It's Tuesday and you're just in time for another peek into popular music of all decades...It's Tuesday's Musical Notes!!! The only blog on the internetosphere to feature your favorite music and put it into a context that maybe you had never considered...but readers of this blog are really smart, so you probably have considered the alternate contexts and universes that apply to your favorite music. Regardless, here we go with something that is a bit newer than our usual fare. It's Tuesday, the best day of the week, and Backstreet's back! So let's get started...alright!!!
Every generation has seen a musical act that is comprised of young men. These musical acts can trace their origins back to the turn of the century when Barbershop quartets expanded their style into blues and jazz. Groups like The Mills Brothers and The Ink Spots would pave the way for groups like The Beach Boys (Tuesday's Musical Notes - "I Get Around"), The Jackson 5 (Tuesday's Musical Notes - "ABC"), The Monkees (Tuesday's Musical Notes - "I'm a Believer"), The Osmonds, and yes, The Beatles (Tuesday's Musical Notes - "Nowhere Man", et.al). It seems that with each passing decade "boy bands" have an impact on the musical landscape. 24/7 Wall Street had a great article about the impact that these bands and others have had on music history. 25 Most Popular Boy Bands of all Time - by Evan Comen March 22, 2018 - 247wallstreet.com
At the top of this list...Backstreet Boys. They are the best selling "boy band" of all time with record sales in excess of 100 million units. Their first 8 albums went into Billboards Hot 200 albums list and went gold. They continue to perform 25 years (yes, 25 years!) after their inception in Orlando, Florida and have just completed a residency in Las Vegas. Latest word is that Backstreet will be back with a new album October of this year. I guess they will keep performing as long as we love them.
I confess, this country raised, southern rock preferenced, lover of music was not quick to embrace the Backstreet Boys in the 90's. However, as a music retailer at the time, I had a great deal of respect for them as they brought fans into our store on repeated occasions and seemed to be an act that had high standards inside and outside of their celebrity. It is rare to see a Backstreet Boy in the tabloids or on some investigative reporter's watch list. Their music, for the most part, has positive lyrics and you can dance to it!
Could be that Backstreet's high standards come from a foundation of faith by one of its members. Brian Littrell became a staple in the Christian music industry from 2005-2010 with the release of his solo project, Welcome Home. He won the 2006 Dove Award for Inspirational Recorded Song of the Year and continued to collaborate in the Christian music industry until Backstreet's performance schedule amped up in 2010.
Littrell and wife Leighanne are evangelical Christians. Littrell met his wife Leighanne Wallace at the video shoot for today's featured song and became the first Backstreet dad in 2002 with the birth of his son, Baylee. While I doubt they are readers of Tuesday's Musical Notes, I suspect they subscribe to many of the twists that the Notes puts on popular music. As evangelicals, the Littrell's believe, that no matter who you are, where you're from, what you did, as long as you repent (turn away from) doing wrong things and turn to/love Jesus, the broken relationship that exists between you and God will be restored.
The motivation for this devotion to Jesus is a love born of sacrifice. Jesus gave up heaven, being in the presence of God, the Father, and perfection for us to be restored.
You see, since Adam rebelled by his disobedience (Genesis 3 New International Version of the Bible/The Message paraphrase of the Bible/English Standard Version of the Bible parallel), the relationship between God the Father, and mankind has been broken. Adam had a perfect relationship with God until the events of Genesis 3. Since that time, mankind cannot be good enough or do enough good things, to restore the relationship with God. (Paul's letter to the Roman church, chapter 6 NIV/The Message/ESV, Romans 3:9-26 NIV/The Message/ESV) But God's love for man was so much that He made a way for that restoration to happen (The Gospel of Jesus according to the disciple John, chapter 3, verses 16-18 NIV/The Message/ESV, Romans 5:6-8 NIV/The Message/ESV) Jesus, God the Son, is That Way. (Paul's 2nd Letter to the Corinthian church, chapter 5 NIV/The Message/ESV) If we turn away from the ways and the trappings of this world and turn to The Way, The Truth and The Life, our relationship with God will be restored. (John 14 NIV/The Message/ESV, Romans 10:4-10 NIV/The Message/ESV). We are prompted by Holy Spirit (God the Spirit) to love Jesus (God the Son) because of what Jesus' did for us (died on the cross) to restore our relationship with God (God the Father).
Dear friend, there is only 1 thing that keeps you from having the restoration your soul so deeply desires. It doesn't matter who you are, where you're from, what you did, Holy Spirit draws you to Jesus. You CAN turn away from the habitual wrong that you do. You get to choose. You decide. You determine your eternity future. (Heaven with God, or hell, separated from God) You choose whether you love Him for what He did for you. Holy Spirit is telling you that..."You can be restored...you can be saved, you can be redeemed...as long as you love Me..."
'Til Tuesday,
Serving HIM by serving You,
randy
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