With stirring songs of faith, love, and hope, the Jesus Music movement rose from America’s 1960s counterculture to become a worldwide phenomenon. This fascinating documentary reveals Jesus Music’s uplifting, untold story — from its humble beginnings at the Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California, through its transformation into the multi-million-dollar industry of Christian Contemporary music.
“The Jesus Music” starts out slowly by introducing its audience to the wide-ranging appeal of Contemporary Christian Music by telling the story of the movement that started in the 1960s and struggled at times to become the multimillion-dollar industry that it is today. When Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California opened its doors and welcomed thousands of Christian singers into its fold, it was a gateway for the rest of the world to realize that it was okay to create a safe space for the thousands of Christian creatives and have the world realize that it was not the devil’s work. Once the doors were opened at Calvary Chapel, many other cities jumped on the bandwagon, allowing more of the young people who turned their disillusion to music instead of drugs, to express themselves in lyrics and songs.
While the Jesus Movement had many peaks and valleys, some highly recognized artists of today, such as Amy Grant, Tobymac, Andrae Crouch, Kirk Franklin, and Lary Norman, were responsible for spearheading many segments of acceptance by using their platforms to bridge the gap between the general public and well-known Christian preachers such as Billy Graham and Jimmy Swaggart. The Expo of ’72 which was held in Dallas, Texas, was given a huge stamp of endorsement by the Reverend Billy Graham and was what the industry needed after being on one of its more serious lows. Additional headliners such as Johnny Cash and Chris Christopherson helped to ease the transition to Christian Rock Music. While the seventies had their peaks and valleys, the eighties led to a rebirth with over seventy-five million in sales of Christian music. While many of the musicians stated that Rock & Roll was started in the church, a band called Stryper, out of Los Angeles, California, changed the game once again by staying true to their sound, yet changing the lyrics in order to continue their rise in popularity. While Amy Grant was a sophomore in college in 1981, Bill Gaither picked her up on his label and she became one of Contemporary Christian Music’s greatest influences. When she went through a divorce, however, the industry treated her as an outcast, and after picking up the pieces, Bart Milliard (“I Can Only Imagine”) came to her rescue by getting her to believe in herself and getting the loyalty to her music restored.
The film has many great artists and producers telling their stories of how Contemporary Christian Music finally found its place, capitalizing on individuals such as Russ Taff who was repeatedly lauded for bringing peak sales to billions of dollars, Michael W. Smith for creating “Such A Time As This,” which came out on 9/11 and changed the entire worship experience in Lakeland, Florida, and Chris Tomlin for creating influential worship songs while proclaiming that “God uses people who are broken to write songs for people who are broken.” The Jesus Movement, which was often referred to as the “Christian Woodstock,” is thriving today under the helm of Christian Contemporary Music, while being vastly supported by musicians of all genres which contributed to it becoming a hugely successful form of art.
Now available on Blu-ray, DVD, and Digital HD
