"God Gave Rock and Roll to You" | ||||
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Single by Argent | ||||
from the album In Deep | ||||
B-side | "Christmas for the Free" | |||
Released | 23 February 1973 [1] | |||
Recorded | 1971 | |||
Studio | Abbey Road (London, England) | |||
Length |
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Label | Epic | |||
Songwriter(s) | Russ Ballard | |||
Producer(s) | ||||
Argent singles chronology | ||||
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"God Gave Rock and Roll to You" is a 1973 song by the British band Argent and fist covered by Petra in 1977 and again in 1985, with finally being covered by Kiss as "God Gave Rock 'N' Roll to You II" in 1991, with modified lyrics.
Argent recorded the song in 1971 during the sessions for their album All Together Now , but it originally did not appear as an album track until 1973's In Deep , and was released as a successful single at that time. The 1997 CD re-release of All Together Now has the track included as a bonus. The original lyrics include a reference to British pop singer Cliff Richard, known for his Christianity.
Record World said that "'Hold Your Head Up' established British contingent as a potent singles selling act, but this Russ Ballard song will make them giants." [2]
The song reached No. 18 in the United Kingdom, [3] and No. 114 in the United States. [4] "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You" was originally written and composed by Russ Ballard for his band, Argent. The band released it first in their 1973 album, In Deep. Petra released it in 1977 as part of their second album, Come and Join Us. There's also a brief reprise of the song featured as the last song in the album.
Although Ballard is credited, Petra's version features completely different verses with a more spiritual angle than the Argent version. Wes Yoder, president of Ambassador Artist Agency said about the song: "It was the boldest statement anyone in Christian music had made until that time ... This was a radical notion, especially in the minds of the leaders of conservative churches."
Petra recorded the song again in 1985 for their seventh album, Beat the System. An abridged version of the song was also part of Petra's live set featured in the album Captured in Time and Space, which was released in 1986. It features only the chorus and the closing part of the song, without any of the verses. As opposed to the full versions of the song, this one lasts barely over a minute.
Chart (1973) | Peak position |
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UK [3] | 18 |
US Billboard Hot 100 [4] | 114 |
"God Gave Rock and Roll to You" was covered, by American Christian rock band Petra for their 1977 album Come and Join Us and their 1984 album Beat the System . [5] Bob Hartman wrote different verse lyrics to give it a spiritual dimension. [6] The song was also covered in 1993 by Bride featuring D.O.C.
"God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You II" | ||||
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Single by Kiss | ||||
from the album Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey: Music from the Motion Picture and Revenge | ||||
Released | 22 August 1991 | |||
Recorded | 1991 | |||
Genre | Rock | |||
Length | 5:18 | |||
Label | Interscope | |||
Songwriter(s) | ||||
Producer(s) | Bob Ezrin | |||
Kiss singles chronology | ||||
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American hard rock band Kiss covered the song in 1991 as "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You II" for the soundtrack to Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey . The track was released as a single in 1991 and appeared on the band's 1992 album Revenge .
Though the power ballad [7] covered the original Argent 1973 version "God Gave Rock and Roll to You", it had barely modified lyrics in the verses, thus the reason behind the slight change in the name of the song. It is one of the few songs from Kiss' "non-makeup era" to be played live since the band returned to wearing their trademark makeup in 1996.
It was the last Kiss song to feature longtime drummer Eric Carr before his death three months later after it was released as a single. Although he was too ill to play drums on the track, he is featured on backing vocals during the a cappella break, singing the repeated line "...to everyone, he gave a song to be sung", as well as performing drums during the video for the song. This also marked his final video appearance with the band. He had lost all his hair from his chemotherapy treatments and wore a wig during the video shoot. The drum tracks were recorded by Eric Singer, who would become Kiss' full-time drummer following Carr's death. [8] Singer also makes his recording debut with the band on this song.
The single was also the first to feature Gene Simmons and Paul Stanley sharing lead vocals since "I" from 1981's Music from "The Elder" .
Kiss
Additional personnel
The song proved to be a big hit for the band in many parts of the world, including making the top 10 in Ireland, [9] the United Kingdom, [10] Germany, [11] and Switzerland. [12] In the United States, it reached No. 21 on the Billboard Album Rock Tracks chart. [13] The music video received heavy rotation on music television channels.
The version released as a single and on the soundtrack to Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey differs slightly from that played in the film. In the film, a 40-second guitar solo is played by Steve Vai. [14] [15] It was later included on Steve Vai's album The Elusive Light and Sound, Vol. 1 under the title "Final Solo". "God Gave Rock & Roll to You II" would also be included on the Kiss albums Revenge in 1992 [16] and in a live version on Alive III , released in 1993. [17]
Weekly charts
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The Zombies are an English rock band formed in St Albans in 1961. Led by keyboardist/vocalist Rod Argent and lead vocalist Colin Blunstone, the group had their first British and American hit in 1964 with "She's Not There". In the US, two further singles—"Tell Her No" in 1965 and "Time of the Season" in 1968—were also successful.
Argent were an English rock band formed in 1969 by former Zombies keyboardist Rod Argent. They had three UK Top 40 singles: "Hold Your Head Up", which reached No. 5 and spent 12 weeks on the chart, "Tragedy", and "God Gave Rock and Roll to You". Two of their albums charted in the UK: All Together Now, which peaked at No. 13 in 1972, and In Deep, which spent one week at No. 49 in 1973.
Revenge is the sixteenth studio album by American rock band Kiss, released on May 19, 1992. It is the band's first album to feature drummer Eric Singer, following the death of former drummer Eric Carr in November 1991 and is the group's last album to feature musical contributions from the latter. Marking a stylistic departure from the pop-influenced glam metal which characterized much of the band's 1980s output for a heavier sound, the album reached the Top 20 in several countries, though it failed to reestablish the group back in the mainstream and its sales were equal-to or less than its predecessors, ultimately only being certified gold by the RIAA on July 20, 1992.
Killers is the second compilation album by American hard rock group Kiss. It was released only outside the United States, but quickly became available as an import. Of the album's twelve songs, four were new compositions recorded specifically for it: "I'm a Legend Tonight," "Down on Your Knees," "Nowhere to Run" and "Partners in Crime." These new songs were recorded at the behest of Phonogram, in response to the commercial failure of 1981's Music from "The Elder".
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Russell Glyn Ballard is an English rock singer, guitarist, songwriter and producer. Originally rising to prominence as the lead singer and guitarist of the band Argent, Ballard became a prolific songwriter and producer by the late 1970s. His compositions "New York Groove", "You Can Do Magic", "Since You Been Gone", "I Surrender", "Liar", "Winning", "I Know There's Something Going On", "Can't Shake Loose", "So You Win Again" and "God Gave Rock and Roll to You" became hits for other artists during the 1970s and 1980s. He also scored several minor hits under his own name in the early and mid-1980s.
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Captured in Time and Space is the first live album of Christian rock band Petra. The concert was re-released on DVD in 2006.
Come and Join Us is the second studio album of the Christian rock band Petra. It was released in 1977.
Beat the System is the seventh studio album of the Christian rock band Petra. It was released in late 1984.
Greatest Kiss is a greatest hits album by American hard rock band Kiss. It was released in 1997 on Mercury Records.
"Shout It Out Loud" is a song by the American hard rock group Kiss, originally released on their 1976 album, Destroyer. It was released as the lead single off the album, and it proved to be successful, becoming the band's second single to break the Top 40, after "Rock and Roll All Nite". It was also the band's first single to top the charts, as it reached number 1 hit in Canada on May 22, 1976.
"Crazy Crazy Nights" is a song by American rock band Kiss. It was originally released on the band's 1987 album Crazy Nights. Although it peaked at only number 65 on the US Billboard Hot 100, the song became the band's highest-charting single in the United Kingdom, peaking at number four on the UK Singles Chart. In August 2019, it received a Silver certification from the British Phonographic Industry for sales and streams exceeding 200,000. The song also reached the top 10 in Ireland and Norway.
All Together Now is the third album by British rock band Argent, released in April 1972. It was originally released on Epic Records, KE 31556. It was Argent's first hit album; it features "Hold Your Head Up", their most successful single, which reached #5 in the UK, Canadian, and U.S. singles charts. Other featured songs include "Tragedy" which reached #34 in the UK, "I Am the Dance of Ages" and "He's a Dynamo". The album reached #14 in Canada.
"Unholy" is a song by American hard rock band Kiss, written by Gene Simmons and Vinnie Vincent. Featured on their 1992 album, Revenge, the song is one of the three Vincent co-writes to appear on the album despite the fact that he had been fired from the band 8 years earlier. The release of "Unholy" signaled the return to a heavier sound for Kiss. The song was played live during the Revenge Tour and was included on the 1993 live album Alive III, but did not return to the live Kiss set list until 2004's Rock the Nation Tour.
In Deep is the fourth studio album by English rock band Argent, released by Epic Records in October 1973. It features the original full-length recording of "God Gave Rock and Roll to You", which reached No. 18 in the UK charts when released in edited form as a single later the same year. It was remade by Kiss as "God Gave Rock 'n' Roll to You II" for the film Bill & Ted's Bogus Journey in 1991. The album reached #69 in Canada.
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"I Surrender" is a song written by former Argent guitarist and singer Russ Ballard and first released by Head East as a single in October 1980 from their sixth album U.S. 1. It is better known for being a hit for Rainbow the following year, reaching number 3 on the UK Singles Charts.