There’s a new kid in town. Please make welcome fridaynightrevival as he enters the heart-pounding, harrowing world of SG blogging. (Just kidding, it’s not that bad. 😉 ) He brings lots of knowledge and a passion for music of all kinds to his writing. We look forward to his future insights. Read more
That’s a good question. Happy Memorial Day: Read more
Yes, yes, I know. I already posted a video of Scotty the other day. Indulge me a little, ‘k? This might be my favorite of his mainstage performances. (Though he sure made it tough. ) Better than George Strait? You decide. (Very sweet movie scene, by the way): Scotty definitely made it his own, no question about that. His voice is deeper, though I think Strait is a little smoother. I would still give Strait the edge, but both versions... Read more
Country music can get a bad rap in some southern gospel circles. When Sarah Palin described southern gospel as “sort of like country” at the NQC, people were just dying with embarrassment (even though I think that’s a perfectly natural thing to say given the interplay and musical similarities between the genres). Although some listeners and many artists have expressed appreciation for the genre, the wrinkled nose seems to be a rather common reaction. I think perhaps that’s because country... Read more
Last week, a lot of us got a good laugh at “Camping and crew” over the fact that they predicted the Second Coming on May 21st, and of course nothing happened on May 21st. But at the same time, we should recognize the sadness of what was going on there. Not only were many poor people fooled into giving up their livelihoods, Camping and his followers only gave more fuel to the fire of those who mock the idea of... Read more
One of my favorite works of Christian literature is A Man For All Seasons. I think every Christian who appreciates excellence and beauty mixed with truth should obtain a copy of this play, based on the life and death of Thomas More. It’s written by Robert Bolt. It’s not a long read, and it’s incredibly well written. I highly recommend it if you have yet to read it. There are many great moments of dialogue, but one of the most... Read more
Three years ago today, a little girl died because her big brother didn’t see her coming. She needed help getting onto the monkey bars, and there he was, driving home. Twenty-four hours later, many people’s lives had changed forever. Several different people definitely not given to “seeing things” would independently tell her family that they saw an angel take her into his arms. I’m speaking of course about the daughter of Steven Curtis Chapman. I first heard the news on... Read more
Daniel Mount has written an open letter to southern gospel artists from young fans of the genre. Like him, I am a young fan, and I’ve addressed and will continue to address the points he made here on this blog. They are good points, and I will gladly be one of the co-signers he has called for. I thought that I would elaborate on some of them in my own post, if my readers don’t mind. This was Daniel’s first... Read more
Yesterday I conducted a little poll to see whether my readers could tell from isolated snippets whether two songs were Christian or secular. Though I didn’t get quite the response I would have liked (COUGH COUGH… just kidding 😉 ), I got a nice little handful of submissions. The majority of the votes were divided between option one (both songs are Christian) and option three (the first is Christian, the second secular), with a small percentage voting that they were... Read more
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Is That Southern Gospel? (Part II, because I felt like it)
Here’s the second part of my thoughts/ramblings on what southern gospel is and isn’t. (Part I here.) Except this part is really a cogitation on the difference between the label “CCM” and the label “SG.” Contemporary Christian Music is such a vague umbrella term that it can encompass every sound and style of music, as long as it is (or claims to be) “Christian” in some way. Though it’s getting harder to tell what that’s even supposed to mean, especially... Read more