Upon this rock

Welcome to a new blog about Contemporary Christian Music (CCM). The title of the blog - Upon This Rock - was borrowed from a 1969 album by the 'grandfather of Christian rock music' - Larry Norman.

I'm a musician and songwriter, and I've performed my songs in a variety of bands and as a solo artist for quite a few years. Many of the songs I write reflect my own personal faith but I'm also keen to share my insight and knowledge of the CCM world with anyone who wants to read these pages. I'm also keen to see any views and reviews from others (the comments box is always open).

I'm a presenter on CrossRhythms Radio Plymouth (96.3 FM), where I host a programme called Just Vinyl. It does exactly what it says on the can - my programme features music from CCM artists across the vinyl years - and if it ain't on vinyl, I don't play it. My album collection spans the 1970's to the early 1990's, and includes back catalogues from pioneering CCM artists such as Larry Norman, Amy Grant, Randy Stonehill, Second Chapter of Acts, Stryper, Sweet Comfort Band, Servant, Keith Hill, Love Song and Phil Keaggy (all from the USA) and Parchment, Malcolm and Alwyn, Norman Barrett, Sheila Walsh, After the Fire, Ismael United, Techno Twins (Writz), Nutshell, Iona and Bryn Haworth (all from the UK) as well as artists from other countries. The music I play spans an eclectic range of tastes and styles from gentle folk and roots right through to heavy metal and punk.

Recently, as a music journalist,  I have interviewed CCM artists and reported on concerts and festivals - and this blog will regularly feature some of these interviews, along with back stage gossip, photos and videos as well as podcasts of my radio shows and other exclusive goodies. I'll also try to capture some of the history and energy of the early years of CCM, and hope to feature individual artists as I document their contributions to Christian music. CCM has a rich history, and I have plenty of stories and a few rare documents to share from those early years. So do subscribe to this blog - and I'll try to keep you up to date with what's happening!

Steve Wheeler

Photo credit: Dave Simpson

Creative Commons License
Upon this rock by Steve Wheeler was written in Plymouth, England and is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License.

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