Larry Norman

Larry Norman

Larry Norman was a Christian rock musician before the genre existed, combining faith with a backbeat and social consciousness. Think of him as rock music's street preacher, often referred to as "the father of Christian rock." "Between 1969 and 1979, Larry Norman was the Christian rock scene's answer to Bob Dylan, John Lennon and Mick Jagger," said Emmy-nominated director David Di Sabatino, who takes a critical look at Norman's career and life in his documentary "Fallen Angel: The Outlaw Larry Norman." "He set the standard. He created the space for others to exist. ... The vision he created for where Christian rock music could go still resonates today." Norman hit the U.S. music scene at a turbulent time for the nation. His first solo album, "Upon This Rock," came out in late 1969, after he left the band People! The San Francisco Bay area psychedelic group was fresh off the success of a Top 20 hit with a cover of the Zombies' "I Love You."

It was a time when college campuses were erupting in anti-Vietnam War protests and the nation was still trying to digest what had just happened that summer at Woodstock. As many Americans looked for answers, Norman offered his faith, a bold decision for an unknown solo artist making his major-label debut. "It was a pretty gutsy move to sing about Jesus on his first record," younger brother Charles Norman said. "To take a chance on mentioning Jesus on a secular record was a pretty important step." " 'Upon This Rock' was written to stand outside the Christian culture," Larry Norman said in an interview with CCM magazine. "My songs weren't written for Christians. ... I was saying, 'I'm going to present the Gospel, and I'm not going to say it like you want. This album is not for you.' " No small surprise, given that rock music at the time was the soundtrack of the counterculture and was far from the mainstream.

A national survey conducted by Louis Harris and Associates in 1966 found that rock 'n' roll was by far the most unpopular music in the country. About 45 percent of adults said they disliked it, with only about 5 percent saying it was their favorite. Compare that with today, when nearly two-thirds of those asked in a recent Pew Resource Center poll said they listen to it. Then there were the lyrics, especially on Norman's second solo effort, 1972's "Only Visiting This Planet." There were no happy songs about going to heaven; the tunes tackled the social issues of the day. Norman sang about drugs, politics, racism, sex, venereal disease and Jesus -- sometimes in the same song -- getting his music banned from Christian bookstores that might have sold it. "Stuff like that shocked uptight Christians," Charles Norman said in an NPR interview shortly after his brother's death in February 2008 at age 60. "One of his songs, it's called 'Why Don't You Look Into Jesus,' one of the lines is: 'You've got gonorrhea on Valentine's Day [VD] and you're still looking for the perfect lay. ... Why don't you look into Jesus? He's got the answer.'"