Keith Green was one of the most popular contemporary Christian musicians in the late ‘70s/early ‘80s. He and 10 others (including two of his children) tragically died in a plane crash in 1982.
I had the privilege of interviewing him for a music magazine. He was truly a musical prophet, a musical genius with a rough [...]

What’s that, you say? Christian rock that’s actually good? It exists, according to Daniel Radosh. Although Radosh identifies himself as a secular Jew, he’s put together a list of what he considers the top ten Christian rock songs—songs that, in his words, don’t “reduce all expressions of faith to crass evangelism, anodyne praise, or crypto-romance.” [...]

Did you get a chance to see this last night’s American Idol results show? The producers decided to open the show with “Shout To The Lord” again. This time when the final 8 sang it it had the correct word in the first line (My Jesus, My Savior). I, for one, applaud their willingness to [...]

Did you watch Idol Gives Back last night? Wow, did you miss a shocker, if you didn’t?
Imagine all 8 final contestants, backed up with a choir and confetti flying everywhere, singing… Shout To The Lord. It was so cool to see.

Of all the messages that the producers of Idol Gives Back could have sent as [...]

The Lent and Easter season is my favorite time of the year to attend church. Not that I don’t enjoy worshiping in church at other times of the year, but I always look forward to Lent church services, as somber as they tend to be. Obviously one reason I love this part of the church [...]

Larry Norman passed away yesterday at age 60. In his farewell message on his website, he said, “I feel like a prize in a box of cracker jacks with God’s hand reaching down to pick me up…I am ready to fly home.”
“Dubbed by the media as ‘the father of Christian rock,’ Norman recorded three albums [...]

There’s a fun NYT article about Stéphane Urbain, the man who rings the bells at the Cathedral of Notre-Dame in Paris (free registration may be required—sorry). Apparently not even the world of church bell-ringing is spared the “tradition vs. new ideas” tug-of-war:
His musicality has led to a minor revolution in the way that the [...]

Joseph Bottum of First Things is apparently quite a Bob Dylan fan—he’s recently been interviewed about the man and his music. Toward the end of the interview, the discussion turns to Dylan’s gospel music and the way he sang about God. From the interview:
I don’t know what Dylan’s religion is. But I know what the [...]

Recently, my family attended a very flashy worship service: lights, cameras, rock and roll. I’ll admit even to my younger senses the ambiance proved to be distracting; however, this visual and aural assault really bothered my father. I don’t think this is a, “Oh, he’s just stuck in his ways” issue either.
Because music [...]

Here’s a follow-up to an item that attracted a lot of attention earlier this year: remember that fascinating story about the world-class violinist who performed unnoticed in a busy subway station? An essay at The New Republic offers a sort of second take on the questions of beauty, music, and elitism raised by the incident [...]