Positive Infinity » Podcast

Les Reflets: De l’abondance du coeur, la bouche parle (Out of the Abundance of the Heart, the Mouth Speaks)

me — Wed, 27 Jul 2011 05:00:59 +0000

When we think of “contemporary” Christian music, most of us restrict ourselves to the US, or throw in the UK for good measure. But the revolution in Christian music in the 1960′s and 1970′s went far beyond the Anglophone world, and this album–from France–may be the best example of that. It’s conventional wisdom to characterise …

Interview with “They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love” Peter Scholtes

me — Wed, 15 Jun 2011 05:00:33 +0000

This week I’m taking a little different tack by spotlighting an interview with Peter Scholtes, best known as the composer of “They Will Know We Are Christians By Our Love.“ Conducted by his stepdaughter Jenna, it’s a fascinating trip through his life, career as a priest in the South Side of Chicago, involvement in the …

Word of God Chorus and Orchestra: Praises for the King

me — Wed, 08 Jun 2011 05:00:58 +0000

Word of God Chorus and Orchestra: Praises for the King (W/G 8020, 1980) Throughout the 1970′s the Word of God, that Catholic Charismatic covenant community par excellence in Ann Arbor, Michigan, had two distinguishing features. The first was its authoritarian headship structure, whose main architects were Steve Clark and Ralph Martin. The second was its …

Fruit of the Spirit: He Loves You and Me

me — Wed, 01 Jun 2011 05:00:08 +0000

Fruit of the Spirit He Loves You and Me (Holiday 12101, 1976) A great deal of the “Jesus Music” of the 1960′s and 1970′s was performed in coffee-houses. An innovative form of ministry, it broke with the “church” tradition (a breaking churches struggle with perpetuating until this day) and placed the gospel in a laid …

Oasis: Smile for the Sun and Promised Land

me — Wed, 25 May 2011 05:00:55 +0000

Oasis was the touring group for Youth for Christ. As a result of that, their line-up was subject to frequent change, but in the course of that change they put out some pretty interesting music. The best known member of the group was the Scottish vocalist (and later co-hostess of the 700 Club) Shelia Walsh, …

Achor: A Door of Hope, The Wine of Lebanon, and End of My Day

me — Wed, 18 May 2011 05:00:35 +0000

Achor was a church-based group from London. They produced (AFAIK) three albums, all of which are available on this page. A Door Of Hope (Dove 18, 1975) The first of the albums, a very folksy production more in line with the Fisherfolk/Word of God axis. Part of that includes singing in the Spirit, which one …

Bill Atwood: 3:25 A.M.

me — Wed, 04 May 2011 05:00:05 +0000

Bill Atwood 3:25 A.M. (Dovetail DOVE 35) 1976 It’s hard to conceive of a mellower production than this, with Bill Atwood’s smooth vocals and the excellent backing instrumentation from John Pantry’s production (Cloud’s backup vocals add the mix.) This is a favourite of mine, and it’s too bad that the follow up from the UK …

Ark: Voyages

me — Wed, 27 Apr 2011 05:00:49 +0000

Ark: Voyages (1978) When one thinks of Southern music–especially in the 1970′s–one thinks of either Country and Western or Southern Gospel. And it’s true that much of what came out in that era was one or the other. A good example of that was the Greenville, SC group Southern Joy that we feature on this …

Tom Belt and God Unlimited

me — Wed, 20 Apr 2011 05:00:47 +0000

Every now and then a group comes along which represents the best of its genre. Its leadership, those who play and sing with it, everything seems to “click.” Although picking an absolute best in the turbulent era of the 1960′s and 1970′s isn’t easy, for college campus church based groups, it’s hard to beat God …

The Berets: The Mass for Peace

me — Wed, 13 Apr 2011 05:00:42 +0000

The Berets: The Mass for Peace (1969) Catholics have been composing musical settings for Mass since the days of Gregory the Great and before, but the 1960′s and 1970′s saw the introduction of entirely new styles of music for the sacred mysteries. One of the more innovative productions was the so-called “Mass for Peace” by …