Any suggestions for "good" Christian music?

[Gwen in VA]

I just received a generous gift coupon and would like to use it to give my Christian music collection new life -- I haven't bought any in nearly a decade.

I like fairly mellow acoustic music -- the last album I bought was a Michael Card one.

I would really appreciate any suggestions -- I just went poking around on Amazon and listened to a bunch of clips. I am now seriously overwhelmed by my choices!

Thank you!

[Sue G in PA]

Casting Crowns - love, love, love Casting Crowns!
Selah
Point of Grace
Avalon - the older music but newer is good too, just different group members
Mercy Me
Any of the WOW CD's b/c they have a great compilation of music
Aaron Schust - a newer artist, sings "My Savior, My God"
Chris Tomlin


That should get you started. All those are fairly mellow.

[3lilreds in NC]

Steven Curtis Chapman - my absolute favorite
Jars of Clay
Caedmon's Call
Newsboys (not so much on the acoustic, but really, really fun)
Casting Crowns - second this one
Mercy Me - second this one too
Chris Tomlin - second him too - he is fabulous
Sarah Groves - very mellow

One compilation that I've been enjoying recently is an album called "Glory Revealed." It's kind of a bluegrass album, and it's really good! The song I've heard from the radio is "By His Wounds."

There are some older compilations that I love - Michael W. Smith did one with lots of folks called "Exodus." It's fabulous. I enjoyed the City on a Hill albums too, especially the one with "God of Wonders" on it. The WOW CDs are great, as Sue said, because they are the "greatest hits" of contemporary Christian music. They are a great place to start when you aren't sure which artists you like.

If you go to KLOVE.com you can listen online and get an idea of who you like. Or, if you have a local station, that's even better!

[Plaid Dad]

Have you heard John Michael Talbot? He's a prolific Franciscan musician. You might enjoy his "Come to the Quiet," which is based mostly on the psalms.

[~Tara~]

Dittoing a few:
Aaron Shust (boy do we ever LOVE that cd!!)
Chris Tomlin
Mercy Me
Jars of Clay, love them
Caedmon's Call (also...Derek Webb's solo stuff..he's awesome!!)
Casting Crowns
Oh yes and those City on a Hill cds, those are great!! I think we have 3 of them.

Then ....
Matt Redman
David Crowder Band

ummm what else?

hard for me to think sometimes, I like some edgier stuff...I'm not sure that's what you're looking for ??

But in that realm:

Skillet
Third Day (not all their stuff is that hard, they're really not comparable to Skillet and the others I am about to mention LOL)
Sanctus Real
Reliant K
Switchfoot
Wavorly
Barlow Girl
Ooooo Toby Mac ;)

If you're into an older/folky kind of sound I have a great rec, I'm just not sure where you could get his stuff. We got his cd from him personally, he only had a small production, not sure if anything even slightly bigger came from it ?? Anyway, Jim Scott Orrick.
And don't forget Keith Green...he never goes out of 'style' does he? :giggle:

Oh another newbie:
Brandon Heath (I'm not who I was)

I like the Newsboys as well, already mentioned.
Waiting (Hands in the Air is my all-time fave song!!!)

Well, there are a few things to further confuse and overwhelm you LOL
Have fun shopping!!

[Kelli in TN]

Have you heard John Michael Talbot? He's a prolific Franciscan musician. You might enjoy his "Come to the Quiet," which is based mostly on the psalms.

He and Michael Card teamed up years ago. I have that cd. It is wonderful.

I should pull it out and put it on my Zune!!! I have not listened to it in ages.

[Alphabetika]

where he teams with Michael Card. We also enjoy Sara Groves, Ginny Owens, and Andrew Peterson.

[klmama]

Yes, John Michael Talbot is wonderful! I started listening to him in high school. I still love The Lord's Supper. I enjoyed it on album. then cassette, and now I want it on CD.

"...and we shall stand forgiven." Now it's in my head and I have to play it today. Thanks for the reminder!

[chai]

And don't forget Keith Green...he never goes out of 'style' does he? :giggle:


I just had to say that dd discovered my Keith Green CD and plays him all the time! She can sing all of the songs on the CD. Of course he's great, but it sounds kind of funny coming from a nine year old.

[Pencil Pusher]

I just received a generous gift coupon and would like to use it to give my Christian music collection new life -- I haven't bought any in nearly a decade.

I like fairly mellow acoustic music -- the last album I bought was a Michael Card one.

I would really appreciate any suggestions -- I just went poking around on Amazon and listened to a bunch of clips. I am now seriously overwhelmed by my choices!

Thank you!

You'd probably like Chris Rice. I love his "Come to Jesus." But then, I barely see a reason to buy anything OTHER than Michael Card. Unless, of course, one already owns everything he's ever done. :D

[Jenn in Mo]

Jars of Clay have a great cd called Redemption Songs. It is older hymns given a folk feel. Lots of acoustic. My current favorite.

[Jean in Newcastle]

Francisco Ortega - his music is gentle and beautiful.

[Jennifer in NH]

Do any of you know if any of these musicians play/sing traditional hymns?

I've been looking for a cd of beautiful traditional hymns and have been overwhelmed at all the Christian music around. What I am looking for is someone singing stuff like "How great thou art" "Amazing grace" "Ave Maria"...stuff like that?

[Gwen in VA]

Thank you so much for all the suggestions. I have had a fun morning listening to clips from an amazing number of albums.

(Homeschooing? Kids? Ummm.....well......some mornings are more productive than others!)

[~Tara~]

Ha...on the 9 yr old going on about Keith Green ... yeah, I know...my crew love his stuff too. 11, 8 and 6 all talk about his stuff and sing every word....then follow with some Toby Mac ... how's that for diverse? :p

Oh and to the OP, sorry I apparently missed that part about the 'softer' stuff...Skillet would not apply LOL

If I think of anything else helpful, I'll post back. My problem is I forget who sings what. I drive myself crazy with that, honestly.

[FloridaLisa]

Gwen,

Do not miss Philips, Craig and Dean. Acoustical, worshipful, wonderful! Also, not to be missed are the Irish husband-wife team of Kristen and Keith Getty. They are being hailed as contemporary hymn writers for the the doctrine in their music. You may be familiar with "In Christ Alone." Oh my. I'm going to have to go out and get that CD right now just thinking about it.

http://www.gettymusic.com/about.asp


Happy listening,
Lisa

[Nissi]

"Valley of Vision" from Sovereign Grace Ministries.

[Chris in CA]

Creed, Third Day, Jars of Clay

[Sandra314]

Casting Crowns
Rush of Fools
Chris Tomlin
Todd Agnew
Tim Hughes

Just a couple of my favorites :001_smile:

[Pencil Pusher]

Francisco Ortega - his music is gentle and beautiful.

Oh--if you mean Fernando Ortega--yes! I love him, too!

[kjprice]

Oh, thanks for this thread! Now that I have kids that can actually understand the lyrics in music, I've been keeping my radio on the local Christian radio station. But they seem to be playing the same music over and over. I'll be interested to read the responses and get me some new music, too!

[Pencil Pusher]

Oh, thanks for this thread! Now that I have kids that can actually understand the lyrics in music, I've been keeping my radio on the local Christian radio station. But they seem to be playing the same music over and over. I'll be interested to read the responses and get me some new music, too!

Oh, no kidding! There's one that says something about the day "a mother lost a son at the end of the road..." & mine were singing THAT part of that song *incessantly* for a while. I wonder even about Christian music sometimes. (Not that there's anything wrong w/ that song, just that my dc were 5 or 6 & 3 or 4 at the time, so it was kind-of...macabre?)

[Jlynn]

Indelible Grace. I think they have 4 albums out now. Here's a link to their first one.

http://www.igracemusic.com/

They just take old hymns and put it to new sounds.

Here's another one I love. They're Messianic Jewish and were real popular in the 70's.

http://www.lambmessianicmusic.com/

[Tarheel Heather]

"Valley of Vision" from Sovereign Grace Ministries.

http://www.sovereigngraceministries.org/Resources/Music/Overview.aspx

[HSMom2One]

his "Revival in Belfast" album is my all time favorite. It is worship music recorded in Ireland where Proddies and Catholics came together to worship in unison. The album is extremely inspiriing for people of all ages. Some of his other albums are great too, but this one is the best of all.

I also love Jeremy Camp, Nichole Nordeman and Matt West, along with all the others that have already been listed.

In my humble opinion, every family should invest in a good stereo system and a variety of music for everyone to experience. This is all part of creating a great environment of learning and appreciation for our children.

Enjoy your music. What a wonderful gift!

Blessings,
Lucinda

[HootOwl]

Love, Love, Love Casting Crowns, that is!

Wonderful, real-life lyrics that can make you cry when you need to and encourage you when you need that.

All three CD's are awsome.

Happy shopping!

[HollyDay]

I really enjoy Messianic music. It is really beautiful. Karen Davis
Liberated Wailing Wall
Zemer Levav
Paul Wilbur
Jonathan Settel
Barry and Betya Segal

[clerkofkirk]

WAYNE WATSON!
He got me through many difficult times.

Susie in SWVA

[Jean in Newcastle]

Oh--if you mean Fernando Ortega--yes! I love him, too!

Oops! Yes, I mean FERNANDO. Must have been a senior moment. . .

[Chris in VA]

Haven't read the others, but just wanted you to know I have a lot of Christian music on my blog (tho the first is Jason Castro singing Rainbow! lol).
I also have some other music mixed in there, but it's farther down. (Tom Lehrer is probably not a Christian, but you never know...:D)
Anyway, feel free to give a listen. The music thingy is in the left "margin" and can be clicked on to see the whole thing.

[Dawn]

Indelible Grace. I think they have 4 albums out now. Here's a link to their first one.

http://www.igracemusic.com/

They just take old hymns and put it to new sounds.




Oh I second this! We have the first CD and it is wonderful! They have a variety of singers and every song is good!

[nmoira]

I'm not a Christian, but I've always loved October by U2. Beautiful album.

[Basketmaker Amy]

Marty Goetz is wonderful also. He is a Messianic Jew and a lot of his music is based on scriptures/torah. He plalys the piano. I've heard him live and he was wonderful!

[JoJo]

I LOVE my Psalms of David cd (http://www.christianbook.com/Christian/Books/product?item_no=CD82322&netp_id=368187&event=ESRCN&item_code=WW&view=details).

It's the one I listen to mostly these days. It really relaxes me and helps me to focus. In fact, I even brought it with me to the hospital when I was laboring with my ds:001_smile: