I feel terrible I didn't even know of his passing until now, but better late than never. Sydney Carter, one of the greatest Christian songwriters, and folk songwriters of any religion, passed away in March of this year.
His best known song, without a doubt, is “Lord of the Dance,” a song that is sung and resung by many people who assume it is traditional . . . pagan, even. Carter’s genius was writing songs that, while undoubtedly Christian (in a gentle, Noncomformist way), could speak about the essence of faith to anyone, of any religion.
If you needed any more proof that Enoch Powell was a moron, the fact that he wanted to ban “Friday Morning” for being blasphemous should be sufficient: a more intensely devoted Christian song has probably never been written.
Don’t let me scare you off his work; it’s not “Christian Music” any more than J. S. Bach’s is. If you have never heard much of his work, you are in for a treat. Find a copy of Lovely in the Dances, the tribute album that Maddy Prior and other luminaries put together in the early 1980s.
posted 22:18