God Loves You (1979)

Performer: The Archers                                          Writer: Billy Preston
Highest US Chart Position: N/A                              Label: Light Records
Musicians: Tim Archer, Steve Archer, Janice Archer, Billy Preston and David Hungate

In the early seventies it was known as Jesus Music, but it would take the rest of the decade before it would be transformed into the genre known as Contemporary Christian. While I played music and sang in high school, the only actual rock band I was in played Christian music, and that was my first and only real exposure to a variety of songs and styles from that era late in the decade. Our band even managed to be accepted into a Christian music competition in Colorado in the summer of 1979, and that’s where I bought The Archers album Stand Up! One of my favorite songs on the album was the penultimate number, “God Loves You,” which, I didn’t learn until recently, was written by the great Billy Preston back in 1972 for his album Music Is My Life. But where Preston’s version had been more like gospel funk, The Archers turned it into pure disco. At the time, however, this was a great way to go, and taking into consideration the time period it’s still a great rendition even today. Part of the reason for that has to be the presence of Billy Preston himself on the record. Not only his distinctive sound on the organ, but his mere presence in the studio must have been a real inspiration to the group and it shows.

The tune doesn’t begin with a typical disco beat, straight sixteenth-notes on the hi-hats, but instead drummer Mike Baird has a much more interesting rhythm going, and with the addition of congas by King Errisson it lifts it out of the realm of cliché, though it does owe something to Barry Manilow’s intro to "Copacabana". After eight bars the organ hits on the last beat and the vocals come in singing the chorus. The rhythm section is thick, with Dean Parks playing a very rhythmic electric guitar, Larry Muhoberac playing percussive piano, Preston on the organ, and David Hungate of Toto on bass. The lyrics, such as they are, are fairly minimal as this is a pure song of praise. The chorus repeats the title phrase four times, once every four bars, and then a second repeating phrase of thanks begins with the singers invoking the idea of eternal life. At this point all the musicians drop out, except for the percussion, and the singers sort of rhythmically whisper their praise ending on the same fourth beat from the intro that begins the whole thing again. The second time around a horn section plays call and response with the vocals all the way through. Again a whispered section with percussion, this time twice as long, leads right into a Billy Preston solo on the organ. After an extended second half of the verse, ad lib vocals by Steve Archer are responded to by the full group over the percussion, with bits of guitar and organ, and finally the horns and piano joining in. A short whispered section ends with a shouted-out repetition of the title.

This was already the sixth album recorded by The Archers, who began as a trio, Tim and Steve singing with their older brother Gary. When Gary left to become the manager of the group the two boys were joined by singer Nancye Short and guitarist Billy Rush Masters, who wrote many of their songs. Eventually Pat Boone heard them and brought then to Nashville to start their recording career. When Short and Masters left the group the boys were then joined by their younger sister Janice. Stand Up! was the second album featuring Janice and she does a great job on all her feature numbers. By this time the group was doing the bulk of their recording in Los Angeles and drawing on the cream of studio musicians in town. In addition to the distinguished rhythm section on this album, the horn section consisted of Buddy Collette and Don Menza on saxophones, Chuck Findlay and Jay DaVersa on trumpet, and Bill Watrous on trombone. The album was also produced by pianist Larry Muhoberac, who was the original keyboard player with Elvis Presley’s seventies touring band. He worked in the studio with dozens of name acts in the seventies before going into producing for Seals and Crofts as well as the Archers. Though not typically remembered by non-Christians, this kind of music had a large popular following in the seventies, and with its connection to pop superstar Billy Preston, “God Loves You” is a quintessential example of the genre.