Filipino Christian Blogger Ganns Deen » Christian Music

Starfield’s Rediscover You is the cry of my heart

Ganns — Fri, 05 Mar 2010 12:45:36 +0000

Contemporary Christian group Starfield has consistently released some of the best worship songs of the past few years. From Son of God to Reign in Us to I Will Go, Starfield’s anthemic melodies and thoughtful horizontal and vertical worship lyrics speak to generations in many, many ways. The new CD, The Saving One, dropped last week in the USA, and carrier single Rediscover You is a gem in every way. The lyrics to Rediscover You actually express exactly – EXACTLY – how I feel right now about my relationship with God. It was all I could do not to cry in the car as I listened to Rediscover You for the first time. Give Rediscover You a listen and tell me if you agree.

Listen to Starfield’s Rediscover You mp3

Rediscover You lyrics after the jump

REDISCOVER YOU Lyrics
Starfield

I need to just admit
my faith is paper thin
I’m feeling so burned out
On religion

I say an empty prayer
I sing a tired song
I need to just admit that the passion’s gone

And I want to get it back

You told me
Look for You and I will find
So I’m here
Like I’m searching for the first time
Revive me, Jesus
Make this cold heart start to move
Help me rediscover You

I want to learn to pray
The way that David prayed
I want my soul to burn when I hear Your name
I want to feel like new
I want to hunger for you
Bring me back to life like only You can do
Cause I don’t want to stay the same

You told me
Look for You and I will find
So I’m here
Like I’m searching for the first time
Revive me, Jesus
Make this cold heart start to move
Help me rediscover You

Lord, I want to be Yours today
I want to know the passion of the saints
And how they were changed

You told me
Look for You and I will find
So I’m here
Like I’m searching for the first time
Revive me, Jesus
Make this cold heart start to move

I want to burn for You
Bring me back to life, Jesus
Help me rediscover You

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New song: “Spirit of God”

Ganns — Thu, 25 Feb 2010 16:11:57 +0000

My songwriting partner Archie Castillo and I have completed a new song. Titled Spirit of God, although originally titled Make My Heart Your Home, it’s our second original song for the year, after a track called Come Together (Shout), which I unfortunately cannot stream here yet because I have to wait until I find out whether or not it will be included in the roster of original tracks for EN2010.

Spirit of God is a song for and about the Holy Spirit. I wrote it because I felt a need to have more songs for Holy Spirit baptism use. Most Holy Spirit opportunities involve Holy Spirit Rain Down, and Come Holy Spirit, which are terrific songs. I just felt it would be nice to have a few homegrown “Spirit” songs. Ps Joel Barrios wrote an excellent song called Holy Spirit of God, which I also meditated on in the course of writing this song. (I wonder why we don’t use Holy Spirit of God more often.)

Well, hopefully, it’ll be another new original song to add to the Fort’s growing original song roster. What do you think of Spirit of God?

Click after the jump to read the lyrics to Spirit of God.

Spirit of God
Ganns Deen, Archie Castillo

Spirit of God, melt my heart of stone
Spirit of God, make my heart your home

Holy Spirit, You’re welcome here
Holy Spirit, please draw near

Spirit of God, rain down
Spirit of God, rain down
And make my heart your home

Spirit of God, my heart’s one desire
Fill my heart with Your all-consuming fire

Holy Spirit, You’re welcome here
Holy Spirit, please draw near

Spirit of God, rain down
Spirit of God, rain down
And make my heart your home

Fill my heart, I desire you

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Korean supergroup includes Christian song on new CD!

Ganns — Tue, 16 Feb 2010 21:57:40 +0000

My wife Cathy bought the Super Junior Super Show 2 double CD as a Valentine’s present for me. (The locally produced CDs even came with a free poster, which is now displayed in our living room. Ack, we’re so out with our Korean love, aren’t we?) Since Super Junior is coming to the Philippines in April and we have virtually no chance of getting decent tickets – thanks a lot, Happee Sy – this is the closest we’re going to come to the concert.

The Super Junior Super Show 2 CD is so worth its price. It’s got live versions of all my favorite hits – Sorry Sorry, U, It’s U, Don’t Don, Rokuko, Pajama Party, Marry U, and Twins (Knockout), among many others – as well as some charming new ones, including a Kyuhyun-led Puff the Magic Dragon and a Ryeowook spotlight, a new take on Craig David’s Insomnia. (Woohoo, go Wookie!)

The biggest surprise, however, comes via outspoken Super Junior Christian Siwon, who delivers a surprisingly effective rendition of Casting Crowns’ Who Am I. Super Junior has had a so-so record with English-language songs, from a laughable Y.M.C.A. to a version of 98 Degrees’ My Everything that can only be described as cringe-inducing. Siwon’s take on Who Am I is both heartfelt and touching. I assume that Korean singers who deliver English songs learn them phonetically, which is why some words would sound odd, but Siwon’s English is more than passable, especially for someone for whom English is not even a second language. At the end of the song, you can even hear him whisper the words, “Thank You, Lord,” which just took my breath away. I don’t know who his backup vocalists are – I think it might be Ryeowook, because he’s Christian too – but they did splendidly as well.

Suffice it to say that I am even more supportive of Super Junior now. The universality of the group’s music has been made even more accessible to me by the inclusion of Who Am I in the concert and by the decision of SM Entertainment to even allow the song to be included, because doing so may have alienated, even offended, some of their fans who are not Christians. (Of course, there is also a sizable number of Koreans who are Christian, and Who Am I may have undoubtedly endeared SuJu to them even more.

Don’t take my word for it. Listen to the track and see for yourself. And if you like it, please do buy the original double CD. It’s available at local record shops for only Php495 (for two CDs, plus a free poster!). Support original music, please, and support Christian musicians, whether they’re American, Korean, Filipino, or whatever race; you’re helping spread the gospel in your support of them.

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Prayer and Fasting is almost over

Ganns — Wed, 13 Jan 2010 21:39:02 +0000

Today is the last day of Prayer and Fasting. I’ve generally tried to be faithful to the fast and allow myself the barest minimum of online interaction so I could focus on God and really get into the spirit of things. It hasn’t been as smooth as it otherwise would’ve been – I’ve stumbled twice along the way, and some things at work, as well as the trial that I’d gone through with my Hyundai Getz, really tested my patience – but otherwise I’ve been okay.

This song has really helped get me through. I think Calvin Nowell is an unbelievably gifted songwriter. Don’t we all wish we could just worship God unrestrained?

Calvin Nowell – Unrestrained

I hope all is well with y’all, and I hope to blog again real soon. I have a lot of stories: my first commute-to-work experience, my Hyundai Getz issue, and the evil plans I have for 2010. Talk to y’all soon.

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Billboard’s Top Christian Songs for 2009 and for the decade

Ganns — Fri, 01 Jan 2010 05:48:08 +0000

Billboard.com has released its 2009 Year-Ender charts (okay, they did it the first week of December, but I didn’t have time to check it out until today). According to the chart, The Motions by Matthew West is the top Christian song of 2009, according to Billboard.com, and rightly so. The Motions spent more than a month at at #1, and changed thousands of lives with its encouraging message. Here are the Top 10 Christian songs of 2009:

1. The Motions, Matthew West
2. By Your Side, Tenth Avenue North
3. Revelation Song, Phillips, Craig & Dean
4. There Will Be A Day, Jeremy Camp
5. I Will Rise, Chris Tomlin
6. More Beautiful You, Jonny Diaz
7. Lead Me To The Cross, Chris and Conrad
8. Wait and See, Brandon Heath
9. Born Again, Third Day feat. Lacey Mosley
10. Free to Be Me, Francesca Battistelli

Pleasantly surprised to see Chris and Conrad’s Lead Me to the Cross in the Top 10; obviously, you don’t have to finish at #1 to place well; you can be consistent. (The same kind of chart longevity boded well for By Your Side by Tenth Avenue North, as we’ll see later.) Some other notable chart positions include Mandisa’s My Deliverer, my #1 song of 2009, finishes at #26; Britt Nicole’s The Lost Get Found finishes at #18, and Jimmy Needham’s Forgiven and Loved, also in my Top 5, a notch above Mandisa at #25.

What? You’ve never heard “The Motions”? Okay, click here.

Billboard also published a best-of for the decade, (2000-2009, I imagine), and these were the Top 10 Christian songs of the decade:

1. Word of God Speak, MercyMe
2. My Savior My God, Aaron Shust
3. By Your Side, Tenth Avenue North
4. The Motions, Matthew West
5. Give Me Your Eyes, Brandon Heath
6. East to West, Casting Crowns
7. Blessed Be Your Name, tree63
8. There Will Be A Day, Jeremy Camp
9. You Are My King (Amazing Love), Newsboys
10. Voice of Truth, Casting Crowns

Word of God Speak is a fantastic track, and MercyMe is a fantastic band. How can you top I Can Only Imagine? You can’t, but Word of God Speak came really close. A bit surprised that My Savior My God is #2 for the decade, especially since I thought Create Again was Shust’s masterpiece, but that single tanked. By Your Side is an absolutely phenomenal song; it was powerful in 2008, and powerful in 2009 to actually finish ahead of Matthew West’s The Motions, which finishes at #4 for the decade. No small feat for Matthew, whose You Are Everything – the first single off Something to Say, and a track I feel is superior to The Motions - finishes #17 for the decade. (Matthew is currently #1 today on the Christian charts with Give Christmas Away, a duet with Amy Grant off the OST of the new VeggieTales video.) (BTW, the highest-ranked female vocal for the decade? A guest spot by Mandisa on Lose Your Soul, #29 for the decade. Highest-ranked solo female vocal? Francesca Battistelli, squeaking in with Free to Be Me at #40.)

What? You’ve never heard “Word of God Speak”? Okay, click here.

Waitaminute, you’ve never heard “By Your Side” either? All right, click here.

What will the new year and the new decade hold? I can’t wait to see and hear! Expect me to bring you some of the freshest Christian songs out in the USA and here. God bless your 2010!

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Ganns’ Top 25 Songs of 2009

Ganns — Mon, 28 Dec 2009 12:55:45 +0000

After much computation and iTunes integration, these are my personal top 25 songs of 2009.

TOP 25 SONGS OF THE YEAR

MY DELIVERER, Mandisa (7 weeks)
GIVE ME THE MELTDOWN, Rob Thomas (4 weeks)
WHEN LOVE TAKES OVER, David Guetta feat Kelly Rowland (3 weeks)
ONE REASON, Chynna & Vaughan (4 weeks)
FORGIVEN AND LOVED, Jimmy Needham (2 weeks)
SORRY SORRY, Super Junior (2 weeks)
CREATE AGAIN, Aaron Shust (2 weeks)
BATTLEFIELD, Jordin Sparks (3 weeks)
NO OTHER NAME, Freddy Rodriguez (3 weeks)
SOMEBODY TO LOVE, The Glee Cast (3 weeks)
YOU FOUND ME, Big Daddy Weave (1 week)
LIVE LIKE WE’RE DYING, Kris Allen (1 week)
IF THIS ISN’T LOVE, Jennifer Hudson
PAJAMA PARTY, Super Junior Happy (3 weeks)
HOW MUCH, Mandisa (1 week)
COOKING COOKING, Super Junior Happy (1 week)
THE LOST GET FOUND, Britt Nicole
VANILLA LOVE, Lee Hyun Ji feat. Onew
NO SURPRISE, Daughtry
BEGIN AGAIN, Colbie Caillat
ARISE, Avalon (3 weeks)
RING DING DONG, SHINee
GEE, Girls Generation
PERFECT PEOPLE, Natalie Grant (3 weeks)
DEFYING GRAVITY, The Glee Cast (3 weeks)

For me, 2009’s best single was My Deliverer by Mandisa. The carrier single of the American Idol Season Five finalist’s sophomore CD, Freedom, is a vibrant, effervescent, jubilant single that I literally couldn’t resist for months. It was – and still is – one of the finest Contemporary Christian songs I have ever had the privilege of hearing.

The Top 10 songs have five Christian songs and five secular tracks. I am pretty sure I no longer fit pop music’s demographic, as the only song in the chart to have displayed some kind of Billboard Hot 100 chart success is Battlefield by American Idol Season Six winner Jordin Sparks. Songs by Rob Thomas (Give Me the Meltdown) and David Guetta (When Love Takes Over) fizzled in the lower end of the charts.

The highest ranked non-Number One song in the Top 25 is If This Isn’t Love by American Idol Season Three finalist and Academy Award winner Jennifer Hudson (Do we detect a pattern of Idol winners here?). Other Idol-related artists who have performed well on this year’s final tally include Season Eight winner Kris Allen, whose Live Like We’re Dying barely misses the Top 10 at #12, and Daughtry, led by Season Five finalist Chris Daughtry, with No Surprise. Mandisa also places a second track in the final chart, How Much, at #15.

American Idol is a television show, as is the Fox drama/musical Glee. The Glee Cast also sports some muscle, placing their remake of Queen’s Somebody to Love in the T0p 10, as well as their revival of Defying Gravity from the Broadway musical Wicked at #25. (A third track, Can’t Fight This Feeling, barely missed the Top 25.)

Of course, we can’t let the year go without the Catherine Deen-fueled Korean invasion. The later part of 2009 saw the entry of several singles from K-Pop artists, including Korean supergroup Super Junior and its sub-groups Super Junior M and Super Junior Happy; idol group SHINee; vocal group SS501, and nine-member girl group Girls Generation. Almost all the acts mentioned end up on the final chart, led by Super Junior’s Sorry Sorry, powerful at #6. Super Junior’s subgroup Super Junior Happy, also place well with Pajama Party (#14) and Cooking Cooking (#16). MusicBank’s top single of 2009, Gee by Girls Generation, squeaks in at #23; a notch above them is SHINee with Ring Ding Dong, the carrier single of their stellar mini-album 2009: Year of Us. SHINee’s leader, Onew, finds himself ranked a few notches above that, with his duet with Lee Hyun Ji, Vanilla Love, at #18.

Well, that’s it for this boring music an. Have a spectacular music-filled 2010, everyone!

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Offer me exciting new Christian music, man!

Ganns — Thu, 10 Dec 2009 00:49:05 +0000

In a nutshell: I’m getting concerned with the lack of exciting new Christian music.

The past two weeks have found my Top 10 list invaded by K-Pop artists. Super Junior is obviously tops on the playlist (their Super Junior Happy incarnation is finding massive airplay), and I’ve got songs too from SHINee, SS501, Girls’ Generation, and, odds are this week, another addition from an early 2009 release by Lee Hyun Ji and SHINee’s Onew, a track called Vanilla Love. It’s the first time since I can remember that there hasn’t been a single Contemporary Christian song in my Top 10, a far cry from just six months ago, when every song in the list was a current Christian single.

I don’t think this is an infatuation with KPop as much as it is an indication that I’m getting a little bored with the new stuff coming in from Christian Adult Contemporary. Looking at the Top 25 songs, very few connect to me, and it’s the same artists charting well. TobyMac. Casting Crowns. Kutless. Chris Tomlin. Same old, same old. To my knowledge, only Sidewalk Prophets, at #4 with The Words I Would Say, and Chris and Conrad, at #10 with Lead Me to the Cross, are the only artists in the Top 10 enjoying their first hit singles. The Top 20 has slightly more (Among the Thirsty, Chasen, and Pocketful of Rocks), but that’s a pretty sad batting average.

Also, female artists are suffering on the chart: the highest ranked female vocal is #8, as Lacey Mosley sings with Third Day on Born Again, then after that, it’s #20 with Pocketful of Rocks’ Alive, then Francesca Battistelli’s It’s Your Life (#21) then my girl Mandisa, who couldn’t make the Top 20 with He Is With You (currently down two notches to #24. Chynna & Vaughan sputtered out with One Reason, which failed to go past #40.

I’m getting a bit bored with the current crop. It also doesn’t help that my favorite Christian artists seem to be relegated now to Inspo (Avalon, Nicole C. Mullen, Selah), working on new material (Matthew West), or seem to have dropped off the face of the Earth (where are you, Warren Barfield?)

Is there any current Contemporary Christian song you’re enjoying right now that isn’t charting on the Top 20 of Billboard’s Christian charts? Please post a link to YouTube or MySpace so I can swing by and listen to it and hopefully discover more new Christian music. :)

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Testify to Love: Get a chance to win Avalon’s “The Greatest Hits”

Ganns — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:28:27 +0000

Taking a page from my good pal Raft3r, each contest is named after a hit song of the artist whose CD is at stake for that particular week. From November 23 to 29, the CD at stake is a brand-new copy of Avalon’s The Greatest Hits.

About Avalon’s The Greatest Hits: “Over the course of their career, Avalon has established themselves as the premier vocal group in Christian Music having multiple Gold records, many Dove Awards, and countless tours across the country with the purpose to bring the Gospel message and see lives changed. The new album Avalon: The Greatest Hits showcases songs that have been the soundtrack to their career thus far, songs that have seen massive airplay at Christian radio, and songs that have impacted the world. Avalon: The Greatest Hits is a well-crafted work of 16 songs, featuring a brand new and soon to be fan favorite “Still My God.” (Description lifted off Amazon.com)

Mechanics:

1. Write an entry on your blog (or a note on your Facebook account, if y’all don’t have a blog), telling me a particular story of how someone showed you s/he loved you, and how you felt after receiving her/his offering of love. I leave it to you to decide what kind of love to talk about, e.g., romantic, platonic, familial, etc., as well as how you’d like to tell it. Link your blog entry to this particular blog entry (e.g., “This is my entry to Ganns’ “Testify to Love” CD giveaway.”)

2. After you’ve made your entry, please leave a message in the Comments section of this particular blog entry linking to your blog entry so I can go visit it.

3. The author of the story with which I connect the most wins the CD; the announcement of the winner will be made sometime on November 30, 2009.

4. All entries must be received at or before 11:59pm (Philippine time) of November 29, 2009.

5. The winner must either be willing to meet up with me or pay for shipping costs to their chosen shipping destination.

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Win a Christian CD from GannsDeen.com

Ganns — Sun, 22 Nov 2009 17:02:05 +0000

Happy holidays, everybody! In celebration of House of Praise’s delightful decision to bring in the new CDs of some of my favorite artists, I’m giving away four Christian CDs to four lucky – separate – winners this December! Here’s the schedule of weekly contests and the CDs I’m raffling off. (Mind you, this is not a tie-up with House of Praise. This is something I’m just doing to bless y’all faithful readers of the blog.)

November 23 – 29 – Avalon, “The Greatest Hits”

November 30 – December 6 – Mandisa, “Freedom”

December 7 – 13 – Nicole C. Mullen, “The Ultimate Collection”

December 14 – 20 – Chris Tomlin, “Glory in the Highest”

Please be sure to check in tomorrow to read how to get a chance to win Avalon’s The Greatest Hits. It’s a spectacular CD – I bought my own copy a few days ago, and I haven’t stopped listening to it. It’s a terrific CD (if you can look beyond the fact that it’s missing In Not Of and Love Won’t Leave You, two major hits for the group, but that’s just the fanboy in me talking).

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Ganns on “All About Worship” podcast

Ganns — Sat, 31 Oct 2009 12:23:54 +0000

In a nutshell: I’m thrilled to be mentioned on one of my favorite worship podcasts.

I was mentioned in the October 29 podcast of AllAboutWorship. Okay, so it’s only in the Listener Feedback section, but it’s always a good thing to communicate with and encourage other Christian worship leaders who work on materials that edify the body of Christ. Wisdom and Ben mentioned a letter I wrote to them – Wisdom is particularly tickled by the fact that he got a “fanboy swoon” out of me – and read it out, which was a personal thrill. Even more so, to have it mention in a podcast featuring Brenton Brown, whose Everlasting God is one of my favorite praise songs of all time, well, that’s just icing on the cake.

You can view the show notes here. I really do recommend it – Brenton shares some really excellent ideas on his songwriting process, and I know Filipino-Christian songwriters stand to learn much from this particular interview. Leave a note on the Show Notes page and you might win an Introducing Brenton Brown CD and free registration to their upcoming P&W leaders’ webinar featuring legendary praise and worship leader Tommy Walker.

Thanks again for mentioning me, Wisdom and Ben. Keep up the great work!

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