“(bobbing head to music & stereo system)…I’m down with the one that is known as the Son, of the G to the O to the D never done, with the flow, in the know, on the go like a pro, not for show ‘cuz I ain’t in the biz for the dough, or the me, or the ray, all the dough’s gotta stay, ‘cuz I can’t, no I can’t take it home anyway, never trite when I write ‘cuz the Lord is my Light, and His Word is my bond, so ya know He’s alright!” The year is 1993, dc Talk had previously released this stellar third album the year before. I can still recite this rap declaration. This popular re-make of “Jesus Is Just Alright” is just one of now many covers of the song. The original song was written/sung by the Art Reynolds Singers in the late 60s, then covered by a group called The Byrds a couple years later, and then again by the Doobie Brothers in 1972.
Did I know the song I was listening to at the time was made almost 30 years before? Not at all. To me, it was as much dc Talk’s song as it was Art Reynolds Singers, The Byrds, or the Doobie Brothers (if I had even heard of them). I was 10 years old, and hip-hop music was really gaining steam in culture at the time. Artists like 2Pac, Coolio, MC Hammer, and C&C Music Factory were popular at the time. What dc Talk did was take a song that had been presented decades before, and decide to re-communicate that tune & message again, but packaged in their unique style that fit with the culture at the time. While I still love dc Talk’s Free At Last album greatly, if I were to drive down Main St. crankin’ it in 2011, its sound will be recognized from a time frame over a decade ago. (more…)
