

Originally Posted by voyager529

Joey

Please
Use
Paragraphs
When
Writing
Lots
Of
Words

[stevegoad]

Originally Posted by voyager529

I have thought along this same vein myself, and I came to a few realizations:

1. In the "Pre-Shout to the Lord" era, there was "Contemporary Christian Music". There was no "worship" genre, because that was the intent of the genre as a whole. I think of those landmark songs like Twila Paris' "God is in Control", Kathy Trocolli's "Go Light Your World", dc Talk's "In The Light", Rich Mullins' "Sometimes by Step"...those songs that back in the 80's and 90's every Christian knew all the words to. There was no genre specific to worship, because that was the intent of Christian music as a whole!

Then, Shout to the Lord hit. The song was big. So big, that a genre once considered a cottage industry for a niche market caught the eye of secular record labels. They saw that there was a market for this, and it was big enough to turn a buck. The likes of EMI, Sony BMG, Universal, and Warner Music started to purchase the smaller Christian labels like Sparrow, Reunion, and Word. Check the back of the last CD you got, odds are that you'll find one of these logos on it.

Once this happened, there was a (cliche warning) paradigm shift within the Christian music industry. Christian music got the funding and business strategies that secular music had enjoyed for many years, but it also got its worldly marketing schema.

When Larry Norman et al founded CCM as we know it, the rally cry was the phrase said here: "Why should the devil have all the good music?" Back then, people were getting into producing Christian music because they desired to use the talents that God gave them in a way that honored Him. Personal convictions, ministry, and a no-nonsense message were all important in the first quarter-century of Christian music.

Now that the major secular labels were holding the purse strings, they were doing so for a much different purpose: they want to make money. In order to do so, one must sell to the widest possible audience. How did they accomplish this? simple. First, you have a "worship" genre that talks about how wonderful and loving God is. Don't bother with balancing that with His holiness and justice, because people don't want to hear that they're wrong. On the other side, make "positive music". It doesn't have to say God that much, but just allude to a nebulous "him" that could refer to either God or a guy. Have positive moral messages without referring to Jesus. In both cases, there's no need for a person to have a long-term contract; all that's needed is 2-3 singles and an album to make it break even, just like the secular top 40. When I buy CDs, I get similar ads for ringtones as I do in the secular CDs I buy.

There are a few glimmers out there; I love Rebecca St. James, and KJ-52's message is a wonderful blend of entertaining and a clear message of Christ's love coupled with our need to repent. Overall though, when I can get a Christian CD and sift through the liner notes and over the course of an entire album not see a single direct reference to Jesus, my head starts to wonder.

I understand having an "Esther Song" on an album, referring to the fact that throughout the entire book of Esther, there is not a single direct mention of God. My axe to grind is that there has been a consistent, slow erosion of the clarity of the message being conveyed in Christian music today.

Okay, it's 3:10 in the morning and I'm sure that you guys are sick of reading this by now. Hopefully it makes some sense.

Joey

Sorry for reparagraphing you, Joey. Sometimes 3:00 in the morning causes words to come better than writing.

You make some great observations. There might be some nit-picky points I would question in other circumstances, nothing worth arguing about.

I just wanted to add your entire quote because you have some real nuggets of truth here (as Larry Norman phrased it, you "opened the mouth of love and found the wisdom tooth").

I am going to pretend to be a prophet for a second... knowing that I have never claimed the gift of prophecy in my life, and knowing that, while I have made some prayer about this on a personal level, I have not prayed for a wisdom about this... until now. So if this doesn't come true... blame me, not the Lord.

Still I have prayed about this on a personal level. As the owner of a small recording studio who is studying the business and considering the possibility of making ItsaGodGig Music into a full-fledged independent label in 2010 or so, I do have a bit of knowledge.

So here is my prophecy, for what it's worth... The Christian music market is in for a shake-up.

The biggest stumbling block for Christian "frenge" artists like Larry Norman, Daniel Amos, Resurrection Band, even groups like Petra, were labels who, while willing to take some risk, always wanted to keep their thumb on the riskier artists. Larry Norman kicked the door in, but then also held it open for some of the others.

But then the second wave hit, as Christian radio and bookstore owners seemed to hide from the frenge. Christian radio wouldn't play the controversy because it wouldn't sell and bookstores wouldn't sell because it wasn't playing... and no one wanted to face the questions as to if it was Christian enough to be Christian.

But now... we have two new elements to the mix.

First we have independent labels. A good independent label (where I am praying about for ItsaGodGig in 2010) will not just record for pay, but also try to promote the music of their label artist. Since recording equipment has gone down so much in cost while going up in quality, there are more and more recording their own music, and indie labels are on the rise.

Second, we have the internet. There are many groups like soundclicks, tunecore, etc., who will, for pay, play independent artists. It might cost some money upfront, but independent artists are starting to have a way to gain a voice.

Indies are putting a pinch on lables, but also giving the artists a chance to grow. No doubt, some will rise who have new, original voices. Already, Christian rap is coming up... as one artist I recently met (going by the name FLOW) put it... "the message with just a pinch of getto commentary." There are new Christian alternative rockers coming up.

In essence, I believe by 2015 we will see Christian music shaking up with a similar power to the shake up in the 1970's when the door was kicked in. Just keep your ears on the computer.

But that is enough ranting for 6:00 AM.

Keep Pressin' On (Phil. 3:13-14)

Steve
ItsaGodGig Music
www.itsagodgig.org

[tedanderson]

Originally Posted by osborn4

Just remember, the augmented 4th is of the Devil.

Yeah.. they say that if you listen to tritones too long you can get vertigo. (but then again, who are "they" and what do they know?)

[[Admin] danroth]

I'm going to nitpick Joey's history a little. Contemporary Christian Music was being criticized as more of an industry (and often a shoddily run one) and less than of a ministry long before "Shout to the Lord" came out. I would also clarify that CCM before the "praise and worship" emphasis was primarily about communicating to the culture about Jesus and to the church about how to be disciples. Sure, there were some "praise songs", but that wasn't the primary focus.

I think Joey's analysis is spot on. "Worship" songs and albums became big hits at one point, and started a revolution (for better or worse). For various other reasons trends that had existed for years (even in the early 1980s, ABC already owned Word) accelerated as the Christian music market grew. And, while there exists some very creative and talented people in Christian music today, there is always the pressure to produce hits - which can compromise quality.

One thing not often talked about is that the CCM industry has a core target group - suburban, white, upper middle class women... "soccer moms". Sure, there are many other people that listen to CCM, and there are plenty of groups aiming at other audiences, but that's the cash cow demographic the industry is primarily aiming for.