Top Christian Pop/Rock/Alternative Albums (a work in progress)
Submitted by brownbagcomics on Wed, 03/17/2010 - 13:47
- Freedom - Whiteheart
- Quite possibly the best album from some of music's (Christian and otherwise) most talented artists. All of the performers went on to produce outstanding material for other artists that have won Grammys!
- I Predict 1990 - Steve Taylor
- The Clown Prince of Christianity gave us an album of mocking and divisive music that stings at the core of what we believe and why. Taylor is the epitome of talent and style!
- The Big Picture - Michael W. Smith
- From beginning to end, this album focuses on struggles and realizations that every Christian endures in their lifetime. Plus, musically it is smokin'!
- Straight Ahead - Amy Grant
- Not her biggest selling album or her most popular, but this album was the beginning of a transition from squeaky-clean Christian music to music that inspires a closer walk with Christ.
- Winds of Heaven, Stuff of Earth - Rich Mullins
- This was when Rich went from putting out good albums (three before this) to putting out great albums. Also, this was the first place that most people heard Awesome God, which became a staple of church services for years to come.
- Tribal Opera - iDEoLA (Mark Heard)
- This was one of the first albums to be marketed to the secular market without the label of CCM and over 2 decades later it is still considered a masterpiece. Almost every tune on this concept album has been covered by other artists and everyone I know wants a copy of this in their collection!
- The Turning - Leslie (Sam) Phillips
- Back when she was known as the Christian Cyndi Lauper, people regarded her infectious music with glee. This was the album where she broke all preconceptions and showed a searching and commitment that everyone endures. Another complete package, every tune leads you down a path of discovery and yearning.
- I Want To Be A Clone - Steve Taylor
- Another from the Clown Prince, this debut was so explosive that some stations wouldn't play it (fear of mockery is the best excuse for that cowardice). The lyrics here are biting and caustic but that is why it is so important to Christianity and Christian music.
- Communication - DeGarmo & Key
- This album featured the first song (Six, Six, Six) to have a video rejected by MTV for violent content, but was re-edited to lessen the violence. This was a turning point for the duo as they went from light pop to experimenting with a more rock and soulful style.
- Ping Pong Over The Abyss - The 77's
- This debut effort by Christianity's new wave upstarts is not their most famous or successful, but it heralded a turn from safe music and lyrics to more "in-your-face" style music. Definitely worth tracking down to listen to and appreciate.
- Horrendous Disc - Daniel Amos
- Daniel Amos was already well known in the Christian music world but this was the album that shook up all CCM - this great album is still one of their better effort and lead to the beginning of the Alarma Chronicles quadrilogy that was innovative and inspirational to generations of musicians.
- For Him Who Has Ears To Hear - Keith Green
- No Compromise - Keith Green
- So You Want To Go Back To Egypt - Keith Green
- I Only Want To See You There - Keith Green
- The Prodigal Son - Keith Green
- All of these (and many more) by Keith Green are deserving of being ranked among the most inspiring work of any musician/songwriter, regardless of religion. Keith was evangelical in his beliefs and his music and the generations of people (not just musicians) inspired by him still grows 3 decades after his death!
- The Secret of Time - Charlie Peacock
- Tying Charlie Peacock's importance to only one album is wrong, but really, it's hard to define him when his styles jump all over the place. This is his most important work to me, simply because after years of following his work and appreciating everything he did, I finally met him during this tour and the album still stands up as the most listenable and enriching of his career. Charlie is a genius with production and songwriting and has spent that last decade or so passing that along to the next generation. This album gave us better quality productions of tunes from his West Coast Diaries tapes, but really even those tapes are beautiful themselves.
- Equator - Randy Stonehill
- This selection will be controversial for the reason that it is not Randy's most successful album, but it gave us such iconic tunes as "Shut De Do", "China" and a personal favorite, "American Fast Food" which is a real treat when done live (which I saw when he toured with Leslie Phillips). Randy is one of the grandfathers of Christian rock and he is still one of the nicest guys in music!
- Wide-Eyed Wonder - The Choir
- Circle Slide - The Choir
- These two entries show the growth and energy that Derri Daugherty and Steve Hindalong put into every Choir release and make this a 1-2 punch of Christian alternative rock. There was turmoil associated with their creations, but the overall packages were superb!
- More Power To Ya - Petra
- Including a Petra album would be, to some, a sure thing. Not so, in my criteria. But this album is more important than all of their other work combined, in that it influenced many musicians and people. Featuring the classics "Judas' Kiss", "Let Everything That Hath Breath" and "Rose Coloured Stained Glass Windows", More Power To Ya is the album that didn't try to pacify anyone nor did it seek to apologize for its methods. It simply stated the truth in a way that others soon followed.
- Live Forever - Mylon LeFevre and Broken Heart
- This little known album by some local boys from Atlanta was only available on LP and cassette and while it is rare, it is worth seeking out. The blues/rock that emanates from these guys could still be considered on par with Lynyrd Skynyrd and the Allman Brothers in their prime. It focuses on a picnic concert held by Mt Paran Church back in the early 1980's by Mylon and some friends who formed Broken Heart after years of drug/alcohol abuse. And the testimony offered on this album would forever be more powerful when you realize that Mylon hadn't been clean for very long when he spoke of his faith and the beliefs he held. Great stuff!
- God Rules - Undercover
- Boys and Girls Renounce The World - Undercover
- Christian PUNK! Honest to goodness PUNK! Ojo Taylor and the boys truly gave us some of the best all-out music ever done as Christians and it was so good the secular market could have learned a thing or two from them! Great, great, GREAT stuff!!!!
- When You're A Rebel - Altar Boys
- Gut Level Music - Altar Boys
- These guys were not your average CCM band - they played it real and loud! My fave concert was them opening for Degarmo & Key and all of the people who came for D&K could not understand how the Altar Boys were considered Christian or why they were there. But those of us who knew the Altar Boys knew why - their hearts were real and they music was excellent but not polished!
- Phill Keaggy and Sunday's Child - Phil Keaggy and Sunday's Child
- This all-star lineup of musicians gave us a sound reminescent of the 60's rock music updated for the late 1980's and it was magical! 20+ years later it is still a classic and respected by fans and non-fans of CCM!
- Justice - Steve Camp
- This pick is more pop than anything on this list, but it is still a standout album from Steve Camp who followed Keith Green's direction and challenged Christians every way he possibly could! This album gave us the single "Do You Feel Their Pain?" which was a continuation of Keith's message and style updated by Steve. My inclusion of this album is also triggered by his concert for this album where I saw him play the piano so physically that it jumped on the stage due to his hitting the keys with more force than I ever saw another keyboard player accomplish!
- Worlds Away - Crumbacher-Duke
- This is put on here because I love Electric Light Orchestra and this is the best continuation of their 1970's work but carried out by two Christians! Excellent stuff and a true joy to listen to from beginning to end!
Author Comments:
These are the most influential and important albums in Christian pop/rock/alternative music that I have encountered. With assistance from Sean Taylor and LBANGS!
One quick factual correction - Daniel Amos' Horrendous Disc was not part of the 4-part Alarma! Chronicles (Alarma!, Doppelganger, Vox Humana, and Fearful Symmetry).
I'll read the rest and ponder. Nice list!
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs
You are correct - I just forgot about that. But I stand by the individual claims - Horrendous Disc is a great album and the Alarma Chronicles are excellent!
As well you should! :)
(Doppelganger is my favorite of the five albums, but I dig them all in varying degrees...)
Shalom, y'all!
L. Bangs