People often associate Christian Rock with an aura of the milquetoast, enough so that describing the genre as rock can register as a wee bit inappropriate. At its beginnings however, Christian Rock (yet to have a name) was an appealingly unkempt affair inhabiting the countercultural fringe. Jesus People Music, Vol. 2: The Reckoning, released jointly by ORG Music and Aquarium Drunkard, continues the exploration of this subterranean impulse by culling choice cuts from obscure and highly collectable LPs from the early ’70s. Its out now on transparent red vinyl.
In the notes for this set (compiled by Josh Swartwood, Doug Cooper, and Justin Gage), writer Jason P. Woodbury does differentiate between typical Contemporary Christian Music and Jesus People Music, which was made by assorted hippies after they opened themselves up to Christianity and with the New Testament at the forefront. It’s further emphasized that these believers kept their freak flags flying at full mast (indeed, they were the inspiration for the “Jesus Freak” tag), so that neither straights nor non-Christian hippies were particularly accepting of them at the time.
Our Generation, a Nyack, New York band that cut a pair of private press albums in the early ’70s, open Jesus People Music Vol. 2 in strong fashion with “Hello Friends,” a fuzz guitar-laden glider with ample infusions of airy harmony vocals and a restrained but effective organ presence. While the voices are united in unambiguous praise, it’s the competent but decidedly non-pro instrumental thrust that stands out, and that’s cool.
Even cooler is the All Saved Freak Band’s “All Across the Nation,” which delivers a heaping helping of stoner-blooze, except these cats are high on Jesus, maaannnn. The high quality is unsurprising, given the participation of Glenn Schwartz, who played in Pacific Gas & Electric and was the original guitarist in the James Gang (the All Saved Freak Band Based was initially based in a Christian commune near Orwell, Ohio) “All Across the Nation” is taken from the band’s Sower album, which came out in 1980 but sounds like 1972, with a big riff that’s nearer to Mountain than James Gang.
Connecticut-based D.R. Hooker’s “The Bible” is a bountiful dose of heavy psych with a singer-songwriter foundation. It’s taken from his ’72 private press album The Truth; original copies have sold for thousands of dollars and in turn have inspired a fair amount of reissue action. The abundance of guitar burn in “The Bible” reinforces the private press origins, and that’s much appreciated, as pro producers/ engineers would’ve surely turned down.
Rounding out side one is Candida Pax, an UK band (Manchester, I do believe) whose only LP, Day, cut in 1971, apparently never made it beyond the promo stage until getting reissued in the late ’90s by the obscurity specialists at Shadoks Music. “Darkness” is a blues rock affair, but the young Clapton-early Fleetwood Mac feel is a bit more tasteful than the heaviness dealt by All Saved Freak Band. The notes mention Creem, and that’s not off target, but the Clapton material from the Compleat Records comp White Boy Blues also sprang to mind, and that’s a sweet twist.
The flip begins with Ohio’s Patric Calfee, whose “Joy Comes in the Morning,” sourced from his ’74 private press Dayspring, is a nicely layered rock groove, unperturbed but not too laid back, exuding finesse rather than the raw edge that up to this point has been Jesus People Music’s norm. From there, the Idaho-based The Last Call of Shiloh’s “New Jerusalem,” from their self-titled ’72 LP (cut in Spokane, WA), is wonderfully drifting psych-folk with an engaging undercurrent of strangeness; the mixed gender harmonies really make it.
St. Paul, Minnesota’s Sonfolk are represented by “Homecoming” from a ’73 self-titled private press, the atmosphere tranquil until they kick it in full rock gear (with an astute comparison in the notes to Loaded-era Velvet Underground). And then, a false ending and a reset to the calmness at the beginning of the tune. For the album’s closer, New York band First Revelation dish “Lord, Come into My Life,” a terrific serving of hippie strum pop (a little country, a little girl group) with soaring leads that radiates like it was cut in the late ’60s but no; ‘twas actually released in ’73 on the band’s This Side of Eternity album.
Overall, Jesus People Music, Vol. 2: The Reckoning has a slight edge over its predecessor volume, The End Is at Hand, mainly because the songs on this follow-up are built upon stronger ideas; there’s a lack of dodgy rock moves that’s refreshing, even as the fringy nature of Jesus People Music comes through loud and clear. The Reckoning is a thorough success.
GRADED ON A CURVE:
A-
