@rocketroom - Yep. "Come to Jesus" from Mindy Smith's - "One Moment More" album is a truly incredible song (and the whole album is very good).
Anyone who has not hear this song, buy it, stream it, whatever. Just turn it up loud and let it rip...
@timothywright - Have you heard Eva Cassidy's version of "People Get Ready" from her "Live at Blues Alley" album? Sublime..... |
Mindy Smith... One Moment More. You’ll cherish this album. |
I think I’ve got a version of that with Mavis Staples...
Cliff Richard. In the late 70s we was releasing great music with a positive, moral vibe. Look up We Don’t Talk Anymore. |
One of my favorites was Ry Cooder singing Jesus is on the Main Line Tell Him What You Want.
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The mention of Kerry Livgren is fitting as he was a christian while being a member of Kansas and then with 2 or 3 solo releases after that. John Elefante became Kansas's lead singer and was there for their hits in the early 80's. Play the Game tonight, Fire with Fire and Perfect Lover. |
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Stunned by the reaction to the Monty Python song. Hopefully my belief that there is no god doesn’t also offend. Each to their own. |
Some already mentioned but here are a few...
Son of a Preacher Man - Dusty Springfield (my fav performancer)
Spirit in the Sky - Norman Greenbaum
Visions of Angels - Genesis
After Forever - Black Sabbath
Redeemed - Blue Öyster Cult
Jesus Is Just Alright - The Doobie Brothers
Watcher of the Skies - Genesis
Father of Day, Father of Night - Manfred Mann´s Earth Band
Jerusalem - ELP
Astronomy - Blue Öyster Cult
Hymn - Barclay James Harvest
Faith Healer - The Sensational Alex Harvey Band
Kansas and not just "Dust in the Wind" their whole approach is religious (for me at least) - especially with Kerry Livgren
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"Way Out Jesus" Sammy Johns |
Waiting for a miracle is one of my favorites of his. I think he has a big catalog of releases, starting in the 70’s.
I'm not sure if anyone mentioned The 77’s, Mike Roe was the front man, I think. Only a few releases, but pretty good stuff. All Fall Down was one of their better releases.
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Wow! I'm surprised that no ones mentioned Bruce Cockburn. God is in many of his songs. I like "Nothin But a Burning Light" LP. All great songs and well recorded. Check it out. "Cry of a Tiny Babe" is a standout. Joe |
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"Blessed" Lucinda Williams |
Ok, great--wasn't sure what you meant by "less than devout".
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Yes, I know Turn Turn Turn is from Ecclesiastes, it's my favorite book in the Bible. |
"Onerous taxes and entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare cause religious folks to chaff. Another good song for those of us less than devout and a favorite among the social justice takers." djones51
I don’t hear many complaints from groups about the programs they have paid into. You come into this world helpless, and you go out the same way. That's what they are there for.
Did you know that "Turn! Turn! Turn!" is from Ecclesiastes 3:1? Don’t let it ruin the song for you......
About religions---I like 'em all. |
Onerous taxes and entitlement programs like Social Security and Medicare cause religious folks to chaff. Another good song for those of us less than devout and a favorite among the social justice takers. Pete Seeger : Turn Turn Turn https://g.co/kgs/RxjvXt |
@timothywright, I simply listed a great album full of spirituality, and in reply, you derail your own thread....or, what is your intent?
Anyway, beside "Dragon's Jaw", another of Cockburn's albums written during his world traveling was "Humans". Both are full of talent and depth.
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@djones51It
It would not be my place to attack anyone or quantify their piety by my standards.
@jafreeman
In any society where voluntary charity is displaced by onerous taxes and entitlement programs, where the state becomes the primary donor of other people's money for generations at a time, yes some folks will chaff at being lectured about social justice.
So in a market place of ideas, some ideas will be rejected based on their merits. That might be one interpretation, since I know nothing about the specifics
of Bruce Cockburn
I don't have an opinion on the particulars.
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Bruce Cockburn (pronounced Coburn) was on the Christian rock scene for awhile, until his lyrics drifted toward human rights, then he was no longer approved. His album "Dancing In the Dragon's Jaw" featured "Wondering Where the Lions Are" that was a radio hit. This album features his incredible guitar playing, moving lyrics and is a sonic masterpiece. https://youtu.be/3k_xkhoq7YM |
Another good one for us less than devout.
John Prine: Your Flag Decal Won't Get You Into Heaven Anymore |
Nothing wrong with attacking piety especially when it’s difficult to know when one is pious, don’t you think? |
Since I started this thread please let me make the clear distinction between “Religious Music For the Less Than Devout” and “Anti-Religious Music That Parodies or Attacks Piety.” Those who evidently feel the need for their own anti-theist thread should do exactly that. I wish them well with it. And many thanks to contributors who have helped me re-energize my music collection. |
Since this is for less than devout.
Curtis Mayfield: (Don't Worry) If There's a Hell Below We're all Gonna Go |
n80
Correct: the existence of Jazz most certainly suggests a higher power in effect.
Happy Listening! |
Heard some gospel jazz about 20 years ago in church from a saxophonist. I was intrigued, went home, did some research and found these guys:
Allen & Allen (keyboard and saxophone)
Ben Tankard (mostly keyboard but plays other instruments, too)
Jeff Majors (harp)
Kirk Whalum (saxophone and flute) but not limited to gospel.
I've found unless I've heard the song with words somewhere in the singing gospel world, or there is a soloist or group singing along with a specific message, the music is pretty much simply very good entertainment.
Other secular artists who've made impressions on me with their "gospel" songs are:
Martina McBride "Concrete Angel" and "God's Will" with a lovely but haunting play on words.
Joe Nichols "If Nobody Believed in You" and "Revelation" a disturbing account of judgment day with a surprise ending.
Chaka Khan "Roll Me Through the Rushes"
Whitney Houston soundtrack to the movie "The Preacher's Wife"
Lauren Hill soundtrack to the movie Sister Act 2 "Joyful, Joyful"
Cheryl Pepsii Riley soundtrack from Diary of a Mad Black Woman "One of Us"
duet by Phillip Bailey from Earth, Wind & Fire and
Deniece Williams "They Say"
I also find India.Arie's music to be very uplifting and she's not afraid to mention God in some of her songs.
And the Queen of Soul, Aretha Franklin's "Amazing Grace" album which this past year was finally made into a movie.
And let's not forget the Staple Singers started off as a gospel group and had an influence on others like Bob Dylan.
And as for Classical, I'm surprised no one has mentioned the well known "Handel's Messiah"
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@jafant : "Jazz music."
How so? I've been listening to jazz intensely for the last few weeks being new to it and trying to figure out what its all about. I'm most of the way through Ken Burns' documentary.
Outside of some gospel influence I am not seeing a religious trend through the whole genre.
Maybe listening to jazz is a "religious experience" for some. It isn't for me, yet, but I think plenty of people might feel that way. But, that could be extended to almost any experience that is intense or pleasing enough even if the nature and content of the experience aren't religious.
Or maybe the existence of jazz suggests the existence of something higher than us??? |
"Requiem" by Hector Berlioz. Normally the Verdi and Mozart Requiems are most often heard and performed but the Berlioz is simply outstanding. One might even say this was one of the first adventures in surround sound! The work is scored for a very large orchestra. Berlioz positioned brass instruments in the corners of the cathedral to give an open, grand, and otherworldly effect. Stunning on a nice sound system. Honorable mention should also be given to the B Minor Mass by J.S. Bach. |
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"Poor Imitation of God" John Hiatt |
If God created camels He has a sense of humor. Perhaps camels also say that about us.
If God exemplifies the perfection of all virtues, and a healthy sense of humor is a virtue, then ...
Among any groups of monastics or religious I would say look for the always happy and chipper. If the group is always glum run the other way. In my Irish tribe those not picked on (in a nice way) are considered neglected. It is how one develops a sense of humor and humility.
I had a youngish teacher in mid school, she assumed in the mid to late 60’s we listened to folk music like she did. When I told her about Carlos Santana, Cream, Jefferson Airplane and Grateful dead she was horrified.
I did learn to like folk music, only much later in life, the pre-electric Bob Dylan. Odetta, Richie Havens, Harry Belafonte, Carolyn Hester, Barbara Dane, the Big Three, Joan Baez all sport some musical chops and are well represented in my musical library. And many of them had religious music in their act. Speaking of which Cat Stevens "Morning has Broken" is recommended.
@n80 Thank you for jumping in, I had wondered if I had murdered the thread.
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I remember a home room teacher in high school. Late 1970s. He was also the baseball coach. Great guy. All of us kids liked him. He was always goofing with us and always pushing the limits. He used to ask us if we thought God had a sense of humor. Just asking that question made me uncomfortable, which was what he was after. For whatever reason I thought the question was too irreverent to consider.
Years later I thought about that and thought about how silly I was. If you believe in Christian doctrine then you believe that all good things come from God. Humor is clearly good. Just like everything else it can be used in ways that are not good. But sure, if we are made in his image and humor is good, the I’d say surely God has a sense of humor.
This teacher was one who always told us The Band was the best band of all time. I was into Zeppelin, BTO, Sweet, Alice Cooper, The Who then and had no time or interest in The Band. But again, years later I came to appreciate the genius of The Band.
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I wanted to mention a source I greatly enjoy. There is a church named “Church of Christ”
that has as one of it’s teachings that liturgical music must be A
Cappella. Then they can play a musical
instrument later on in the day, just not at church.
Sometime in the early 1980’s a group from that church started
a group named “Acappella” and I like their stuff very much, I think own 59 of
their CDs which should amount to almost their entire catalogue.
In the early days of the group Acappella was a performer
named Keith Lancaster who at some point slightly more serious, less popular and
more liturgical vision.
I had eight Keith Lancaster Acappella CDs, all praise and
worship which I delight in. The most
recent was four years old so I ordered about another eight this week. I can not find them used on Amazon, I have to
pay retail. It is not as bad as it may
sound because every CD is filled to the brim with high quality praise and
worship music.
RE Monty Python et al.
For most of the first 35 years of my life I kept Jesus safely
at an arm’s length. A divorce was
painful enough for me to reconsider. Folks
who knew me well assumed my conversion would never last. I remember some of the things I said in those
days. It causes me pain and shame.
Unlike Muslims I don’t feel the need to violently defend
Jesus against infidels. I am confident
at a God who can speak the Word in to Darkness and create everything can take
care of himself. I also imagine a Supreme
Being; the embodiment and perfection of all divine attributes would have the
ultimate sense of humor. I would point
out that a jest from a friend is not the same as the same thing, be the words
identical, as an expression intended with malice and contempt.
Be careful with blasphemy; one day you may need Him.
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@falconquest : "I cannot possibly go through my day and understand what actions I take may offend one religious believer or another"
Sure, tact, decorum and manners require an effort. And just because there are easily offended people out there doesn't mean (to me) that I can abandon thoughtfulness, even though I am often very guilty of doing so.
@falconquest : "It is the person who is offended that has created that feeling within their own mind. "
Well, there are plenty of things that are by their nature offensive. And there are plenty of things that are intended to be offensive and hurtful. It is a two way street. Or a double edged sword, if you will. It is not simply a matter of overly sensitive people.
And part of my point is that it is not simply the religious who are easily offended. In fact, there are a few precious societal groups who enjoy full PC protection from ever hearing anything that disagrees with them. Just wondering if, in your mind, it is incumbent on those groups to be thick skinned as well?
Anyway, speaking of potentially offensive religious themed songs:
Steely Dan's Godwhacker. According to Wikipedia:
Godwhacker" developed from a blasphemous lyric Fagen wrote a few days
after his mother died of Alzheimer's. "It's about an elite squad of
assassins whose sole assignment is to find a way into heaven and take
out God", he later explained. "If the Deity actually existed, what sane
person wouldn't consider this to be justifiable homicide?"
As it turns out it isn't a very good song.
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@n80 I appreciate your comments and am more then happy to have a dialog regarding the subject. I had no intention as I stated to offend anyone and if someone is offended then to me that is simply irrelevant. It is the person who is offended that has created that feeling within their own mind.
I cannot possibly go through my day and understand what actions I take may offend one religious believer or another whether they be christian, jew, muslim, bhuddist.....etc. etc. The movie clip just popped into my mind when I read the OP. I agree, people have to be less sensitive and not hold undue standards for others to bear while in their particular presence.
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@falconquest That particular movie, at least when it came out, was very offensive to Christians. It has pretty much faded from the Christian and public consciousness. As a Monty Python fan and a Christian, I found that the movie was irreverent and moderately offensive....and not one of their better efforts. I still love Monty Python.
I agree with you that how someone responds to something in regard to being offended is on them. We can't control what other people say. We can only control how we respond to it.
However, I think we have to be careful about having a double standard. It is currently very much okay and PC to offend Christians and Jews. Nothing is off the table. On the other hand, there are other popular religions that no one is willing to mock or offend in even the slightest way. That is a double standard that is not logically consistent or fair. Further, there are other groups and belief structures that are totally off the table when it comes to humor or irreverence with a strict PC code dictating what is okay and what is not to say or discuss.
All I ask from a society of political correctness is consistency. What is okay for one group or belief should be okay for all. If it is incumbent on Judeo-Christians to buck up and deal with irreverence and insults then that should apply to others as well.
Personally I think we all need to be a little more thick skinned. Humor, when not vicious, is great for all of us. But it should be okay for _ALL_ of us. Not just certain ones. |
@ghosthouse Wow, really? The topic of the thread is music for less than devout. My reference was intended was a humorous take on the thread topic. If you are offended then that is on you. If you are that sensitive then perhaps you should have avoided the thread entirely. I feel no obligation to attempt to to oblige the myriad of religious beliefs of humanity.
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n80, as far as the lyrics of Walking in Memphis go, I am not sure we will know. It is said that the song is autobiographical of Mark Cohen. The previous verse before the one you quoted talked about gospel being in the air, and that Reverend Greene would pray for you if you haven’t got a prayer. The guy in the song, autobiographical or not, was fairly depressed when he touched down in Memphis. My take would be that he became caught up in the gospel music being played, in the atmosphere of the club, and in being asked to perform. It was for him a great night. Mark Cohen is from a Jewish family in the mid-west (as per Wikipedia), and only he would know if the experience was transformative or not. Great song, though.
John |
+1 geoffkait, "Every Grain Of Sand" is another one of my favorites from Dylan. |
Some things in life are bad
They can really make you mad
Other things just make you swear and curse
When you're chewing on life's gristle
Don't grumble, give a whistle
And this'll help things turn out for the best
And
Always look on the bright side of life
Always look on the light side of life
Writer/s: Eric Idle
Publisher: Universal Music Publishing Group, BMG I think it qualifies as a music reference. |
@falconquest
I didn't think your post witty or funny. The mockery of that movie is abhorrent. In the context of this thread and given an absence of music reference your post seems intended to offend - nothing more. |
Dylan, With God on our Side. |
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Most excellent suggestions by all.
One does not have to be devout to enjoy the glory of the human voice or the sentiments of sacred music. If you're open to choral music, give John Rutter a try. Specifically, the recording "Be Thou My Vision". Sit back in a comfy chair, close your eyes, banish all other thoughts and let this music wash over you... |
In 2005 Marty Stuart And His Fabulous Superlatives (my favorite band since NRBQ lost Al Anderson, Tom Ordolino, and Joey Spampinato) made an album entitled Souls' Chapel. About it the company promo said: "A no-holds barred Gospel celebration steeped in deep-southern soul and stripped down to its spiritual essence." In 2014 Marty and his band released the album Saturday Night/Sunday Morning. SN is sub-titled Rough Around The Edges, SM Cathedral. Both the profane and the profound on one album. ;-) You don't have to be a believer to like the albums, but you had better like Hard Country, Hillbilly, Bluegrass, and Gospel. Oh, and their b*st*rd step-child, Rock 'n' Roll. |
Cantate Domino on Proprius 7762. Christmas carols (which I usually hate) like you've never heard them before. The soprano is Mellnas.
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"Chocolate Jesus" Tom Waits |
@jndean I like the ambiguity of the line. Not sure if was intentional or not but gives it an edge. Does he mean he is a Christian as of tonight, as in I got religion and it stuck.......or is it that he is a Christian just for tonight and tomorrow night he'll be back in the dives of Memphis or the juke joints in the delta?
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