Rock music and religion have always made for the strangest of bedfellows, yet the two of them are inextricably linked — both historically and, as odd as it may seem, even artistically.
Despite being often referred to as the "devil's music" by some of the more fringe elements of the Christian Right for example, rock and roll has a rather long and storied tradition of having roots in the church. It's fairly common knowledge, for example, that early rock and roll pioneers like Elvis were as influenced by what they heard in southern churches as they were by the "race records" they heard on the radio.
Jerry Lee Lewis and Jimmy Swaggart were cousins, for Chrissakes (and my apologies to the Almighty there).
The tradition goes even deeper when you get into the history of rhythm and blues, though. From Aretha Franklin to Marvin Gaye, you can pretty much pick any random R&B singer who came up in the fifties and sixties, and you won't find a background in gospel music too far behind. In many cases, you will also find that these same artists have spent lifetimes waging their own personal battles between the desires of the flesh and the joys of the spirit.
Marvin Gaye, for example, may have famously died for it at the hands of his preacher father. The Reverend Al Green is another example of an artist who has spent the latter part of his career walking a tightrope between his gospel recordings, and the more earthly come-ons of his sexier R&B records.
Little Richard may be the most famous example of a rock and roller fighting this inner-battle, though. He has famously denounced the rock and roll lifestyle several times, citing how Jesus saved him from homosexuality. Yet, he has always drifted back to playing the likes of "Tutti Frutti" and to singing about how that Miss Molly sure likes to ball in concert on the oldies circuit. From what I hear, though, Little Richard hands out Bibles at his concerts these days.
Not that the influence of religion on rock is limited to Christianity though. In the sixties and seventies especially, rock artists looked for higher inspiration in any number of places. Cat Stevens went back and forth on this for several years, before finally dropping out of sight altogether to reinvent himself as devout Muslim Yusuf Islam. He has only just recently come back to getting his feet wet again playing music.
Others sought out Eastern gurus and sages. Transcendental meditation as taught by the Maharishi Mahesh Yogi was particularly big for awhile, briefly claiming converts like the Beatles and the Beach Boys in the sixties. For awhile there, in fact, it seemed every dimestore Eastern guru had his own personal rock and roll spokesperson. Sri Chimnoy had Santana, Meher Baba had Townshend, and so forth.
Article comments
1 - Jennifer Bogart
Great read Glen, thanks for sharing your thoughts. In truth, many who enjoy CCM do so not as a tamed down version of secular tunes, but in praise and worship to their creator and saviour.
There's not much that brings me closer to the throne of grace than listening to songs that both exalt the name of Jesus while accompanied with singable tunes and punchy rhythms.
Plenty of adults out there who just want to praise God through song and need a bit of assistance via CD :).
2 - JC Mosquito
First things first: good article, Glen, but I suspect you know it only scratches the surface. The best rock is the same as the best religion: it provides a positive, spritual, life changing experience. "Won't Gett Fooled Again" as a world view? You betcha.
And second - though I mean no insult to them overall, I am sure there are many CCM fans who find something comforting or profound in the work of their fave artists, amnd some great artists as well (Phil Keaggy comes to mind as a great artist) the majority just simply aren't as good as their rock counterparts - it's like calling Ken G a jazz saxophonist and expecting he's going to sound like John Coltrane.
And there's an open can o' worms for y'all. Like the old saying goes from back in the day - pax vobiscum, baby.
3 - Glen Boyd
You pretty much nailed it there JC. The whole point I was trying to make is that while there are notable exceptions like Keaggy, who is a very talented guitarist, a lot of CCM often serves as a watered down substitute for its secular counterpart. There is a very large, mostly very young part of CCM's demographic who are Christians that just want to rock, but have been told by both their parental and spiritual elders that it's not really okay to do so. In that respect, CCM is an industry which profits from their guilt.
I mean I hear there are even Christian death metal bands out there nowadays. And if that isn't a contradiction in terms, I simply don't know what is.
I also agree with what Jennifer says though. If CCM serves as an aid to how some people express their praise, then it certainly has served a worthwhile purpose.
I just have a little bit of a problem with some of the more crass and cynical ways some (not all) CCM is marketed.
-Glen
4 - tink
A behind-the-scenes FYI regarding Stryper. I was the Director of Artist Development and worked with the band on their secular Enigma Records label. We constantly battled both sides of the coin when promoting the band and their music.
That dicotomy came not just from the press but from fans as well. Christian purists felt the band could not serve God and rock at the same time. Rockers thought it wasn't RnR, or more pointedly heavy metal/hard rock, if the lyrics glorified Christian beliefs. It seemed like no matter which way they turned it caused controversy. There was even a point in time when those of us working closely with Stryper from the Enigma end of things were drawn into the mix as the purveyors and hand puppets of the devil.
To the band's credit, at no time during our times together, back then or today, did they ever make any of us feel like we were detrimental to their cause nor did they try to convert us to their path. As they were then and are now to this day, they've proved they can rock while being true to their beliefs.
Great job, Glen!
5 - Glen Boyd
Thanks for the comment Tink. Ya' wanna hear something weird? Its possible we have met back then. Did you used to work in bare feet and (sorry if this sounds weird) something that looked like pajamas at Enigma's office? If so, we have met when a former pal of mine was shopping a compliation of Seattle metal bands down in L.A.
Was that you?
-Glen