Crowd shot masthead ApologetiX Logo Keith Haynie plays bassBill Hubauer plays lead guitarJ. Jackson sings leadJimmy Vegas Tanner plays drums
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03.18.24Get Multiple Downloads for One Donation
03.18.24USBs Include New Single & Next CD
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03.18.24Over 1650 Tracks for $100
03.16.24Influential Albums: 1402-1408
03.16.24New CD Slightly Delayed, BOGO Continues
03.16.24How to Get the ApX Library, USBs, Multiple Downloads
03.16.24This Week's Bible-Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
03.16.24Easter Season Playlist 2024
03.12.24This Week's News Bulletin
03.09.24Influential Albums: 1395-1401
03.09.24This Week's Bible-Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
03.09.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
03.05.24This Week's News Bulletin
03.03.24New Single: '74 Solo Smashes
03.01.24A Serious Problem We're Trying to Address
02.29.24All About Our Next CD
02.29.24Influential Albums: 1388-1394
02.29.24This Week's Bible-Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.29.24Clues for 2024 Single #5
02.25.24This Week's News Bulletin
02.22.24Get Ready for Our Next CD
02.22.24Influential Albums: 1381-1387
02.22.24This Week's Bible Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.22.24Wayne Is Retiring, What's Next for Him and Us?
02.22.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
02.19.24This Week's News Bulletin
02.19.24New Single: Billy & The Beach
02.16.24Influential Albums: 1374-1380
02.16.24This Week's Bible Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.16.24Remembering ApX Friend Paul "Doc" Nigh (1956-2024)
02.16.24Clues for 2024 Single #4
02.10.24Influential Albums: 1367-1373
02.10.24Fans Making Plans to Attend Our Big Show September 1
02.10.24This Week's Bible Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.10.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
02.06.24This Week's News Bulletin
02.06.24New Single: '74 & '83
02.03.24ApX Lead Singer/Lyricist Shares His Testimony 36 Years Later
02.03.24Influential Albums: 1360-1366
02.03.24This Week's Bible Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
02.03.24Latest CD Added to iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, Etc.
02.02.24Clues for 2024 Single #3
01.29.24This Week's News Bulletin
01.26.24Influential Albums: 1353-1359
01.26.24How to Get the ApX Library, USBs, Multiple Downloads
01.26.24This Week's Bible-Reading and Rock Thru the Bible
01.26.24Flashback: J.'s Vision for ApologetiX in 2014
01.26.24J.'s Vision for ApologetiX in 2024
01.26.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
01.24.24Checking in With ApX Alum Drummer Fred Behanna
01.22.24This Week's News Bulletin
01.22.24New Single: '70s #1 Hits That Remade '60s Top 10 Hits
01.19.24Influential Albums: 1346-1352
01.19.24Encouraging Message from Longtime Fan in Oklahoma
01.19.24This Week's Bible-Reading & Rock Thru the Bible
01.15.24This Week's News Bulletin
01.12.24Influential Albums: 1339-1346
01.12.24The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
01.12.24Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
01.12.24New Testament Reading Started Wednesday
01.11.24New Worship Songs Available from ApX Alum Bill Rieger
01.08.24New Single: '81 & '83
01.08.24New CD BOGO Ends Sunday
01.08.24New USB Thumb Drives on the Way
01.05.24Clues for 2024 Single #1
01.05.24Influential Albums: 1332-1338
01.05.24Have You Heard About the Other Music City Miracle?
01.05.24This Week's Bible Reading & Rock Thru the Bible
12.29.23Influential Albums: 1325-1331
12.29.23Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
12.28.232023: A Record-Breaking Record-Making Year
12.28.23The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
12.26.23This Week's News Bulletin
12.26.23New Single: 1974 & 2008
12.23.23Influential Albums: 1318-1324
12.23.23Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
12.23.23ApologetiX Updated Christmas Playlist
12.18.23This Week's News Bulletin
12.18.23New Samson CD Mailed to Fans, New Orders Sent as They Come In
12.16.23Influential Albums: 1311-1317
12.16.23Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
12.16.23New Story
12.16.23The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
12.11.23This Week's News Bulletin
12.11.23New Single: '83 & '84
12.11.23ApX Apparel: Order by Tuesday with Express Shipping
12.07.23New ApX Apparel and More: Order Soon for Christmas
12.07.23Influential Albums: 1304-1310
12.07.23Just Reword CD Added to iTunes, Spotify, Pandora, Etc.
12.07.23Clues for 2023 Single #25
12.04.23This Week's News Bulletin
12.02.23Influential Albums: 1297-1303
12.02.23This Week's Bible Reading & Rock Thru the Bible
12.02.23The Stories Behind the Songs on This Single
12.02.23New Shirts & Other ApX Merch Coming Soon
12.02.23Rock Thru the Bible with ApX This Week
11.28.23This Week's News Bulletin
11.28.23New Christmas Single: All '80s
11.24.23Influential Albums: 1290-1296

Influential Albums: 954-960
Fri., Dec. 23. 2022 5:58pm EST

J. Jackson, lead singer and lyricist for ApologetiX here again.

Here are the latest entries in the "albums that influenced me" series I started writing in May 2020.

A month ago, we finally got to 1988, when a born-again experience started a seismic shift in my musical tastes. The story continues below:

954. October - U2
Although I'd been a U2 fan since the winter of 1982-83 and had even seen them in concert during their Joshua Tree tour in the fall of '87, I'd never paid much attention to their second LP, October. However, in the spring of '88, I discovered it was their most overtly Christian album, inspired by experiences three of the members (Bono, the Edge, and Larry Mullen Jr.) had as members of a non-denominational charismatic evangelical community called Shalom Fellowship. I learned more about October from some U2 fans in my Bible study and also from a 1987 U2 biography I read shortly thereafter, Unforgettable Fire: Past, Present, and Future - the Definitive Biography of U2 by Eamon Dunphy. October was recorded between April and August 1981 and released in October (of course) the same year. Bono summed up that period of the band's career when U2 were inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2005: "Can you imagine your second album — the difficult second album — it's about God?" The one song I knew on October already was "Gloria" (from the live version on Under a Blood Red Sky), but I found out I hadn't really known it at all. Not being able to discern the lyrics back then, I'd assumed it was about some girl named "Gloria," like the old '60s classic by Them and The Shadows of Knight. Even though I'd been a choirboy in the Catholic church during much of my grade-school years, it had never dawned on me that the "Gloria" Bono was singing so passionately was the same Latin word I used to sing in "Gloria in Excelsis Deo." The chorus of the U2 song is actually "Gloria in Te Domine — Gloria exultate," which means "Glory in You, Lord — Glory, exalt (Him)." If I'd been able to understand the rest of the lyrics on the live version, I would have caught other lines in plain English like " Oh Lord, loosen my lips" and " Oh Lord, if I had anything — anything at all — I'd give it to you." Well, better late than never. Other notable tracks included "Rejoice" and "With a Shout (Jerusalem)," but my favorite track musically besides "Gloria" was actually "I Fall Down."

955. On the Fritz - Steve Taylor
I think I first borrowed this album from my friend Dana and subsequently made myself a cassette copy, although I eventually bought it on CD as a gift for somebody else. Released in 1985 and produced by Ian McDonald (formerly of King Crimson and Foreigner), On the Fritz came out between the two Steve Taylor LPs I already owned, Meltdown and I Predict 1990. Like them, it was loaded with great songs. Some were funny, like "This Disco (Used to Be a Cute Cathedral)," "It's a Personal Thing," "Drive, He Said," and "Lifeboat." Others were serious, like "On the Fritz," "To Forgive," and "I Just Wanna Know." Of the 10 tracks, those seven were the ones I liked best. A few of my favorite lines included: "So the crowds grew, and their praise did, too, and a mailing list sent you money. So they love Jerry Lewis in France — does that make him funny?" (from "On the Fritz"); "There's engines stalling and good men falling, but I ain't crawling away" (from "I Just Wanna Know"); "All you phonies get it wrong — double lives take half as long" (from "Drive, He Said"); and just about every single word in "It's a Personal Thing." Another line that left a lasting impression I've tried to live by as a lyricist is in a song I didn't mention before: "If your music's saying nothing, save it for the dentist chair" (from "You've Been Bought"). I presume Steve was alluding to the Muzak they used to play in dentist offices, although my dentist at the time, Dr. Tannenbaum, liked to hum. Come to think of it, his name was Steve, too (well, Stephen), and his initials were also S.T. Hmmm ... I just did some research, and Steve Taylor's name is actually Stephen as well, but that's his middle name. His first name is Roland.

956. I Want to Be a Clone - Steve Taylor
I probably borrowed this one from my friend Dana at the same time as On the Fritz. Although it was slightly less than 17 minutes long, Steve Taylor's six-song debut EP served notice to the CCM community that he was a force to reckoned with. His clever commentary on both the world and the church made him an equal-opportunity annoyer. Taylor was merely following in the footsteps of '70s trailblazers Larry Norman and Keith Green, but it was still startling stuff for Christian music in 1983, especially with the "new wave" feel of the music. My favorite cuts were: "Steeplechase," "Whatever Happened to Sin?," and the wonderfully witty title track. Dana also lent me a 1985 maxi-single featuring Taylor and Scottish CCM singer Sheila Walsh called The Trans-Atlantic Remixes, the highlight of which was an eight-minute duet called "Not Gonna Fall Away." Some of the music on those records may seem dated now, but the messages are still relevant to today's times.

957. Between the Glory and the Flame - Randy Stonehill
As I mentioned in an earlier entry, Randy Stonehill was one of the first Christian artists I ever heard of, thanks to my old college roommate Lance Craig. But I didn't know any Stonehill songs until 1988, when my Bible-study friend Dana let me borrow a cassette copy of Randy's '81 LP, Between the Glory and the Flame. The first two songs on it stuck out to me, so I taped them and played 'em many times: the title track and "Die Young." At some point, I was also introduced to "Keep Me Runnin'" from his landmark 1976 LP, Welcome to Paradise, and really enjoyed that one, too. Randy will reappear on this list later. I finally saw one of his live appearances in the '90s at Kennywood Park in West Mifflin PA. He was extremely entertaining.

958. The Yellow and Black Attack - Stryper
I first read about Stryper in Rolling Stone magazine while I was in college. At the time, I dismissed them as a gimmick. Christian metal? Throwing Bibles into the audience? Really? Later, an old guitarist friend of mine who was not predisposed to like anything evangelical started raving about the guitars on the song "Soldiers Under Command," and I thought, "Well, perhaps the music is legit, at least." By 1988, I was ready to take Stryper seriously and give 'em a spin. My friend Dana had all of their stuff. The group's debut album, The Yellow and Black Attack, was initially released as a six-song EP in '84, then re-released as an LP with extra songs added in '86. My favorite songs on the LP were "Loud 'N' Clear," "You Won't Be Lonely," "You Know What to Do," and the Christmas tune, "Reason for the Season." Many years later, ApologetiX briefly met Stryper's guitarists, Michael Sweet (who is also their lead vocalist) and Oz Fox when we both played at Sonshine Festival in Willmar MN in 2006. I saw them play live while we were there. Even though it was outside, I think it was the loudest concert I've ever attended.

959. Knocked Out Loaded - Bob Dylan
I'd been pleasantly surprised by Dylan's 1983 LP, Infidels, so I took a flyer on a discount copy of his 1986 release, Knocked Out Loaded. As an old friend of mine used to say when giving faint praise of something, "It was extremely OK." And that may be a little generous. I was hoping for more of the Dylan I'd heard on Slow Training Coming and Saved or even Infidels, but I had to squint really hard to find him aside from sparse spiritual snippets in "Maybe Someday" like "Through hostile cities and unfriendly towns, 30 pieces of silver, no money down" and Maybe someday you'll hear a voice from on high, sayin' 'For whose sake did you live, for whose sake did you die?'" There was, however, one track with an outright profession of faith, "They Killed Him," although it was written by Kris Kristofferson. The song's first two verses were about Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., but the song's climatic third verse contained the payoff: "The only son of the God Almighty, the holy one called Jesus Christ — He healed the sick and he fed the hungry, and for his love they took his life away — on the road to glory, where the story never ends — just the holy son of man, I'll never understand — my God, they killed him." The other interesting tracks to me were "Driftin' Too Far from Shore" and "Brownsville Girl," an 11-minute epic that wasn't exactly melodic but still had some entertaining and mildly amusing moments. For folks wondering where Dylan's coming from spiritually these days, here's a quote he gave in an interview published in The Wall Street Journal on December 19, 2022: "I'm a religious person. I read the scriptures a lot, meditate and pray, light candles in church. I believe in damnation and salvation, as well as predestination. The Five Books of Moses, Pauline Epistles, Invocation of the Saints, all of it."

960. To Hell with the Devil - Stryper
Stryper's third LP went to #32 on the Billboard 200 and even had a Top 40 single ... honestly. And that hit literally was "Honestly," which went to #23 on the pop chart. Released in October 1986, To Hell with the Devil sold a million copies, and I borrowed one that had been purchased by my friend Dana. My favorite tracks were the "Calling on You," "To Hell with the Devil," "Free," and "Sing-Along Song." That last song really showed off the band's harmonies, which were stellar, especially for a metal band. ApologetiX bassist Keith Haynie and his wife, Krista, played "Honestly" for the official bride-and-groom dance at their wedding reception in 1990. I know, because I was there, even though I'd never met either one of them until that day. Ah, but that's another story for another time ...