Description
Awaiting Your Reply is the official debut album by the American hard rock outfit Resurrection Band, released on StarSong Records in 1978. As well released in the UK on Kingsway Music in 1980. The album was recorded by Mal Davis and band member Stu Heiss at Hedden West Studios in Schaumburg, Illinois; with the band producing. Mixed by Heiss and the band.
Awaiting Your Reply was included among CCM Magazine‘s Top 10 Albums of the Year. – They said it couldn’t be done, but 1978 also saw the release of this, the first real straight-ahead, rock & roll Christian album. Carefully conceived and crafted, it features powerful music and lyrics. An instant classic. (These ten albums released during 1978, were chosen for excellence in production, arrangements, composition and performance, as well as their overall contribution to contemporary Christian music.)
The band had previously recorded two independent cassettes that were given away at their concerts. The first cassette, Music to Raise the Dead (1974), featured hard rock, while All Your Life comprised their acoustic numbers only. After having logged thousands of miles on the road, performing hundreds of concerts, for however few or many showed up, Resurrection Band finally decided to record their first LP, Awaiting Your Reply. It was done for about US $8,000 over a period of two weeks in marathon all-night sessions ending on Easter Sunday morning. Every label in the US, Canada and the UK turned it down, except a new label entitled StarSong… today an album considered a classic.
AWAITING YOUR REPLY, RESURRECTION BAND – Star Song SSR-0011
Christian music comes in all forms and styles – as evidenced by this selection of heavy metal hard rock from a new group. You could be listening to the Grateful Dead, ZZ Top or Heart except the lyrics and message are all Jesus. Should definitely appeal to any young listener who loves hard rock and the gospel message. [Record World magazine (Gospel Album Picks section), November 11, 1978 (Vol 35, No. 1636)]
The debut of Rez Band is truly its finest. Lots of Zeppelin influence here on both the rockers and the acoustic numbers; («Ananaias and Sapphira» sounds like it came straight off of Led Zeppelin 3.) Singer Wendi Kaiser sounds exceptional here… The highlight of this one is the centerpiece, «Lightshine», which has been a concert favorite of the band for as long as the group has been around. Songs are well-crafted and full of hooks. Excellent guitar work by Stu Heiss. [Mark Allender, AMG]
Just in case by some fluke there’s someone out there that’s never heard of Jesus music’s premier hard rock outfit, let me assure you that early Rez Band is definitely all that they’re cracked up to be. They weren’t the first to worship and evangelize at high volume, though they’re probably the best known and certainly one of the first to get label attention and be taken seriously from an artistic perspective. The band had been together long before this release finally saw the light, dispensing a couple cassette demos to riff-starved hippies that frequented their urban Chicago-based ministry Jesus People USA (JPUSA). Flawless examples of heavy ’70’s-style guitar-based classic rock can be found in «Waves», «Lightshine», the title track and «The Death Of The Dying», the latter opening with a wild noise collage and reverse guitar effects. Plenty of solid riff workouts from guitarist Stu Heiss and Glenn Kaiser, but note the equally skillful acoustic textures, including the effective use of dulcimer («Golden Road», «Irish Garden») and Delta blues-styled slide guitar («Ananias And Sapphira», courtesy of bass player Jim Denton). Even room for some progressive keyboard touches (piano, synthesizer) on «Broken Promises». They also work in some wailing harmonica (the aforementioned «Waves») and jazzy saxophone (the closing ballad «The Return»). Glenn and Wendy Kaiser both prove themselves to be worthy lead vocalists. Enough said – it’s out on CD now, though the original gatefold cover is an artistic masterpiece well worth seeking out. [Ken Scott, The Archivist, 4th Edition]
To modern ears, it’s probably hard to comprehend the earthquake that was caused by the release of this album. The Chicago band born out of a radical Christian community financed ‘Awaiting Your Reply’ themselves and recorded it in two weeks of sessions in their home. In a Christian music scene which was still unbelievably square, this was manna to the hungry rock loving youth group kids who had been forced to survive the middle of the road generally peddled at the time. This was ROCK!!! It was LOUD!!! The opener «Waves» immediately nailed the band’s colours to the mast with a Zeppelinesque riff and singers Glenn and Wendy Kaiser trading vocal licks like their lives depended on it! And the album just got better. In later years we would become well aware of Glenn Kaiser’s love of blues but it came out fully formed on this album on the epic «Broken Promises». Glenn’s gritty vocals were an authentic and captivating howl in the wilderness. The modern rock of «Lightshine» and «Death Of The Dying» watered the thirsty soul of this young rock fan who loved Zep and Purple. There really wasn’t anything else like ‘Awaiting Your Reply’ in Christian music. «The Return» which closed the album demonstrated that rock passion didn’t always need to hit you with a musical sledgehammer to hit home. Signed by the then small independent label Star Song, its release helped establish the label as a significant player and proved to be a launch pad for a series of blistering hard rock albums for Rez in the coming years. [Mike Rimmer, Cross Rhythms, October 2016]
Girder Music Promo, 2022 (CD), 2023 (vinyl)
Resurrection Band was not only one of the early founders of Christian rock and early Jesus people music, they also were the leaders behind the Jesus People USA Cornerstone Festival, which so many of us came to love and appreciate, not to mention attend every single year. Those years were magical and nothing was greater than watching Rez play on the main stage over the 4th of July weekend. It’s something we all looked forward to every single year. They just might be the most influential band in Christian music history. Rarely do you hear Resurrection Band get compared to any other band. They clearly founded their own sound and didn’t worry about following in the footsteps of anyone else. Glenn and Wendi Kaiser, along with Stu Heiss, Jim Denton, and John Herrin simply knew what they were after: to spread God’s love through music and ministry. Pure unadulterated Jesus Rock at its finest. Over the years, they put out one stunningly great album after another, 18 to be exact, if you count their 1973 and 1974 early promos and their 1976 Demo.
Two of their greatest albums that they ever released IMO were their first two full length albums on the Star Song label: Awaiting Your Reply (1978) and Rainbow’s End (1979). These late 70s albums were a pivotal point in Christian rock music as they define a message and address topics that no one else would touch such as apartheid in South Africa. Their music resonated with fans all over the world. Some of their greatest songs («Broken Promises», «Waves», «Awaiting Your Reply», «The Return», «Afrikaans», «Paint a Picture», and «Skyline») came from these two early albums, which if I had to choose only two albums to take to an island alone and listen to them for the rest of my life, it would be these two. Yep, that’s correct, these are my absolutely favorite albums of anything and everything that’s ever come out in the Christian rock scene. If you have not experienced these albums before, you’re in for a real treat. If you do have history with these albums, then I don’t need to say anything because if you know, you know. There is nothing quite like them in the Christian market. You don’t want to miss this chance to grab these two remastered releases on vinyl. They’ve been completely remastered and faithfully restored. It’s such an honor to be able to re-issue these albums because of how much they meant to me. Thank you, Capitol CMG. Anyone who has experienced and understands what we do will know that these were done right. We even are releasing Rainbow’s End with the original die-cut windows just like the first pressing. Rainbow’s End comes in Skyline Orange and Awaiting Your Reply comes in Sapphire Purple. Limited to just 300 units each.
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/awaiting-your-reply/716402276)
LP tracklist:
Side One
A1. Introduction – 0:40
A2. “Waves” – 2:54
A3. “Awaiting Your Reply” – 4:06
A4. “Broken Promises” – 6:56
A5. “Golden Road” – 4:56
Side Two
B1. “Lightshine” – 5:20
B2. “Ananias & Sapphire” – 2:50
B3. “The Death Of The Dying” – 3:18
B4. “Irish Garden” – 4:52
B5. “The Return” – 3:52
B6. Tag – 0:05
Note: Simultaneously released on 8-track tape, cassette, and 12-inch vinyl LP by StarSong Records. Later re-issued on CD. Remastered by Rob Colwell of Bombworks Sound and re-issued by Girder Music (through Limited Run Music/Limited Run Vinyl) on both CD (May 2022) and 12-inch vinyl LP (February 2023, 300 units pressed on Sapphire Purple Vinyl).
Gatefold Cover Artwork
Gatefold Cover, Inside
Awaiting Your Reply, Remastered and pressed on Sapphire Purple vinyl, Girder Music 2023
“A prophet is not without honour, save in his own country, and in his own house.” St. Matthew 14:57 (KJV)
“The stone which the builders rejected has become the chief corner stone.” Psalm 118:22 (NAS)
If you trace the bloodline of what we call contemporary Christian music back to its humble beginnings, you’ll find precious few groups that could legitimately be labeled rock bands. Among those handful of originators was the chief architect of today’s Christian metal sound, Rez, or Resurrection Band. The line-up which recorded these two ground-breaking albums – Glenn and Wendi Kaiser, Stu Heiss, Jim Denton and John Herrin – was already legendary in the burgeoning Christian music underground, having logged thousands of miles on the road, performing hundreds of concerts, for however few or many showed up. The band had committed some early versions of these tunes and others to a series of demos, slyly referred to as the “Music To Raise The Dead” tapes, which acquired collectable status in a short period of time. But no official Rez material was issued until 1978’s Awaiting Your Reply.
Awaiting You Reply was a slightly sanitized recording; by that, I mean as smooth a recording as you’d expect from a group that had little multi-track experience at that time. Essentially meant to duplicate much of Rez’s concert set, there were few studio tricks or gee-gaws added that the group could not duplicate live. Mostly what you got was the band’s take on raw proto-metal influences, such as Zeppelin, Black Sabbath, Deep Purple, etc., with some Floyd-ian sounding sax work on the album’s closing «The Return». An acoustic set was often a feature of the band’s concerts; that’s represented here by Jim Denton’s Delta-influenced «Ananias and Sapphira». «Golden Road» and «Irish Garden» mimic the Celtic stomp of Zeppelin III, while «Waves» and «Broken Promises» offer a heavier, blues-based sound. All in all, an auspicious debut.
Since there wasn’t much Christian rock radio in the late 70’s (not that there’s much more now), the temptation to wimp out or think of the marketability of your music wasn’t that strong. If the audience responded to your songs, that usually meant you’d sell records. Despite criticism from all sides about its looks and its musical styles, Rez won over most of its detractors with its inner-city based, mission-oriented life-style.
The musical ministry of Rez was seen as missionary work to young people, both saved and unsaved, and the band’s second album, Rainbow’s End, reflected that deep commitment. Once again, the musical focus of the record was the bedrock of Denton’s bass and Herrin’s drums, and Stu and Glenn’s ripping fretwork. But the words of Kaiser, Denton, Heiss, and other writers from the Jesus People, USA community, took on a new passion – as the fiery, emotional lyrics grew to match the intensity of the music. «Skyline» displayed Rez’s concern with its urban surroundings, while «Afrikaans» exhibited a sensitivity to the plight of black South Africans, years before Bono or Sting jumped on the bandwagon. And of course, there were short bursts of blues power, such as «Midnight Son» and «Sacrifice of Love» and one legitimate classic, «Paint A Picture». Like most bands with a history of nearly twenty years, Rez has put out a mix of great and not-so-wonderful material over the years. But it’s always been an honest reflection of the band’s heart for the suffering world. For those who’s tastes lean to this earlier material, Grrr is currently compiling a retrospective collection, rumored to contain demos and other vault items, for release in 1992. [Bruce Brown, White Throne, #11 – 1992]
Although hard music historians inevitably point to Stryper as the dawn of the current Christian hard music scene, its real origin – at least as far as those in the know is concerned – traces to the late seventies emergence of Resurrection Band. Also known as Rez Band or just plain Rez, Resurrection Band got its start in 1971 when it came out of the Jesus Movement in Milwaukie, Wisconsin initially under the Charity moniker and played a mostly acoustic set. After relocating to Chicago and becoming a musical outreach for the Jesus People USA community, the group went full-bore rock and roll within six months, but a change to a heavier musical direction prompted a stronger name. Founding member and vocalist/guitarist Glenn Kaiser initially chose Resurrection, a moniker reflecting the fact Jesus is alive and risen and that God the Father literally raised his Son from the dead, which in time transitioned to Resurrection Band.
Resurrection Band first entered the studio in 1974 to record a pair of independent cassette releases that it gave away at its shows: All Your Life took a folk-based acoustic heading, while Music To Raise The Dead trended straightforward hard rock. Fast forward four years and subsequent to an $8000 give from a friend and two weeks of marathon, all-night recording sessions, Resurrection Band completed work on its debut full length Awaiting Your Reply, which it released in 1978 via Star Song Records. By late seventies standards Awaiting Your Reply might have been considered ‘heavy metal’ but in today’s hard music climate would fall under a heading of hard rock and blues rock reflective of its influences at the time: Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Jefferson Airplane and Aerosmith.
In terms of legacy, Awaiting Your Reply has stood the test of time in the eyes of fans and critics alike. It placed a respectable 32nd in a blog counting down the 100 Greatest CCM Albums of the 70’s and 134th in another blog listing the 500 Best Contemporary Christian albums of all time. Angelic Warlord even got in on the act and rated it 6th in an article ranking the best Resurrection Band albums. Blogs and articles aside, the true legacy of Awaiting Your Reply resides in how it – along with albums released by other pioneering bands of the time in Jerusalem, Petra, Daniel Band and Barnabas – helped pave the way for the commercial success of the aforementioned Stryper not to mention profusion of ‘white metal’ bands to follow in its wake.
Few albums have B opening unmistakable as Awaiting Your Reply, with its DJ voice over intro – ‘that was The Archies with “Sugar Sugar” just makes you wanna cry don’t it – so hang in there as we play some music by Resurrection Band, how did this get in the stacks, we’ll here’s hoping’ – to lead into opening vocal track «Waves».
Immediately cutting in to bouncing rhythms and guitars dashing in and out of the mix, «Waves» serves to introduce the vocal tandem of Glenn (gritty and gravelly style) – ‘we see wave after wave of people in the street, playing their songs but missing the beat’ and Wendi Kaiser (soulful) – ‘people, oh, people why can’t you understand, fools with no disguises and love so close at hand’. Rugged lead guitar and harmonica interspersed throughout set the stage for the bluesy hard rock themes to follow.
Albums title track ensues as a doom metal monster. With Wendi vocally leading the way, «Awaiting Your Reply» rates among the all time classic Resurrection Band cuts, trampling with an incessant guitar mentality to touch upon the bruising (albeit not crossing the threshold of heavy handed) but also accessible in terms of a curt refrain to immediately draw in (understated in terms of catchiness). John Herrin’s buffeting drums set the militant backbone. Lyric snippet:
So I called Him up, asked for Him by name
He passed me the ticket, and I boarded the plane
We pulled out onto the airport runway
We began to climb as the whole world exploded
I’d just asked Him for His lifelineThe blood, the blood of Jesus is His lifeline
Seven minute «Broken Promises» reveals some progressive rock vestiges. It moves forward relaxed and laid back to piano and amiable guitars mixed with synthesizers as Glenn takes over with its complementary scratchy vocals, gradually building over its first minute and a half to set the emotional tone its remaining distance but periodically breaking out in heavier rocking fashion. Despite its length, I have never found “Broken Promises” to wear out its welcome or turn into a trite listen. Lyric snippet:
Son of God, where are you now?
Do you feel my need?
Oh, I’m lost within this forest, barricaded by the trees,
Will your hear my cry for help?
Would you forgive me?
I’m so far away, I’ve run so far away.Lord, help me to follow you,
Jesus, I’m gonna follow you,
I give my whole life to you,
Jesus, I’m gonna follow you«Golden Road» touches upon some psychedelic classic rock nuances in also featuring Glenn vocally. The song begins to a jangly open-air acoustic guitar solo prior to slowly gaining impetus, with the rhythm section joining the astute scene a minute in and helping lead the upbeat subsequent way. Following a passage returning to an acoustic direction, rhythm guitar briefly crashes in to allow a heavier rocking statement. Lyric snippet:
I turned away from God and His love, and I worshipped myself
The idols that I’d built, all crumbled on my shelf, they all crumbled on my shelf
But all along I realized
That if I had to, if I had to choose
Between love an’ my own sweet lies
Love was bound to lose, yeah, love was bound to loseThey told me about a broken road paved with death and shame
I thought I’d try to find it… get away from playing the game
I finally realized the price He paid for changes I’ve gone thoughSide two opening cut «Lightshine» brings the type of distorted guitar edge to cross the metal threshold. It resonates a brilliant straightforward simplicity without coming across simplistic, home to driving rhythms and attitude laden demeanor that has acerbic (in a positive sense) written all over it. Glenn along with lead guitarist Stu Heiss exhibits their pointed abilities, while Wendi makes her albums last appearance with lightly done backing vocals for the refrain. Lyric snippet:
I used to sit and wonder where I was going
I used to wonder where it would be, yeah, yeah
When the curtain fell… when the curtain fell and time caught up with me
Have you heard the satanic symphony?
Have you realized that conductor runs you too, unless you know Jesus?
Oh, when the Father calls, do you stall and stall
Or will you search for the key and receive the truth?But if your yoke is easy, then your burden is light, (light, light…)
We can take it one day at a time
Oh Lord, if you change my heart and you change my life,
That will surely change my mind«Ananias & Sapphira», composed and fronted by bassist Jim Denton, comes across in the form of bluesy acoustic rock. No, not a bad song, but perhaps it is the hard rocker in me, but I find it least remarkable of the albums tracks.
Album revisits some of its doom-ish ways with «Death Of The Dying». A dark and ominous tinge manifests, as a discordant opening home to cavernous bass and off kilter voices abruptly gives way to menacing guitars as Glenn makes a weighty vocal statement. Along with «Lightshine», this is the second cut here to potentially approach all out metal (by today’s standards). Lyric snippet:
And in the finale, clutched tightly by pain, their glass house is shattered,
Weeds bent in the rain,
With a “Why?” in the mind and a curse on the tongue,
Death bellowing hungrily, shadows on sun.They pass into all that they have ever sown,
Forsaking the answer, abdicating the throne,
If only they’d followed when Christ called and walked on,
They’d have silenced the madness in the narrow road home.«Irish Garden» takes a similar psychedelic bent as «Golden Road» but with the consistently heavier rocking edge. It also begins instrumentally as acoustic guitar and keyboards give way to galvanic guitars, holding to a plainspoken edge its distance, albeit occasionally returning to the calmer form at the start. Keyboards carry things instrumentally. Lyric snippet:
Olden days gone by, it was no so then,
Time to play, sing and dance in his holy land,
Why did I hide from you, with the serpent at my heel?
I’m sorry for the way I must have made you feel, must have made you feel.Humble us to seek you, Father,
Heal our land so lost in sin,
Draw us from the bitter water to the garden once again.«The Return» closes things in bluesy fashion as eloquent keyboards and expressive low end lead the placid way to Glenn’s consummate gravelly but emotionally vocal presence. Saxophone, courtesy of Kenny Soderblom, adorns one of the albums mellower but better tracks. Lyric snippet:
I know it won’t be long until the Savior comes,
Oh, and if you’re weary, weary, keep on praying,
Sometimes we do get down with no one else around,
But in those quiet times, He whispers, “You are mine and I love you,”
Sometimes we know we’re wrong and we feel so far from home,
But if you’ll listen, you’ll hear his gentle voice saying, “You belong.”Whereas Awaiting Your Reply in no way sounds ‘dated’ despite being recorded over 40 years ago, I would welcome any potential upgrade an up to date re-mastering might bring. I wish whoever owns the rights to the album (along with 1979 Star Song follow up effort Rainbow’s End) would re-release it in the digi-pak (3 to 4 panel) format to capture the original vinyl gatefold packaging with lyrics and liner notes.
I own the CD re-issue on Star Song from 1991, but it leaves somewhat desired: a 2-for-1 with both Awaiting Your Reply and Rainbow’s End on a single CD and rudimentary packaging (single fold out insert with limited liner notes; matching the incorrect cover art with track listing on back of the CD case). I could be mistaken, but I do not recognize any re-mastering (both albums sound as if transferred directly from cassette copies). Too many of the Christian music CD re-issues from the early nineties were done on the cheap and not always respectful towards the artists in the manner in which they should, which is why I hold in such high regard the work of re-mastering labels such as Retroactive Records, Roxx Records and Girder Music. If you want to get the job done correctly, leave it to the professionals.
The first Christian metal album might be open to debate (I lean towards early eighties releases from Stronghold and Barnabas, Fortress Rock and Approaching Light Speed, respectfully) but Awaiting Your Reply leaves little doubt with its front to back hard rocking proclivity. It has stood the test of time in musically representing the late seventies period in which it came out of: at times hard rock (even borderline metal) and others bluesy and even derivative of classic rock. Give credit to Resurrection Band accordingly in creating a relevant work that helped blaze the trail for a Christian hard music scene that remains vibrant to this day. [angelicwarlord.com]
Jesus People USA (JPUSA) emerged when two veterans of the West Coast Jesus People scene formed a Milwaukee commune with a touring music ministry. JPUSA’s Resurrection Band became the Led Zeppelin of early CCM – its hard rock innovator. Their group grew large enough to split in 1972, and eventually a splinter led by John and Dawn Herrin put down roots on the north side of Chicago, where it began an active social ministry. Eventually they acquired an old hotel, which they used for living space and low-income housing for the elderly. JPUSA generated income from several businesses, notably a roofing company, and ran a homeless shelter and soup kitchen. In 1989 they became a congregation and de facto mission project of the Evangelical Covenant Church.
From 1984 to 2012 JPUSA’s Cornerstone music festival drew 10,000 to 20,000 people, first to a Chicago fairground and later to JPUSA’s northern Illinois farm. Other CCM festivals were bigger, but Cornerstone was more cutting-edge. Cornerstone was an incubator for alternative CCM – its punks, goths, death-metal bands, and more – as well as critical darlings poised for crossover like Sixpence None the Richer and P.O.D.
How Christian Rock & Metal Awakened The Church to the Great Commission!
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