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Margaret Becker | |
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 In concert at Palm Beach Baptist Church, 2006 | |
| Background information | |
| Born | July 17, 1959 |
| Origin | Bay Shore, New York, U.S. |
| Genres | Christian rock, CCM |
| Instrument(s) | Voice, guitar |
| Years active | 1985–present |
| Labels | Sparrow |
| Website | www |
Margaret Becker (born July 17, 1959) is an American Christian rock singer, guitarist, and songwriter. She has had twenty-one No. 1 Christian radio hits, won four Dove Awards, and been nominated for four Grammy Awards.
Becker was born in Bay Shore, New York, United States, raised in East Islip, New York, and began playing in coffeehouses while teaching music and taking opera lessons. Having graduated from James Madison University with a degree in communication, she moved to Nashville, Tennessee in 1985, and signed to Sparrow Records as a songwriter; soon after she toured with Rick Cua as a backup singer and sang on Steve Camp's 1986 album One on One . [1] The next year she landed a contract as a solo artist, and released her debut album, Never for Nothing. [1] The single "Fight for God" was her first hit, and her second LP, The Reckoning, [1] followed with two more hits, "Light in the Darkness" and "Find Me".
Becker began working with producer Charlie Peacock starting with 1989's Immigrant's Daughter, [1] and a string of successful albums followed, including a Spanish language LP. She won two Dove Awards in 1992, for Rock Album (Simple House) and Rock Song ("Simple House"). However, in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Becker occasionally encountered controversy in the world of Contemporary Christian music because she is a Roman Catholic; some Christian stores refused to carry her album, and her concert appearances were sometimes picketed. [2] Although she was raised in Catholicism, Margaret currently attends a non-denominational church in Nashville, Tennessee.[ citation needed ] After 1995's Grace, Becker decided to take a sabbatical from the music industry; during this time she wrote a book entitled With New Eyes and wrote editorials for Campus Life magazine.
She left Sparrow Records in 2002 but has continued to record since then, both her own albums and for compilation albums. She appears on the albums Sisters (Warner Bros. Records, 1994), Listen to Our Hearts (Sparrow, 1998), Heaven and Earth (Sparrow, 1999), and the New Irish Hymns series (Kingsway Music), and is one of the members of the 1994 collaboration Along the Road along with Susan Ashton and Christine Denté. She co-wrote Bob Carlisle's "Bridge Between Two Hearts". Her second book, Growing Up Together, appeared in 2000; her third, With New Eyes, came out in 2004, and a fourth, Coming Up for Air, was published in 2006. In late 2007, Becker's latest album, Air, was released.
Becker gives teaching seminars across the United States. She also produces records for other singers, and in 2006 she wrote a series of columns for CCM Magazine . Becker has also been active in supporting charities such as Habitat for Humanity, Compassion International, and World Vision.
Becker lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Collaborative works
Compilations
Philip Kamm Madeira is an American songwriter, producer, musician and singer. He was raised in Barrington, Rhode Island, and attended Taylor University, graduating in 1975. His songs have been recorded by The Civil Wars, Buddy Miller, Alison Krauss, Toby Keith, Ricky Skaggs, Bruce Hornsby, Keb' Mo', Garth Brooks, The Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Cindy Morgan, Shawn Mullins, The North Mississippi Allstars. His co-writing partners include Will Kimbrough, Matraca Berg, Chuck Cannon, Cindy Morgan, Wayne Kirkpatrick, Gordon Kennedy, Keb' Mo', and Emmylou Harris. He lives in Nashville, Tennessee.
Moya Brennan, also known as Máire Brennan, is an Irish folk singer, songwriter, harpist, and philanthropist. She is the sister of the musical artist known as Enya. She began performing professionally in 1970 when her family formed the band Clannad. Brennan released her first solo album in 1992 called Máire, a successful venture. She has received a Grammy Award from five nominations and has won an Emmy Award. She has recorded music for several soundtracks, including Titanic, To End All Wars and King Arthur.
Joanne Hogg is a Northern Irish musician, best known for her work as the lead singer and songwriter with the Celtic Christian progressive rock band Iona.
Out of the Grey is a husband-and-wife Contemporary Christian music project consisting of Scott and Christine Denté. Christine provides lead vocals, while Scott plays guitars and sings background, along with the occasional lead vocals. They have released seven studio albums, one best-of compilation and one live EP and have been involved in a number of other projects. Their debut album was ranked 47th in the book CCM Presents: The 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music.
Michelle Louise Tumes is an Australian contemporary Christian musician from Adelaide. In 1993, she moved to the United States and has released four studio albums, Listen (1998), Center of My Universe (2000), Dream (2001) and Michelle Tumes (2006).
Tom Howard was an American pianist, musical arranger and orchestral conductor.
Susan Ashton is an American contemporary Christian music and country music artist who topped the Christian charts throughout the 1990s. In 1991 she began using her mother's maiden name, Ashton, when she recorded her first single, in order to distinguish herself from CCM singer Kim Hill.
Along the Road is an album by Susan Ashton, Margaret Becker, and Out of the Grey's Christine Denté, released in 1994.
Kelly Minter is a Christian worship leader, author, speaker, songwriter, and musician. The daughter of a pastor, Minter grew up in Northern Virginia and as a teenager was more interested in sports than music. When she was a senior in high school, Minter was offered and then lost a college basketball scholarship. To help her recover from that disappointment, Minter started playing the guitar.
New Irish Hymns is the first in a series of themed albums created and produced by Keith Getty.
Julian Keith Getty is a Northern Irish Christian singer and songwriter, best known for writing the modern hymn "In Christ Alone" in 2001 with veteran songwriter and worship leader Stuart Townend. Getty and his wife Kristyn also release music under the musical duo Keith & Kristyn Getty
Kristyn Elizabeth Rebekah Getty is a Northern Irish Christian singer and songwriter. With her husband, Keith Getty, she has co-written a number of popular modern hymns.
New Irish Hymns 2: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit is the second in a series of themed albums created and produced by Keith Getty. This album features vocalists Margaret Becker, Joanne Hogg, and Kristyn Lennox (Getty) performing songs by Keith Getty and others. Margaret Becker and Joanne Hogg performed on the previous album, New Irish Hymns; all three singers also performed on New Irish Hymns 3: Incarnation and New Irish Hymns 4: Hymns for the Life of the Church.
New Irish Hymns 3: Incarnation is the third in a series of themed albums created and produced by Keith Getty. This album features vocalists Margaret Becker, Joanne Hogg, and Kristyn Getty performing songs by Keith Getty and others. Margaret Becker and Joanne Hogg performed on the first New Irish Hymns album with Moya Brennan; all three singers on this CD also performed on New Irish Hymns 2: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit and New Irish Hymns 4: Hymns for the Life of the Church.
New Irish Hymns 4: Hymns for the Life of the Church is the fourth and final album in a series of themed albums created and produced by Keith Getty. This album features vocalists Margaret Becker, Joanne Hogg, and Kristyn Getty performing songs by Keith Getty and others. Margaret Becker and Joanne Hogg performed on all four albums in the series. Kristyn Getty performed on nos. 2-4; printings before her marriage to Keith Getty used her maiden name, Kristyn Lennox.
The Apostles Creed is an album of songs by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend, featuring many guest performers assembled by producer John Hartley. As its title suggests, the songs reflect various aspects of the Christian Apostles' Creed. All songs are by Getty and Townend, except "Merciful God," which is also by Kristyn Getty.
"In Christ Alone" is a popular modern Christian song written by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend, both songwriters of Christian hymns and contemporary worship music in the United Kingdom. The song, with a strong Irish melody, is the first hymn they penned together. The music was by Getty and the original lyrics by Townend. It was composed in 2001.
New Irish Hymns is a series of Christian-themed albums created and produced by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend. Each album is performed by different singers:
Keith & Kristyn Getty are a musical duo from Northern Ireland, focusing on hymns and other Christian music. They are best known for the 2001 hymn “In Christ Alone”, co-written with Stuart Townend.
Wrestling the Angels is Kelly Minter's second studio album, third overall as she had previously released an independent album titled Wheels Of Change in 1997. According to Minter, the album's title, Wrestling the Angels, was inspired by her reading of Jacob's struggle in Genesis.
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