Jefferson Street

Description

Jefferson Street is the sophomore album by the American southern rock band Three Crosses, released on Benson Records in September 1996. The album was produced by Barry Beckett and Kenny Greenberg for Beckett Productions.

Imagine for a moment a scenario where contemporary Christian music took a different path than the one that led to its creation as an “industry.” What if it never became a sub-genre of general market music and was never segregated from the rest of pop culture? What if it retained the raw emotional and social consciousness (without the chemicals) that characterized the late ’60s? What if Woodstock-era sensibilities were still relevant, especially in the church?

It is a pleasant fantasy to consider what might have been, especially after listening to Three Crosses’ new release, ‘Jefferson Street’. The sophomore album from these Jersey natives captures something of the soul of the protest movement, both musically and lyrically, with sounds that hearken back to ‘Exile on Main Street’-era Rolling Stones with a generous dollop of Memphis blues. The emphasis is on overall mood and delivery rather than flashy instrumentation, although it is solid in all departments.

Wrapped up in the music are ruminations on artistic expression («Michelangelo»), social commentary drawn from Nebuchadnezzar’s defilement of the Jewish temple («Strangers in the House of the Lord») and straight forward evangelism («Blind Faith»). «Rolled Away the Stone», the first adult contemporary radio single, is a collaboration between Three Crosses and Jars of Clay, with predictable results.

Other highlights include «Heal My Heart», with its acoustic guitar/harmonica combination, and «Welcome to the Jesus Movement», which, for three and a half minute anyway, strips American Christianity of its political baggage, while offering up a large musical hook.

The passion and innocence of the music adds up to a listening experience that makes one wish, in some ways, we could do this whole thing over again. [Scott Thunder, CCM, December 1996]

> iTunes (https://music.apple.com/us/album/jefferson-street/322038941)

CD tracklist:

01. Michelangelo – 4:01
02. The Stone Was Rolled Away – 6:00
03. Welcome to the Jesus Movement – 3:50
04. Bring Me to My Knees – 3:35
05. Blind Faith – 4:51
06. Heal My Heart – 3:54
07. Getting Ready (For the End of the World) – 4:04
08. Strangers In the House of the Lord – 3:33
09. What Kind of Love – 4:39
10. We’ve Got to Come Together – 4:18

Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by Benson Records.

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A double-page advertisement for Three Crosses’ Jefferson Street was featured in the November 1996 issue of CCM Magazine.

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