Where Are The Christian Retro Bands?
I had the privilege of corresponding with Oden Fong, former band member of the 70's Christian band, Mustard Seed Faith. Our main topic of conversation was; Is it possible to bring back an excitement for Christian bands and artists of the 70's and 80's, like we see with so many Billboard artists and bands of that same era? Here's my response to Oden:
...Oden, I see your point with young bands and soloist performing today and having the audience in Orange County. It's always been that way when it comes to promotion, even when we were younger. Everybody saw their time in the limelight. However because of the baby boomers and our ages, even the Rolling Stones and other mega bands are touring with packed out venues. Even less known bands and artists of the 70's and 80's are seeing some financial fruits as well because of a fan's desire to go to their concerts and buy their music.
The problem I see with the Christian bands of the 70's and 80's, is there is no platform for Christian artists to make a comeback. One of the reasons I believe is back in the late 80's, a lot of Christian record labels sold out to secular labels and they dropped the Christian music from their catalogs and stopped production of CD manufacturing, except for a hand full of the CCM artists of the day like Amy Grant, etc.. A lot of the Christian hits that were on radio and charted in the 70's and 80's basically disappeared from the maps, unlike Billboard hits that were archived and pressed to CD. A lot of these hits have not been heard in over 20 years or longer until now.
This is sad because there is so much Christian music out there like your albums and others that carry a lot of weight but can't be found, unless it's on vinyl somewhere. That's why I said earlier that I see a surge with 70's and 80's Christian music. I think people are wanting to know what happened to all that great music. Where can I find it they ask? There are several radio stations like ours (www.wow.fm) that are bringing back these hard to find hits and playing them along with today's top charted music.
Christian artists like the Sweet Comfort Band, Rick Cua, Servant, Rez Band, have taken the original masters and pressed them to CD and are selling them on their own, or by private labels. The original Christian rock band, Jerusalem is still performing after all these years, to even big crowds and are still selling a lot of music by means of CD sales, music downloads, and at their concerts.
Like I said, it needs to start with a venue like Calvary Chapel. Perform a string of concerts in one location first and then branch off. Record a DVD and CD and promote it through a website, and put it out on YouTube and other Internet portals. When you record a studio project, send out your CD to radio stations and allow some of the tunes to be downloaded for free from your websites. Then start with weekend tours throughout California and move on from there.
You see, trying to compete with today's CCM or Billboard artists and bands is silly. No one can do this. But create an excitement for the older crowd to have something that they can call their own is something that's missing with the Christian audience. Secular bands are doing it all the time with big turnouts.
So if "Love Song" grabbed 2,500 people for a first concert a couple of weeks ago with only local promotion from Church, fliers, and some local radio spots, then that speaks volumes to me! Here's the key. If they keep "building" on their band and stay visible, then in time, more people around the country will catch on to them and want to be apart of their ministry.
"As we see more Christian radio stations promote the Christian retro music of the 70's and 80's, you'll have more people interested and looking for these bands. Like I said, find one venue at first and start to build on it".
Call me crazy, but I know what I see coming and there is a movement and interest in Christian bands from the 70's and 80's, and it pretty much started with Calvary Chapel and Maranatha. With this, it's not a matter of packing out shows with people. Instead, it's being able to use what God gave you many years ago and still apply it to peoples lives today. Even if you had 500 people coming out to your shows, that's 500 people that you can touch with the Gospel of Christ.
It's that one person who still sees your ministry and gifts as an important part of their life. It's awesome!
Lee Bartlett
President
WOW.FM
Radio Without Boundaries
posted by WOW.FM
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3:05 PM
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