Artist:Children of the Day
Song:For Those Tears I Died
Album:Come to the Waters
Today, Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) is very popular. But in the early 70s it was called Jesus music and the church establishment were reluctant to accept it for most of the 70s. Children of the Day may have been the first Jesus music group as the album Come to the Waters was released in 1971. The leader of Children of the Day was Marsha Stevens. She is sometimes called the mother of CCM. She was born Marsha Carter Aug. 20, 1952 in Pomona, CA. Marsha became a Christian in 1969. After writing the song For Those Tears I Died, the school's choir director suggested she publish the song. The song became popular in churches and Marsha decided that she wanted to be a performer. She brought in her sister Wendy Carter, her friend Peter Jacobs and Russ Stevens. And once they all became Christians, Children of the Day was formed. They were like a 60s folk group. Marsha sang lead and the others sang harmony. Wendy played guitar, Jacobs played piano and Stevens played bass. When they wanted to record, they borrowed $900 from Calvary Chapel pastor Chuck Smith. The 1971 album Come to the Waters was released by Maranatha Music. They usually produced choir and instrumental music. For Those Tears I Died is probably their best known song. The album is available on CD. They switched to Light Records for the 1975 album Where Else Would I Go. Children of the Day released five albums. By the time the 1979 album Butterfly was released, Jacobs left the group and they disbanded. Meanwhile, Marsha and Russ Stevens divorced and Marsha announced that she was a lesbian. This was CCM's first scandal. After that, Marsha started BALM (Born Again Lesbian Music). She still performs at gay churches. Jacobs created the Praise Symphony Orchestra and recorded for Maranatha. He has mainly been a producer for years. Here's Children of the Day performing For Those Tears I Died on a 1971 TV show.
No comments:
Post a Comment