VA - All God's Children, Jesus Saves Songs From the British Jesus Rock Revolution 1967 - 1974 [2023] (3 x CDs)

FOLK ROCK

VA - All God's Children, Jesus Saves Songs From the British Jesus Rock Revolution 1967 - 1974 [2023] (3 x CDs)

A curious phenomenon of the late hippie era, Jesus rock is usually considered an American fad, one that encompassed rock operas like Jesus Christ Superstar, AM smashes like Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky," and funky FM roots rock like the Doobie Brothers' "Jesus Is Just Alright with Me." Grapefruit's triple-disc set All God's Children: Songs from the British Jesus Rock Revolution 1967-1974 tells a parallel narrative, one centered in the United Kingdom, where an uprising of Christian rock bands intersected with folk and prog groups who also sang about Jesus, albeit in occasionally elliptical ways. All God's Children spends as much time with secular interpretations of gospel as it does with the faithful, a decision that makes the Jesus rock trend feel fairly widespread while also adding considerable musical depth to the compilation. Much of this set occupies the slipstream separating folk-rock and art rock -- it opens with a song called "Prelude," after all, a fanfare where Salamander incorporate elements of "He Is My God" into their pomp -- but the sharpest moments often are from the bands who demonstrate a love of song elsewhere: Richard Thompson, the Hollies, Clifford T. Ward, Gerry Rafferty, Fairport Convention, and the Kinks provide the melodic backbone for this set. If it sometimes seems if the compilers are stretching the definition of Jesus rock -- Roy Wood's manic "Songs of Praise" seems like a parody of faith, not a recitation of it -- that also makes All God's Children an effective document of its time: it suggests that this was a real pop culture phenomenon, one that wasn't limited to just true believers. (AllMusic review by Stephen Thomas Erlewine)

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Track lists

CD1

01 Salamander - Prelude (Incorporating He Is My God) 7:16

02 Out of Darkness - On Solid Rock 4:03

03 Bourbon Street Mission - Jesus is Just Alright 2:58

04 Parchment - Son of God 3:47

05 Lindisfarne - Winter Song 5:09

06 Unicorn - Country Road 4:14

07 Paul Brett's Sage - Help Me Jesus 4:16

08 Moody Blues - Minstrel's Song 4:27

09 Gordon Giltrap - Gospel Song 2:57

10 Ramases - Jesus Come Back 3:58

11 Quintessence - Jesus My Life 3:38

12 Heron - Lord and Master 4:53

13 Richard Thompson - Mary and Joseph 1:39

14 Manfred Mann's Earth Band - Prayer 5:37

15 Whispers of Truth - Reality 2:59

16 Pilgrims - Thank You Lord 3:24

17 Hollies - Jesus Was a Crossmaker 3:46

18 Magna Carta - Lord of the Ages 9:59

CD2

01 Strawbs - The Man Who Called Himself Jesus (Alternative Version) 3:32

02 Clifford T. Ward - The Traveller 5:21

03 Johnstons - Jesus Was a Carpenter 5:48

04 Incredible String Band - Job's Tears 6:47

05 Amazing Blondel - Safety in God Alone 4:22

06 Gerald Moore - To Be a Pilgrim 4:25

07 All Things New - Jesus is Coming Again 3:29

08 Kevin Coyne - Heaven in My View 3:16

09 Gerry Rafferty - Who Cares 5:10

10 Wil Malone - Jesus 3:07

11 Graham Kendrick - Sweet Fire 5:00

12 Prelude - Dear Jesus 3:50

13 Fairport Convention - Matthew, Mark, Luke & John 3:55

14 Bill Fay - Time of the Last Persecution 3:54

15 Jethro tull - My God 7:11

16 Clive Palmer - Stories of Jesus 2:44

17 Nigel Godwin - The First Time I Went to Church 6:54

CD3

01 Matthews' Southern Comfort - Woodstock 4:33

02 Wishful Thinking - Clear White Light 2:58

03 Roy Wood - Songs of Praise 4:46

04 Help Yourself - I Must See Jesus for Myself 4:02

05 Quiet World - Christ One 5:30

06 Stray - Hallelujah 3:26

07 Bill Nelson - Love's a Way 3:35

08 Strawbs - Is it Today, Lord? 3:09

09 Al Stewart - Gethsemane, Again 5:25

10 Mellow Candle - Heaven Heath 3:00

11 Judy Mackenzie - New Song 4:14

12 Nirvana - Lord Up Above 4:16

13 Bruce Spelman - Hallelujah Sang the People 4:15

14 Roger and Jan - Three Crosses 3:14

15 Phillip Goodhand-Tait - Child of Jesus 2:55

16 Medicine Head - His Guiding Hand (Album Version) 4:03

17 Genesis - The Serpent 4:02

18 Fickle Pickle - Jesus Cristo 2:30

19 John Pantry - Family of Man 2:29

20 John Kongos - Come on Down Jesus 3:39

21 Pentangle - Will the Circle Be Unbroken? 4:06

22 Kinks - God's Children 3:19

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