Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

The American Encyclopaedia Of Christian Music (a volume I've come to deeply distrust) cites this as the greatest Christian album of all time. I have to disagree with the hyperbole but observe that it is a milestone recording. In the late '60s, a bunch of hippie musicians became Christians in the middle of the Jesus Freak revolution on the West Coast. They carried on making music but this time it reflected their new found faith. In 1972 they recorded this debut album and at the time, there wasn't anything on the market that sounded as contemporary as this and Love Song became Christian music pioneers. The four piece band featured Chuck Girard on keyboards, Tom Coomes and Bob Wall on guitar and Jay Truax on bass. It's fair to say that Girard gets the lion's share of the songwriting here and although all the group sing, his voice stands out. Standout songs include the opening "A Love Song" which sets the scene both lyrically and vocally. "Little Country Church" is another classic which observes the changes happening in the church community with the invasion of the newly converted long hairs! It could almost have been written about Calvary Chapel which came into existence at that time. "Front Seat, Back Seat" is a bit of country whilst "Let Us Be One" has a superb acoustic groove. While this isn't the best CCM album ever, it would definitely be in the top 20 and it's an absolute classic if only because it had such a wide influence.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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