After hearing Shai Linne’slast album, The Attributes of God, I became an even bigger fan of his music (see my two part review of this album here and here). I love the way he uses the art form of hip-hop to communicate the gospel with depth and clarity in a way that other genres of music usually can’t. So ever since I heard he had a new album coming out (Lyrical Theologywill be released April 9), I’ve been eagerly anticipating it!
Today a track from the new album was released, and it’s a message that desperately needs to be shared. “Fal$e Teacher$” deals with the proliferation of “prosperity theology,” particularly in Africa, where it has spread like wildfire. At about the 2:30 mark, he starts naming names. Check it out:
Here’s a video in which Shai Linne explains his motivation for writing this song, and why he chose to specifically call out some of the most popular preachers on the planet:
You can preview the rest of the tracks from Lyrical Theology here. I’ll leave you with a word from John Piper, who, like Shai Linne, doesn’t mince words about the health & wealth garbage:
The first song recorded in Scripture is the Song of Moses in Exodus 15, written after the crossing of the Red Sea by the people of Israel. Moses also wrote a second song—this one dictated by God himself—just before the crossing of the Jordan into the promised land. These songs give fascinating insight into the character and attributes of God, and have an enduring relevance to the people of God. So enduring, in fact, that Revelation 15 depicts the redeemed singing the Song of Moses in heaven!
I chose these songs as the topic of a paper for my Old Testament survey class. I realize that posting seminary papers is a little out-of-the-ordinary for a blog, but I enjoyed writing this one and thought it might benefit others who have a similar interest in Old Testament worship. If you’d like to check it out, here it is: Who Is Like Yahweh? The God of the Old and New Testaments Revealed in the Songs of Moses. No word yet on what my grade is…
Three of the books I referenced in the paper are particularly excellent, so if you’re interested in learning more about the Old Testament in general or Old Testament songs in particular, these are a great place to start:
Now that this paper (and the rest of my homework for this semester’s classes) is out of the way, I should finally be able to get back to blogging consistently… at least until my next round of classes starts up in June!
Do sentimental seasonal ballads bring out your inner Ebenezer? Does “Christmas Shoes” give you the Christmas blues? You’ve come to the right place! There’s no need to swear off all Christmas music just because most Christmas music is lame. Here are some great albums that will remind you that Christmas is a time worth celebrating!
My personal Christmas listening tends to fall into three categories:
Fun Stuff
My very favorite album in this category is “What a Wonderful Christmas” by Louis Armstrong & Friends. Every track is good, but here’s my favorite:
For another great swingin’ album, pick up “The Ultimate Christmas Collection” by the Brian Setzer Orchestra. I especially love their rock-a-billy twist to Tchaikovsky’s ballet (bonus props for the subtle dig at pop “musicians” who don’t read music):
This year, the Squirrel Nut Zippers’ “Christmas Caravan” seems especially appropriate given songs like Hot Christmas and Carolina Christmas that speak of Christmases without snow. Then there’s the creatively cynical Indian Giver that’s good for a laugh. But this album also includes one of the only renditions of “Sleigh Ride” that rivals the original:
Readers in Colorado and Washington might prefer this track from a different SNZ album…
And no list of fun Christmas albums would be complete without “Barenaked Christmas” by the Barenaked Ladies! I dare you to listen to this without smiling:
Baroque
Let’s face it: we can’t always be in a “fun” mood. Sometimes (most of the time, actually) I’d rather listen to something that is simply brilliant. To me, nothing expresses the glory of the incarnation like the great Baroque composers. If you’ve been in my office at all in the last month, you’ve probably heard something from this list.
While it’s not actually “Christmas” music, this is the season during which Handel’s masterpiece Messiahis most frequently performed. Check out the “Messiah Blog” tab at the top of this page for links to a few dozen devotionals I wrote about what may well be the greatest musical composition of all time. Here’s one of my favorite movements:
My most recent purchase is a DVD performance of J.S. Bach’s Christmas Oratorio, and it’s fan-freakin’-tastic. It’s German title is Die Weihnachtsgeschichte, which means “The Christmas Story”. The libretto tells this story in six parts, representing the six major feast days of the Christmas season. Here’s the famous opening chorus:
Another favorite is Arcangelo Corelli’s Concerti Grossi Op. 6. This is actually a collection of several very short concerti, the 8th of which is known as the “Christmas Concerto”:
Contemporary Gospel-Centered
I wasn’t sure exactly what to call this “genre” I’ve just invented, but what I mean by it are songs which carry on the Baroque tradition of teaching the Gospel through music (à la Bach & Handel), but do it in a more contemporary context. The very best example of this is Andrew Peterson’s album “Behold the Lamb of God”, which I’ve already mentioned this week so I won’t say more about it now.
Another spectacular album which tells the story of the birth of Christ is “Joy — An Irish Christmas” by Keith & Kristyn Getty. This is a mixture of new arrangements of traditional Christmas carols and some original compositions. Here’s my favorite:
My wife’s top Christmas album is “Christmas Bright & Beautiful” by the Annie Moses Band. While this family band has released some newer Christmas albums since then, this one remains our favorite. Here’s a live performance of the opening track:
And, of course, I love the great advent hymns that have been instructing and encouraging the Church for centuries… and, as Trevin Wax points out, “It’s quite possible that non-Christians hear more Christian theology around Christmas-time than any other time of the year. A number of Christmas songs are filled with rich theological truths.” I’m always on the lookout for creative ways to bring new life to old standards, such as this David Potter re-imagining of one of Charles Wesley’s finest:
The list could go on and on, but hopefully this will give some hope to those who are sick of sap. How about you? What are some of your favorite Christmas albums?
P.S. — This post was inspired by a recent Facebook conversation with Jeff Wright, who only thinks he hates Christmas music.
P.P.S. — Russell Moore recently posted a related (but more serious) article about why sappy Christmas music is bad. It’s good stuff.
P.P.P.S. — Ever since studying the church fathers this semester in church history, I’ve been itching to write something titled “Against _______” (cf. “Against Heresies”, “Against Marcion”, “Against the Murderous Thieving Hordes of Peasants“, etc.). Done!
Yesterday, due to the unfortunate illness of the child of one of our staff members, Laurie and I were given their tickets to last night’s performance of Behold the Lamb of God by Andrew Peterson. He’s now been doing this show for 13 Advent seasons, and it keeps getting better each time I see it! If you aren’t familiar with the BTLOG tour, here’s a little promo video they put together this year:
I’ve seen the show at least six times now, but last night’s was by far the best performance I’ve seen yet. Partly that was due to the experience of hearing it at the historic Ryman Auditorium, which allowed for a sound and light experience unlike anything I’ve seen from previous performances, but the assembled cast of musicians (which changes from year to year, and sometimes show to show) was really outstanding!
When I discovered that Buddy Greene and Jeff Taylorwere on the program, I was pumped! Their bluegrass performance of “Sleigh Ride” was worth the price of admission (or in our case, the price of babysitting, since we were blessed with free tickets) all by itself. They were followed by a few numbers from Steven Curtis Chapman, which was also a special treat.
I can’t recommend this show more highly to you, nor the Behold the Lamb of Godalbum which gets played pretty much every December day in the Gardner house. It never gets old!
A few years ago, I wrote a series of devotions based on the tracks from this album. You can find them here:
You may also be interested in Andrew Peterson’s excellent fiction series, The Wingfeather Saga. Here are my reviews of the first three books, with the final book of the series due to be released next year:
My excitement may perhaps be premature, but I’m really looking forward to a field trip that I just officially booked today for students of the School of Performing Arts! On May 2, a group of 45 students and parents (plus a few SPA teacher/chaperones) will be heading to the Nashville Symphony. With very few exceptions, this will be the first ever professional orchestra concert for nearly all of them. I don’t know that there’s much I enjoy more than watching the reaction of young music students hearing a live symphony for the first time!
The highlight of the concert will be Brahms’ 4th Symphony. What a great piece! I just spent the last 45 minutes reminding myself how much I love it.
The rest of the program isn’t too shabby, either. Claude Debussy’s Nocturnes will open the concert, followed by a recently composed piano concert by James MacMillan called “The Mysteries of Light“. I’m not familiar with the piece, but the composer’s descriptionis pretty interesting. Here’s a decent recording of the Debussy piece:
Many thanks go to the fine folks at the Nashville Symphony Orchestra for accommodating such a large group of students, and for giving us a tremendous discount! Too bad it’s still five months away…
