The latest part of the ongoing series chronicling, in no particular order, the greatest 1001 recordings made by Christian artists

Victoria Williams

413. VICTORIA WILLIAMS - SUMMER OF DRUGS, 1990. From the album 'Swing The Statue', Mammoth.
Victoria is one of those artists who though receiving accolades in the mainstream world is largely unknown to Christian music lovers. Her shrill, idiosyncratic voice is indeed an acquired taste but as a perceptive songwriter she is up there with the greats and despite her longtime battles with health issues she has succeeded in making a series of thoroughly effecting albums. 'Swing The Statue' was Victoria's second LP from which "Summer Of Drugs" is considered, by her cognoscente of supporters, to be her masterpiece. It truly is a most compelling of songs as it reflects on a woman's coming of age at a time when it was "too late to be hippies". The title plays cleverly on pop culture's absurdly romanticised depiction of 1967 as the Summer of Love. Victoria wistfully characterises her generation as one that "missed out on the love", with drugs a poor substitute while the poetry of her lyrics is still evocative two decades on: "Sister got bit by a copperhead snake in the woods behind the house/Nobody was home so I grabbed her foot and I sucked the poison out/And I started out my teenage years with a poison in my mouth." Unforgettable.
Tony Cummings

414. SCOTT BRENNER - TEARS OF FORGIVENESS, 2001. From the album 'The Divine Whisper', Consecrated Media.
Also a member of the California Bar, where he practiced law for several years, Scott Brenner led worship on one or two Vineyard releases in the early/mid '90s. He and wife SungHee are now based in Seoul, Korea, where Scott leads a worship and revival ministry. His gentle form of piano-based worship aims to minister the unending love of the Father straight to the heart. Nowhere on his numerous output is this accomplished more than on "Tears Of Forgiveness", a gorgeously tender song of meditation that seems to come from the heart of Heaven. The chorus is sublime: "Tears of forgiveness for what I have done/That's how you tell me how much you love me/Nail prints in your hands, a wound in your side/That's how you tell me how much you love me." Soaking music doesn't get any richer.
Tom Lennie

415. THE DAVIS SISTERS - TOO CLOSE TO HEAVEN, 1953. From the various artists album 'Golden Gospel Gals', JSP.
The leader of Philadelphia's Davis Sisters, Ruth 'Baby Sis' Davis, had the hardest, toughest, blues shouting voice in gospel while Jessy Dixon observed that the Sisters' vocal blend was so full and rounded in sound that they could have been mistaken for a small choir. The song, composed by another gospel giant, Professor Alex Bradford, is a classic and this recording, released by Gotham Records in April 1953, is the definitive rendition. Gospel expert Opal Louis Nations wrote about the recording, "'Too Close To Heaven', unlike the original, was so burdened with worry and anguish it almost seems as if Baby Sis had taken Alex Bradford's song straight to glory."
Tony Cummings

416. MO LEVERETT - CHILDREN OF DESIRE, 1995. From the album 'Sacred Desires', Storyville.
While to many New Orleans brings images of the Mardi Gras or the devastating Katrina hurricane of 2005, to musician and ordained minister Mo Leverett it has always been deep on his heart for the social deprivation in the poorest parts of the city. In New Orleans Leverett's his Desire Street Ministries has created a community of hope and healing, and part of that ministry is Mo's music, a wonderful mix of Southern blues, soul and folk. Much of his considerable output focuses unashamedly on the situation he works in. Drenched in acoustic blues, "Children Of Desire" is a hauntingly melancholic and vulnerable piece, Leverett's sensitive vocals quaking with raw emotion throughout. No-one can doubt his sincerity when he longingly sings, "All my prayers are for desire/All my prayers remain the same/That some day the children of desire/May live in fulfilment of the name".
Tom Lennie

417. ONE BAD PIG with JOHNNY CASH - MAN IN BLACK, 1991. From the album 'I Scream Sunday', Myrrh.
Exactly how the punk-into-metal band from Austin, Texas were able to persuade iconic country man Johnny Cash to come and re-record one of his classic songs in a style reminiscent of AC/DC's "Back In Black" remains one of those mysteries still awaiting to be uncovered. (Even Cash's biographer Steve Turner had never heard of this recording when I asked him.) Suffice to say that the addition of hard metal riffing to Johnny's powerful monologue as to precisely why he always dresses in black ("I wear the black for the poor and beaten-down/Livin' in the hopeless, hungry side of town/I wear it for the prisoner who has long paid for his crime/But is there because he's a victim of the times") shows a dimension to the country giant's talent no one could have suspected. One has to admit that Carey 'Kosher' Womack's contributions to the song, with their bratty unmusicality, are something of an acquired taste, but the "Man In Black" makeover remains a riveting track which even became something of a Cross Rhythms turntable hit when given plays after the great man's death.
Tony Cummings

Johnny Cash

418. JOHNNY CASH - REDEMPTION, 1994. From the album 'American Recordings', American.
The incredible truth of God's Son's payment for our sins has seldom been conveyed with such simplicity, power and luminous faith as that conveyed on this, one of Johnny's many masterly, stripped-down recordings made with producer Rick Rubin. Johnny announced at the premier celebration for 'American Recordings', "This album is about sin and redemption. Thank God for redemption. I wouldn't be here without it." And seldom has that deep, pitted voice sung with such passion as he intoned, "The blood was the price that set the captives free." A true classic.
Tom Lennie

419. MICHAEL CARD - EL SHADDAI, 1981. From the album 'First Light', Milk & Honey.
This timeless worship song was, of course, made world famous through Amy Grant's appealing rendition on her 1982 'Age To Age' smash. But, as is so often the case, it's the original version, tucked away on Card's debut album, which works best. Backed largely only by acoustic guitar - a delicate string section appearing later - Card renders the adorational truths of these verses unhurriedly and with obvious conviction, several lines of the chorus being sung in the Hebrew language. Pure worshipful beauty finely produced by Randy Scruggs (son of bluegrass giant Earl Scruggs). The song has been covered numerous times over subsequent decades but it's this haunting rendition which remains the most effecting.
Tom Lennie

420. OUT OF EDEN - DIFFERENT NOW, 2002. From the album 'This Is Your Life', Gotee.
The Kimmey sisters were always a class act and on this propulsive gem the blend of those delicious soul harmonies and a Fairlight brass riff that so ensnared us back when Stevie Wonder was recording classics make this as good a piece of modern R&B as anything hitting mainstream radio at the time. Here's hoping the ladies step back into music some time soon.
Tony Cummings

421. PETRA - SHAKIN' THE HOUSE, 1986. From the album 'Back To The Street', Star Song.
In 1986 Petra's lead singer Greg X Volz left the group. The five years with Volz had seen Petra develop from being Jesus music pioneers to become Christendom's most popular rock band and many thought that his replacement John Schlitt, formerly with mainstream rockers Head East, would be struggling to equal Mr Volz. In fact, Schlitt was a revelation. His high, full and raspy voice was perfect for the AOR riffs perfected by his bandmates giving the band a fresh cutting edge and 'Back To The Streets' was unquestionably one of the band's finest albums. CCM historian Mark Allan Powell wrote, "The song 'Shakin' The House' offers an especially good showcase for some rock shrieking beyond anything that Volz was ever able to deliver." Adding to the impact were punchy production from John and Dino Elefante and a song, co-written by John Elefante and the band's Bob Hartman and John Lowry with an apocalyptic lyric ("Everything that can be shaken will be shaken from within/Better have your house in order when the shaking begins"). Songs of the coming judgment had never before had such rock'n'roll bite.
Tony Cummings

422. RANDY STONEHILL - THESE LONELY DAYS, 1984. From the EP 'Stone Hill', Street Tunes.
Originally intended as a collection of quality publishing demos that might open up opportunities for Stonehill to write for mainstream artists, the 'Stone Hill' EP leaked out in 1984 and contained one of his most accomplished songs, right up there with the Jesusmusic pioneer's best songs of faith. "These Lonely Days" is a story song of a guy coping with the end of a relationship and is painted in a series of vivid vignettes that illustrate the empty "lostness" of his life now. He misses her early morning phone call, he follows her to a café and sees her meet a new guy. He thinks back to happier times when they were together. "These Lonely Days" is the perfect illustration of heartbreak given a simple pop backing, stripped down string arrangement and Stonehill's plaintive vocal performance. It's a sad and beautiful song that captures the utter desolation when a cherished relationship ends. It's amazing that it wasn't covered by a major pop name.
Mike Rimmer

Matthew Ward

423. MATTHEW WARD - NOAH'S SONG, 1979. From the album 'Toward Eternity', Sparrow.
Get any group of long-in-the-tooth Christian music aficionados talking about "the great voices of Christian music" and the name Matthew Ward will soon be mentioned. Considering how few albums Matthew has recorded, since this his first solo set, the esteem given to the Jesus music veteran may seem a little OTT. But anyone who has heard Ward's rich, expressive, soulful voice will have no doubt that Matthew has indeed been blessed with exceptional pipes. When Ward recorded the 'Toward Eternity' album he was still a member of The 2nd Chapter Of Acts, the family group whose shrill harmonies had produced some of Jesus music's first hits, and this was considered very much a side project. But it is a gem with an all star cast of accompanists including Keith Green, Phil Keaggy, Michael Omartian and Abrahal Laboriel. It is the Keaggy composition "Noah's Song" which is the classic, a pretty and poetic song offering the kind of prayer Noah might have prayed when espying that God-given rainbow. Historian Ken Scott has called it "the perfect vehicle for Matthew's soulful, dynamic range" and suggested "the track alone makes 'Toward Eternity' absolutely essential." I would disagree.
Tony Cummings

424. SONS OF KORAH - PSALM 121, 2000. From the album 'Redemption Songs', Wordsong Artists.
No lyrical material has been set to music more than the biblical Psalms. Over the years a vast array of composers and artists have sought to put these ancient song lyrics to their own music. But few groups have focused so exclusively on the Psalms for their lyrical output as Australian four-piece Sons Of Korah, who consider these Old Testament writings to be "the supreme biblical portrayal of the spiritual life in all its facets and dynamics". From lamentation to songs of jubilant praise, from battle cry to benediction, from exclamation of awe and wonder to reflections of tranquillity, this versatile team of composer/musicians have made the Psalms truly relevant to the walk of the believer in the 21st century. Sons Of Korah's diverse use of instrumentation is delightfully imaginative while their melodies and arrangements are constantly true to the tone of the Hebraic words. SOK's interpretation of Psalm 121 is especially captivating; not least Rod Gear's undulating accordion hues and the soothing melody rendered by Matthew Jacoby's delicate lead vocals as he assures the listener of the Lord's consistent protection for those he loves.
Tom Lennie

425. GODQUEST - AMAZING GRACE, 1997. From the album 'The Journey', Devaness.
Californian-based hip-hop/R&B duo Marcus Davis and Jacob Lutrell, aka Godquest, came up with a stunner of a gospel rap track on their debut recording, 'The Journey', the concept album took three years and all their savings to produce. This most delightful song opens with a gentle, soulful intro before breaking loose into a most satisfying R&B groove, overlaid as it is with cleverly-composed, thought-provoking rap-lines, which are largely autobiographical. The infectious chorus is a re-working of the chorus of John Newton's classic hymn "Amazing Grace" and when one considers how over-recorded this hymn evergreen has become, this urban gospel reading is startlingly fresh. The overall effect is deeply impacting - a 'mind-boggling stone-killer' wrote the Cross Rhythms reviewer at the time of its release. Six minutes of ear-gripping delight.
Tom Lennie

426. ATHLETE - WIRES, 2005. From the album 'Tourist', Parlophone.
Seldom has a rock ballad hit home with the power and poignancy of this track which reached number four in the UK pop charts. A song based on lead singer Joel Pott's traumatic experience of seeing his newly born child rushed to Intensive Care wired up to life support machines. Joel's idiosyncratic vocals, seemingly on the verge of breaking, are haunting. He intones, "You got wires going in/You got wires coming out of your skin/You got tears making tracks/I've got tears that are scared of the facts," on a classic song born out of deep emotional turmoil.
Tony Cummings

427. DC TALK - MY WILL, 1998. From the various artists album 'Exodus', Rocketown/Word.
Written by dc Talk and excellently produced by Michael W Smith and Michael Tait for the various artists project 'Exodus', "My Will" is delightfully catchy. The song starts gently, Tait delivering the opening verse in acoustic format. Building in strength, Toby Mac renders the second verse in his inimitably undulating vocal style. The lyrics tackle the seeming irreconcilability of fallible man living in full submission to infallible God. "Complexity haunts me for I am two men/Entrenched in a battle that I'll never win/My discipline fails me, my knowledge it fools me/But you are my shelter, all the strength that I need". The melody to both verse and chorus is wonderfully singable and the layered vocals make for an impressive whole - not least with the added warmth of the choral refrain, "We've got to be children of peace". Six minutes of Christian pop delight.
Tom Lennie