Jesus Freak | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | November 21, 1995 | |||
Recorded | 1995 | |||
Studio |
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Genre | Christian hip hop, CCM, alternative rock [1] | |||
Length | 57:53 [2] | |||
Label | ForeFront/Virgin | |||
Producer |
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DC Talk chronology | ||||
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Jesus Freak is the fourth studio album by the American Christian rap and rock trio DC Talk, released on November 21, 1995, on ForeFront Records. [3] The style was a marked departure from the group's previous releases, incorporating a heavier rock sound and elements of grunge that was popular at the time.
The album was released to both critical and commercial success. It peaked at number 16 on the Billboard 200 and six of the album's seven singles reached number one across various Christian radio formats. It won the 1997 Grammy Award for Best Rock Gospel Album.
Jesus Freak is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influential albums in the history of contemporary Christian music (CCM). [4]
After three albums of hip-hop oriented sound, including DC Talk's Grammy award-winning third album, Free at Last , which was based primarily on hip-hop- and pop-oriented songwriting, the trio decided to innovate and reinvent their style.
After three years, DC Talk returned with songs featuring a more alternative rock sound. Thus, the album's lead single, "Jesus Freak", was considered unexpected by fans and critics alike. [5] [6]
Michael Tait said, "I was totally into rock and roll at the time [...] I really wanted to make a rock record." [6] The band decided to focus on more rock-oriented music, with touches of rap and pop interwoven into the mix. Tait later explained, "We wanted to write songs that would hopefully touch a generation." [7]
Compared to DC Talk's other albums, Jesus Freak was, stylistically, an experiment. The album was a fusion of various musical genres, including pop, [1] [8] rock, [1] and grunge, [9] all combined with hip hop. [1] [8]
The title track, "Jesus Freak," is also of historical importance. It is believed to be the first link between grunge and rapcore in CCM. [10] The song was even played on some secular stations. [10]
In addition, the album contains two cover songs: "Day by Day," from the musical Godspell , and a heavily overhauled version of "In the Light" originally by Charlie Peacock. [2] Two spoken-word samples are also heard; "Mind's Eye" features the words of Billy Graham and "What If I Stumble" contains a quote from Brennan Manning. [2]
As with the genres, the themes of Jesus Freak are varied, [1] ranging from the spiritual–such as accepting Jesus, hypocrisy, [2] atheism–to the social, such as seeking forgiveness from a friend, [2] racism, [2] facing intolerance, [11] and acceptance. [2]
Jesus Freak was released on November 21, 1995. It debuted at number 16 on the Billboard 200, selling over 85,800 copies in its first week of release. [12] This number was the highest debut for a Christian album at the time. [13]
After the album, released through ForeFront Records, proved to be extremely successful, the band signed an exclusive distribution deal with Virgin Records. [3] The label made it a priority to promote the album to mainstream music fans. [3] Due to this promotional increase, "Between You and Me" became a hit for the band, managing to chart on the Billboard Hot 100.
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [1] |
Cross Rhythms | [14] |
Entertainment Weekly | B+ (1995) [15] B (1996) [16] |
Jesus Freak Hideout | [2] |
Pitchfork | 6.7/10 [17] |
After the initial success of its release, Jesus Freak was RIAA-certified as Gold by its first month, for shipments exceeding 500,000 units. [9] [18] The album has gone on to sell over two million copies in the United States, [9] achieving double platinum certification by the RIAA. [18] Critical response to Jesus Freak was generally positive, and many of the album's singles were met with positive reception. For instance, "Jesus Freak" was the first non-AC song to win the Dove Award for Song of the Year. [10] The album also spawned several hit singles. Six of the album's singles became number-one hits across various Christian radio formats. [9] "Between You and Me" was even a cross-over hit on secular radio, peaking at number 29 on the Billboard Hot 100. [19]
The album is considered one of the greatest and most influential Christian albums of all time and is viewed as a landmark of the 1990s alternative rock scene. [20]
It is one of the biggest-selling Christian albums of all time and has been certified double platinum in the United States and gold in Canada.
On June 20, 2006, Gotee Records released a ten-year anniversary tribute, Freaked! , featuring artists from record labels Gotee and Mono vs Stereo covering songs from the original album. [21] "In the Light" and "Jesus Freak" are both featured in Alive and Transported . In addition, the songs are still regularly sung in tobyMac and Newsboys concerts.
In 2006, EMI released a commemorative 10th-anniversary version of the album, Jesus Freak: 10th Anniversary Special Edition. This special edition contained a bonus disc of brand-new remixes, rarities, live tracks, and demos. [9] A single-disc remaster was released in 2013. [22]
For the 20th anniversary of the album in November 2015, SMLXLVinyl.com released a double lp 180-gram vinyl of the album. It was its first pressing on the format. [23]
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
1. | "So Help Me God" | Toby McKeehan, Michael Tait, Kevin Smith, Mark Heimermann, Dann Huff | 4:39 |
2. | "Colored People" | McKeehan, George Cocchini | 4:26 |
3. | "Jesus Freak" | McKeehan, Heimermann | 4:50 |
4. | "What If I Stumble?" | McKeehan, Daniel Joseph | 5:06 |
5. | "Day by Day" | Stephen Schwartz, McKeehan, Smith | 4:30 |
6. | "Mrs. Morgan" | 0:57 | |
7. | "Between You and Me" | McKeehan, Heimermann | 4:59 |
8. | "Like It, Love It, Need It" | McKeehan, Smith, Heimermann, David Soldi, Jason Barrett | 5:23 |
9. | "Jesus Freak (Reprise)" | 1:17 | |
10. | "In the Light" (Charlie Peacock cover) | Charlie Peacock McKeehan | 5:06 |
11. | "What Have We Become?" | McKeehan, Smith, Heimermann | 6:09 |
12. | "Mind's Eye" | McKeehan, Tait, Heimermann | 5:17 |
13. | "Alas, My Love" (hidden track) | Smith | 5:18 |
Total length: | 57:53 |
No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
---|---|---|---|
14. | "So Help Me God" (Savadocious Junk Yard Mix 1974) | McKeehan, Tait, Smith, Heimermann, Duff | 4:13 |
15. | "Jesus Freak" (Savage Perspective Mix) | McKeehan, Heimermann | 4:42 |
16. | "What If I Stumble" (DoubleDutch Remix) | McKeehan, Joseph | 4:19 |
17. | "Between You and Me" (fab Remix) | McKeehan, Heimermann | 4:58 |
18. | "Like It, Love It, Need It" (dDubb Remix) | McKeehan, Smith, Heimermann, Soldi, Barrett | 4:18 |
19. | "What Have We Become?" (dDubb Remix) | McKeehan, Smith, Heimermann | 4:14 |
20. | "Mind's Eye" (1995 A Swing and a Miss Mix ft. Mark Heimermann/Unreleased Demo Version) | McKeehan, Tait, Heimermann | 5:06 |
21. | "Jesus Freak" (1995 Gotee Bros. Freaked Out Remix) | McKeehan, Heimermann | 4:40 |
22. | "Help!" (The Beatles cover; live) | Lennon–McCartney | 0:59 |
23. | "Colored People" (Live) | McKeehan, Cocchoni | 4:45 |
24. | "It's The End of the World (As We Know It)" (R.E.M. cover; live) | Bill Berry, Peter Buck, Mike Mills, Michael Stipe | 2:12 |
25. | "I Wish We'd All Been Ready" (Live) | Larry Norman | 3:37 |
26. | "40" (U2 cover; live) | U2 | 2:37 |
27. | "In the Light" (Instrumental) | Peacock | 5:21 |
Chart (1995) | Peak position |
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U.S. Billboard 200 | 16 [12] |
U.S. Top Christian Albums | 1 |
Year | Single | Chart | Peak position |
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1995 | "Jesus Freak" | CCM Christian CHR | 23 |
CCM Christian Rock | 1 | ||
U.S. Bubbling Under Hot 100 | 10 | ||
"Mind's Eye" | CCM Christian CHR | 1 | |
Just Between You and Me" | CCM Christian CHR | 1 | |
CCM Christian Adult Contemporary | 1 | ||
U.S. Billboard Hot 100 | 29 [19] | ||
U.S. Billboard Top 40 | 15 | ||
U.S. Billboard Adult Contemporary | 24 | ||
U.S. Billboard Adult Top 40 Tracks | 11 | ||
1996 | "Like It, Love It, Need It" | CCM Christian Rock | 1 |
"In the Light" | CCM Christian CHR | 1 | |
CCM Christian Adult Contemporary | 3 | ||
"What If I Stumble?" | CCM Christian CHR | 1 | |
CCM Christian Adult Contemporary | 3 | ||
1997 | "So Help Me God" | CCM Christian Rock | 3 |
"Colored People" | CCM Christian CHR | 1 | |
CCM Christian Adult Contemporary | 3 | ||
"Day by Day" | CCM Christian Rock | 3 | |
"What Have We Become?" | CCM Christian CHR | 1 | |
CCM Christian Adult Contemporary | 32 |
DC Talk
Musicians
DC Talk is a Christian rap and rock trio. The group was formed at Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia in 1987 by Toby McKeehan, Michael Tait, and Kevin Max Smith. They released five major studio albums together: dc Talk (1989), Nu Thang (1990), Free at Last (1992), Jesus Freak (1995), and Supernatural (1998). In 2002, the Encyclopedia of Contemporary Christian Music called dc Talk "the most popular overtly Christian act of all time."
Audio Adrenaline is the debut studio album by the American Christian rock band of the same name. It was released on April 17, 1992. "My God" was one of the first songs recorded by the band, which caught the attention of ForeFront Records.
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"Jesus Freak" is a song by the American contemporary Christian music group DC Talk. Released on August 1, 1995, it was the lead radio single from the group's fourth album. The song was written and produced by Toby McKeehan and Mark Heimermann. Lyrically, the song is about standing up for the belief in Jesus Christ in the midst of persecution. Musically, the song has been described as alternative rock and grunge. It received airplay on both contemporary Christian music and alternative rock stations, formats that rarely interact. "Jesus Freak" earned DC Talk three GMA Dove Awards.
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"Colored People" is a song written and recorded by Christian rock band DC Talk. The song was one of several radio singles released from their 1995 studio album, Jesus Freak.
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Kings & Queens is the ninth studio album by Christian rock band Audio Adrenaline, the only Audio Adrenaline album with Kevin Max as the lead singer and the last album with bassist and founding member Will McGinniss. The album was released on March 12, 2013, and was the first album after their comeback and with the Fair Trade Services label. Kings & Queens garnered critical acclaim from music critics, and has seen chart successes.
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Walls of Glass is the debut solo album by former Imperials lead singer Russ Taff, released in 1983 on Myrrh Records. After he left the Imperials in 1981, Taff started work on his first solo album featuring songs that he co-wrote with his wife Tori and his guitarist and songwriter James Hollihan Jr. "We Will Stand" was released as the first single and became his first Christian radio hit topping the Christian AC chart for 15 weeks. The song is ranked at number 29 by CCM Magazine's 100 Greatest Songs in Christian Music. Taff won his first solo Grammy Award for Best Gospel Performance, Male at the 26th Grammy Awards. At the 15th GMA Dove Awards, Taff won his third Male Vocalist of the Year title, his first as a solo artist. "We Will Stand" was nominated for Song of the Year twice at the Dove Awards in 1984 and 1985. Walls of Glass reached No. 5 on the Billboard Top Inspirational Albums chart.
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The Way Home is the fourth studio album by Christian singer-songwriter Russ Taff, released in 1989 on Myrrh Records. Music videos were made for "Winds of Change" and "I Cry" to promote the album. The Way Home was ranked at number 11 on CCM Magazine's 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music. The album includes a one-minute version of the traditional gospel song "Ain't No Grave" – Taff later recorded a longer version on his 1991 album Under Their Influence. In 1990, The Way Home won Rock Album of the Year and the song "The River Unbroken" won Rock Recorded Song of the Year at the 21st GMA Dove Awards. Taff was also nominated for Best Gospel Performance, Male for the song "Farther On" at the 32nd Grammy Awards. The album topped the Billboard Inspirational Albums chart.