Encyclopedia Of Contemporary Christian Music

These essays provide bandmember lists, complete discographies, lists of awards, artist-website addresses, biographies of the artists, and reviews of their work."--BOOK JACKET.

The first comprehensive overview of contemporary inspirational music, covering its historical roots and dramatic growth into one of America's most vital music genres. The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music: Pop, Rock, and Worship is the first comprehensive reference work on a form of American music that is far more popular than nonfans may realize. It fills a major gap in the literature on American music and Christian culture, looking at this increasingly popular genre in the context of the overall history of religious music in the United States. With over 200 entries, The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music covers important performers and industry figures, songs and albums, concerts and festivals, the rise of Christian radio and television, and other issues related to the growth of inspirational music. Scholars and fans alike will find a wealth of revealing information and insightful coverage illustrating the influence of gospel on modern American music with musicians such as Elvis, Sam Cooke, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, and U2.The work also examines the use of fundamental rock, pop, and rap music templates in the service of songs of faith.

The first comprehensive overview of contemporary inspirational music, covering its historical roots and dramatic growth into one of America's most vital music genres. The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music: Pop, Rock, and Worship is the first comprehensive reference work on a form of American music that is far more popular than nonfans may realize. It fills a major gap in the literature on American music and Christian culture, looking at this increasingly popular genre in the context of the overall history of religious music in the United States. With over 200 entries, The Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music covers important performers and industry figures, songs and albums, concerts and festivals, the rise of Christian radio and television, and other issues related to the growth of inspirational music. Scholars and fans alike will find a wealth of revealing information and insightful coverage illustrating the influence of gospel on modern American music with musicians such as Elvis, Sam Cooke, Johnny Cash, Bob Dylan, and U2.The work also examines the use of fundamental rock, pop, and rap music templates in the service of songs of faith.

Chronicling the amazing rise of this genre from its gospel roots to today's diverse musical sound, this guide offers a complete capsule encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian artists as well as an introduction to the music form. 40 illustrations.

The Encyclopedia of American Gospel Music is the first comprehensive reference to cover this important American musical form. Coverage includes all aspects of both African-American and white gospel from history and performers to recording techniques and styles as well as the influence of gospel on different musical genres and cultural trends.

Provides alphabetically-arranged biographical sketches of gospel musicians, a discography, a list of gospel music stations, and the music and lyrics of several songs.

Apostles of Rock is the first objective, comprehensive examination of the contemporary Christian music phenomenon. Some see CCM performers as ministers or musical missionaries, while others define them as entertainers or artists. This popular musical movement clearly evokes a variety of responses concerning the relationship between Christ and culture. The resulting tensions have splintered the genre and given rise to misunderstanding, conflict, and an obsessive focus on self-examination. As Christian stars Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, DC Talk, and Sixpence None the Richer climb the mainstream charts, Jay Howard and John Streck talk about CCM as an important movement and show how this musical genre relates to a larger popular culture. They map the world of CCM by bringing together the perspectives of the people who perform, study, market, and listen to this music. By examining CCM lyrics, interviews, performances, web sites, and chat rooms, Howard and Streck uncover the religious and aesthetic tensions within the CCM community. Ultimately, the conflict centered around Christian music reflects the modern religious community's understanding of evangelicalism and the community's complex relationship with American popular culture.

Winner of the 2014 Christianity Today Book of the Year First Place Winner of the Religion Newswriters Association's Non-fiction Religion Book of the Year The Jesus People movement was a unique combination of the hippie counterculture and evangelical Christianity. It first appeared in the famed "Summer of Love" of 1967, in San Francisco's Haight-Ashbury district, and spread like wildfire in Southern California and beyond, to cities like Seattle, Atlanta, and Milwaukee. In 1971 the growing movement found its way into the national media spotlight and gained momentum, attracting a huge new following among evangelical church youth, who enthusiastically adopted the Jesus People persona as their own. Within a few years, however, the movement disappeared and was largely forgotten by everyone but those who had filled its ranks. God's Forever Family argues that the Jesus People movement was one of the most important American religious movements of the second half of the 20th-century. Not only do such new and burgeoning evangelical groups as Calvary Chapel and the Vineyard trace back to the Jesus People, but the movement paved the way for the huge Contemporary Christian Music industry and the rise of "Praise Music" in the nation's churches. More significantly, it revolutionized evangelicals' relationship with youth and popular culture. Larry Eskridge makes the case that the Jesus People movement not only helped create a resurgent evangelicalism but must be considered one of the formative powers that shaped American youth in the late 1960s and 1970s.