Part of my perception of the rock music I like was that to make the pantheon of greatness there had to be hard core drinking and drugs involved and at least the hint of promiscuity. The stories of John Bonham’s binge drinking and choking to death on his own vomit or Jimi Hendrix overdosing on heroin or the partner swapping during the height of Fleetwood Mac’s popularity were all part of the muse that made rock music. That’s sad, really, and not true. Most of the songs on this list are either from professed Christian musicians or popular musicians who turned from sex and drugs and still made rock and roll. Sometimes in these songs a bit of the bite is gone, but the beauty blossoms. As I get older, I prefer more and more the beauty to the bite.
Song |
Time |
Artist |
Album |
You Are More |
3:37 |
Tenth Avenue North |
The Light Meets the Dark |
Fade Into You |
4:54 |
Mazzy Star |
So Tonight That I Might See |
Rescue |
5:35 |
Lucinda Williams |
West |
In the Sun |
5:36 |
Joseph Arthur |
Come to Where I’m From |
Morning Has Broken |
3:20 |
Cat Stevens |
Teaser and the Firecat |
Slow Train |
5:59 |
Bob Dylan |
Slow Train Coming |
Close Enough for Jazz |
3:46 |
Van Morrison |
Born to Sing: No Plan B |
Finally Home |
3:30 |
MercyMe |
All That is Inside Me |
Go, Love |
4:52 |
Mark Knopfler |
Privateering |
Hard Bargain |
3:23 |
Emmylou Harris |
Hard Bargain |
Hallelujah |
3:26 |
Allison Moorer |
Getting Somewhere |
Devel’s Been Talkin’ |
3:35 |
NEEDTOBREATHE |
The Reckoning |
Don’t Give Up Hope |
4:07 |
Third Day |
Move |
Smoke Signals |
8:26 |
Marc Ford |
Weary and Wired |
Dark Horses |
3:54 |
Switchfoot |
Vice Verses |
Live |
5:10 |
Lenny Kravitz |
5 |
Higher Ground |
3:43 |
Stevie Wonder |
Innervisions |