A: Amazing Grace by John Newton Arguably the most beloved hymn of all times. And what a story behind it. Drunken slave ship captain John Newton begins reading the Bible on board his ship full of human cargo, gets convicted by the Holy Spirit, turns the ship around to release the Africans to their homes, and becomes an abolitionist pastor in London.
I remember when Jesus first grabbeed my heart, I was always playing this song. Ladysmith Black Mambazo's and Arlo Guthrie's versions are particularly special to me.
B: Beautiful Scandalous Night as performed by Robbie Seay. I remember an old blog that I wrote saying I hoped my friend Rick Massana would sing this modern hymn at my funeral. He has since passed away, but someone has to sing it on that day. This is our traditional closing music for my class's LOL juggling show. The poetry is profound in its description of the oxymoronic events of the crucifixion.
C: Centerfield by John Fogerty. I love baseball, and this song speaks to the kid who always wanted to grow up and play in the big leagues. So fun, so carefree, just like a game of whiffle ball with friends on summer vacation.
D: Don't Tell Them Jesus Loves Them by Steve Camp "Don't tell them Jesus loves them 'til you're ready to love them too." It's that simple, and that difficult.
E: Escher's World by Steve Taylor. This song was written and recorded when Christian rock's bad boy was the front man of Chagall Guevera. The lyrics Describe life's complexities, contradictions and confusions as someone trying to live inside an M C Escher drawing.
F: Father and Daughter by Paul Simon No song has meant more to me for so long as this Paul Simon gem, first written for the Wild Thornberries Movie. My oldest and youngest daughters both used this for their father - daughter dances at their weddings. Our middle daughter, Naomi, chose the hokey-pokey for our wedding dance (of course naomi would choose the hokey-pokey!) but she did use Father and Daughter for ther senior year video.
G: (The) Great American Novel by Larry Norman. Larry was the father of Christian rock music. This six minute plus song was the first to open my eyes to the fact that the way modern America practices the Christian faith may not be fully lined up with what Jesus had in mind all those years ago. "Politicians all make speeches, and the newsmen all take notes, and they exagerate the issues as they shove 'em down our throats. Is it really up to them whether this country sinks or floats? Well I wonder who would lead us if none of us would vote."
H: Holy, Holy, Holy traditional hymn, as sung by Keith Green. My favorite non-Christmas hymn, and Keith Green's version si perfect.
I: I Could Never Promise You by Don Francisco. This was Sue's and my wedding song. Marriage is between not two, but three people: husband, wife and Jesus. During our long distance engagement, I played the record until I almost wore it out.
J: Justice by Steve Camp. Steve Camp's Justice album is one of the best contemporary Gospel albums ever recorded. This title cut is scathing in its criticism of church culture and the dangerous mix of the Gospel and politics.
K: King of Clowns by Jerry Goebel. Jerry Goebel is an obscure Catholic music minister from the west coast. As part of the folk Mass era, he did release a couple albums in the 1980's. My wife happened to have one when she and I started dating (she had seen him at a church on the east coast). Though not great in its production, the sincerity and simple acoustic accompaniment drew me in. This song is one I used to use in my show, first with a preteen partner named Peter, then with my own daughters. Our first two girls and I did a spinning plate routine to it when they were about four and six years old! what fun.
L: Lord, Search my Heart traditional hymn, as sung by Mahalia Jackson Ah, Mahalia. She has turned countless traditional hymns into her own soulful interpretation, and this might be her best. "While I'm down here singing, Lord search my heart..."
M: Malibongwe by Abel Selaocoe Imagine a sculptor making an elaborate abstract out of clay. Now, replace the clay with sound, and you have an idea of what Abel Selaocoe does. This South African cellist combines jazz and classical cello with other orchestra elements (particularly percussion) and traditional Zulu singing. Once a child prodigy sent to study in London at 15 years of age, he is the musical equivolent of Mummanschanz, and Malibongwe is his masterpiece.
N: No Woman, No Cry by Bob Marley I first heard this song on Joan Baez's "Honest Lullaby" album. It was beautiful, and intriguing. Then a student gave me "The Best of Bob Marley and the Wailers" and was blown away by his original version. Sweet, profound, vivid.
O: O Come, All Ye Faithful Christmas Carol This is my all time favorite hymn. I juggle cigar boxes to Melanie's version in almost every show I do. "O come let us adore Him, Christ the Lord." So direct, to the point, while pointing us to what matters most. About forty years ago, on a hot July night, Sue and I were in a crowd of people on a hillside as Michael W. Smith led us in singing this chorus. It is so much more than a Christmas carol.
P: Peace Will Come by Melanie Melanie is my favorite female vocalist, and this may be my favorite of all her songs. I've likened her writing to haiku set to music, and often chanted as much as sung. "There's a chance peace will come, in your life, please by one." On the day I got the news of the Sandy Hook massacre of a room full of six year olds, all I could do was drive around in my car listening to this on repeat. It bacame more than a song. It was a prayer.
Q: Quiet Please by Brent Lamb An obscure song by a relatively obscure Christian songwriter. This song deals with the church's not only rarely discussed but often celebrated sin of gossip. Back when I was teaching OVCS, our juggling troupe did a skit in which, as various students gossiped about a mime in a 'box' her box got smaller and smaller until it became her coffin. Then the cast sang the chorus of this song. Perhaps I need to reintroduce that one.
R: Red Dirt Girl by Emmy Lou Harris. I'm not a fan of country music, but I'm a big fan of Emmy Lou Harris. She writes about the everywoman, like a female John Prine. And of all her composition, this is her best. It's a song of two best friends growing up in a red dirt town in Alabama, whose lives took dramaticly different turns. If the setting was Sweden, they could be characters in a Fredrik Backman novel.
S: Sing Your Praise to the Lord by Rich Mullins Rich Mullins was devout Christian who never was never fully able to shake his demons. This unshaven, long haired theologian with a drinking problem took a Protestantized vow of poverty and taught music for free on an Indian reservation. A dulcimer playing Apostle Peter, he wrote some of the best Christian music of the 1980's, and this is his masterpiece.
T: There But for Fortune by Phil Ochs. The best known song penned by the bipolar, alcoholic, atheist Phil Ochs is "There But For Fortune". This minimalist word-painting of society's outcasts reminds us that "There but for fortune goes you or I". I played this song at our Christian school's high school chapel last year and was thrilled to find out one of our socially conscious teens has added it to her play list.
U: Universal Soldier by Buffy Ste-Marie, as recorded by Donovan I'll never forget hearing Donovan's early acoustic music for the first time. It was truly a life changing experience, and "Universal Soldier" rings as true today as it ever has. "This is not the way we put an end to war."
V: Violets of Dawn by Eric Andersen. This song is such pure poetry it made Leonard Cohen jealous. It's a playful, celebration set to simple acoustic guitar. Andersen says it is about the joy of the early stages of falling in romantic love, but much of it reminds me of the early days of a different kind of flling in love: being a girl-dad.
W: Why Don't You Look into Jesus by Larry Norman. I like this song so much I wrote an entire blog about it. (You can find it in the archives of this web page or my first two books. See the front page of this site.) As Norman's Dylanesque voice describes failing after failng of the 1960's counter culture ("shooting junk 'til you're half insane. You broke a needle in your purple vein") he ends each verse with the titular question "Why Don't You Look into Jesus? He's got the answer."
X: X (Ten) Degrees and Getting Colder by Gordon Lightfoot. Okay, this song doesn't really start with an X, but X is the Roman numeral for ten. I know, I cheated. That said, Lighfoot's songwriting is amazing, and, although this is not his best, it's pretty darn good. Besides, not many songs start with X.
Y: Yankee Man by Melanie. Written by Jesse Winchester, it's a love song about a young woman and older man living off the land in Vermont. It is set in my home state set amidst the autumnal colors all described through Melanie's sweet, powerful voice. What's not to like.
Z: Zandale by the Soweto Gospel Choir. Sue and I saw SGC at Portland's Merrill Auditorium years ago. This amazing group of men and women all dressed in traditional garb are a gift that brings, to quote the title of one of their albums "The Voices of Heaven" to the world. This song, sung in Zulu, with traditional drumming, whistling, chanting and song, is as good as world music gets. And it's a great song for my the ring juggling routine.