Payne, Leah. God Gave Rock and Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music. New York: Oxford University Press, 2024. 233 pp. $30.99.
“What can one learn from the development of evangelicalism by looking at CCM, one of the largest, most profitable forms of mass media produced in the twentieth century?” (4) is the question that guides God Gave Rock and Roll to You: A History of Contemporary Christian Music.” Leah Payne argues that Contemporary Christian Music (CCM) and its artists and media creators have greatly shaped and continue to shape evangelical activism in the United States and worldwide (2).
Chapter 1 traces the origins of CCM to the revival meetings of the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. These meetings are described as “rock concerts” (7) that blend spiritual, entertainment, and commercial elements, thus laying the foundation for CCM. It discusses how the composite of faith, business, music, and politics became the backbone of white evangelical activism and entertainment in the mid-twentieth century (19).
Chapter 2 describes how Christian music in the 1950s to1960s developed at the intersection of the Cold War, rock music, mass media, and youth culture. Payne describes how evangelicals considered rock and roll as rebellious and dangerous music (20). She argues that 1960s evangelical strategies to reach American youth through alternatives to popular music failed and the “attempts to sanitize popular music lagged behind mainstream youth culture” (37).
In chapter 3, the author attributes the emergence of CCM to the use of rock and roll by the Jesus Movement in the early 1970s. This movement, which started as a youth musical counterculture, significantly influenced the development of CCM into a genre that impacted the “wider American evangelical landscape” (51). Chapter 4 gives an account of the growth of the CCM market and how it was used as a tool for evangelizing young American adults. The author also argues that, during these years, CCM began to promote American nationalism and inspired public action. The consumers and supporters of CCM music “were participating in something bigger than personal taste; they were changing the world” (87).
Chapter 5 and 6 delve into the period spanning from 1992 to 2000, a time when CCM was at its peak as an industry. DC Talk’s 1995 album, Jesus Freak, revitalized hope and end time urgency in evangelical public action (92). During this period the church audiences grew, bookstore sales increased, Christian radio audiences expanded alongside them, and most Christian retailers celebrated the expansion of CCM as a form of evangelism (93). Towards the end of the century worship became more of a performative act and it deemphasized the role of the congregation. Institutionalized high-production, leader-centered worship within white evangelical spaces became prominent (129). CCM also became more intertwined with politics. “Wherever the evangelical fight for public policy went, CCM was likely to follow” (132).
In chapter 7 the author records the replacement of CCM by rock-oriented “worship music” bands like MercyMe, Third Day, and Casting Crowns (145). The author also discusses the Passion movement founded by Louie Giglio, and how it was shaped by New Calvinist theology as opposed to charismatic emotionalism (146).
In the last chapter of the book the author examines how CCM and worship culture evolved in the post-Obama era to the Trump first term presidency (2012–2021), highlighting how worship music became the heir of CCM (170). The author further describes how worship music became the digital soundtrack for evangelicals during the COVID-19 pandemic (188). Conversely, Sean Feucht and his Let Us Worship movement fostered activism culminating in the Jericho March at the Capitol on January 6, 2021, where the Newsboys’ “God’s Not Dead” served as an anthem of discontent (195).
Overall, in God Gave Rock and Roll to You, Payne does a commendable job in presenting a well-researched and balanced account of the history of Contemporary Christian Music. However, readers who lack familiarity with the actual music of CCM may find it less resonant than those who lived through the cultural, social, and political shifts that the movement both reflected and influenced. The book’s strength lies in its focused research on mostly white evangelical culture, yet that very focus also limits its global scope. Readers outside the American or evangelical context may find it less applicable or relatable.
While the book is not primarily an examination of CCM’s influence on Christian worship, the author’s insightful analysis of its broader social, cultural, and political impact situates the book as an essential source not only for students of worship and theology but also for readers interested in the intersections of Christianity, culture, and politics.
