There’s a new music in christian circles. Have you Heard it yet?
All across the Nation, God’s People are being subjected to a New and Strange Version of Christian Music. Just recently a Pastor’s son was given an Audition for the New Christian Music label “Just Shout It Out” and it turned out as good as it might sound. Ridiculous you say? What can you do when the Multi Million Dollar Mega Church’s Pastor wants his son to be the next Bob Dylan? Not much!
But that’s absolutely Insane and ludicrous! Who would buy such Music? Other Rich and Wealthy Pastor’s children, all seeking to be the next sensation on American Idol! It really is hard to believe, but it’s taken off and has been quite successful. Many attribute this new craze to being subject to only Rap Music for the last 15 years, or not being able to listen to anything but the Dorothy Mac Quire Gospel Quartet Sings Your Favorite Hymns. Call it a pleasant alternative or just Music Starvation! Well, how ever you slice it, it looks like it’s here to stay and we need to get used to Preteen Adolescents screaming out lyrics to some new Christian Pop Music Hymn or Chorus. There’s a huge line outside the recording studio all waiting their turn to become the next Amy Grant!
“Well, how ever you slice it, it looks like it’s here to stay and we need to get used to Preteen Adolescents screaming out lyrics to some new Christian Pop Music Hymn/Chorus.“
Take Giuseppe and Benno Francesca in the picture to your left. Two Italian Christian Immigrants who have been bringing in thousands of dollars every month since setting up at Venice Beach, CA. They are affectionately known as the 2 Horse Head Traveling Accordion Minstrels. Their voices sound a bit muffled and with their thick accents still manage to belt out Petra Favorites songs, each taking time for Accordion Solos much like the Christian Rock band did back in the 1980s. It does date them, but nonetheless, the crowds that gather near that Beach Front Restaurant seem to appreciate their Music just fine!
They’ve even managed to attract some horseback riders who stopped surprisingly to listen. Some visitors at this time could be seen nudging each other saying “maybe their horses like the music and made their owners stop”. It also didn’t help when local PETA Members showed up to picket the events saying they were making light of Animal Cruelty. But most of the crowds ignored them, even forcing them to move to the back. Like I said, they aren’t the loudest of singers with their Horse Head costumes and thick accents.
Or take Franz and Tomas Grubber, Solar Plant workers at the San Onofre Nuclear Plant. They immigrated from Frankfurt back in the early 2000s when Solar began to compete with Nuclear. As German speaking plant hands, they were able to get night jobs so they could keep their primary love as Christian New Pop Yodelers. In a recent interview from their San Clemente Apartment they confided they would quit their night jobs at the Power Plant and sing full time if it would pay their bills.
As children of the 70s, they specialized in much of the Jesus Music that was popular, singing Love Song, The Way, and Children of the Day songs, with a bit of yodeling interspersed. Since so many of the new Home Owners in San Clemente are of German Descent, or had moved south from the congestion of Costa Mesa and gone to Calvary Chapel at one time, they were well embraced!
Last, and not least, are Franco Mendez and his Taco Troubadours. They are often found in downtown San Diego singing a version of Praise Album songs in Spanish. Being so close to the Mexican border, they attract large crowds on a regular basis. Their uniforms are one of the unique attractions to those listening, who try to identify their favorite musician by his dress. No sooner do they know who’s who and they adopt a different color scheme. All except Franco, who is always wearing a dark uniform of sorts and stands in the back as he sings out in his Julio Iglesias style, often getting a request for one of his secular mentor’s hits. But he never complies and reminds his audience “solo christiano por favor”!