Monday, August 31, 2009

THE MUSIC THAT MOST INFLUENCED MY LIFE - PART 4







Okay, here are two more artists in this series on the music that has most influenced my life.

Resurrection Band
Rainbows End
Colours


Perhaps the first "Christian" hard rock album I ever owned was Rainbow's End by Resurrection Band. Glenn Kaiser is one of the best rock singers ever! I mean it! He also happens to be a gutsy pastor of Jesus People USA in Chicago, Illinois.

I have both of these albums as re-released CD's. I'm amazed by the quality of the songwriting, Glenn's "bluesy" and gritty vocals and the overall quality (almost 30 years later)!

Resurrection Band eventually evolved into Rez. They kept putting out awesome albums. For those of you who've never had a chance to catch their music, check out their double CD, Rez, Twenty Years Live. (You can listen to the entire CD on Lala.com one time free by following the link.) They cover most of the great songs in their catalogue and you'll get a chance to hear Glen Kaiser wail! Man, the dude can sing!

Check out the following cuts from Twenty Years Live on Lala.com: Military Man, Afrikaans, Colours, Paint A Picture, Love Comes Down, My Jesus Is All, Bargain (a cover of the old song by Pete Townsend).


Degarmo & Key
This Time Thru
Straight On
No Turning Back Life
D & K


Around 1978 or 79 I picked up This Time Thru by Degarmo & Key. It was a solid album. But the album that would hook me on Degarmo and Key was the next album, Straight On. I listened to the album over and over and over again and memorized practically every song on the album.

In 1982, Degarmo & Key came out with a double live album, No Turning Back. I had never heard a live rock album. (Rock music was "outlawed" in our home.) But I can remember cranking this album up and listening to over and over and over again.

The band was anchored by Dana Key on lead vocals and a "mean" blues oriented rock guitar, Eddie Degarmo on backing vocals and the legendary Hammond B3. He also played keys, but the Hammond B3... Oh, man... Don't get me started!!! As for a rhythm section, Tommy Cathey was solid on bass and Greg Morrow kicked it on the drums. What a band!

It was around 1982 that Degarmo & Key came to a little college out on Lookout Mountain in Chattanooga, TN. You can bet, this was a must see event. A bunch of us made the trip to the small concert hall. Degarmo & Key took the stage and for the next 2 hours plus they rocked the house! I had never been to a rock concert! But this was a ROCK concert. Jesus was glorified! It was obvious they were passionate about the gospel. But the music and the performance was all out ROCK! Oh, man, what a concert.

While some of their later releases became a little less rock and a lot more "pop," the early Degarmo and Key albums set a great standard in Christian music. In fact, the No Turning Back Live CD in my book is still the best live Christian album ever released. There are extended jams on the album that are what great ROCK and ROLL is all about. Once again, you can listen to No Turning Back thru one time free on Lala.com. Still great music!

After a few "pop" oriented releases, in 1987 Degarmo & Key went back to their roots, with an all out Christian rock and roll album titled, D & K. Check out the first song, Out of the Danger Zone, if your head doesn't instantly begin to "head bang", you may want to check your pulse.

Song highlights from the Degarmo & Key catalogue include: Out of the Danger Zone, Long Distance Runner, Jericho, Emmanuel, Over and Over, Addey and more...


To be continued...

1 comment:

Micah Andrews said...

how about a shout out to the Rez band? Just listened to your message awhile back called "When someone gets the best of you." Great message!

Think of you often, pray for you sometimes, but dang it seldom get to see you. Hope you are good.