Zondervan Records

LP: Zondervan Sampler: Echoes From the Albums

Artist: The Keller-York Quartet

Song: "He Cares"

[ listen ]
Artist: Gene Jordan

Song: "Stand Up For Jesus"

[ listen ]
 

Though it sounds like the name of an Afghan village liberated from the Taliban by allied forces, or maybe a vehicle driven by superheroes, Zondervan is actually the name of a Christian media and publishing company located in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Their Zondervan Victory record label brought a wide variety of religious music to the ears of American church-goers in the 1960s. This Zondervan sampler that I found at a thrift store several months ago features "echoes" from a dozen of the label's LP releases. My favorite echoes included on the record are by The Keller-York Quartet (accompanied by accordion and organ) and Gene "Mister Marimba" Jordan. I wasn't able to find any info on the K-Y Quartet, but I did find a neat photo of the group which I've included below. As for Gene Jordan, you can buy his 23-track CD here, where you can also read all about him in the "Album Notes" section. Unfortunately, it seems Gene is no longer with us—unlike legendary two-time Best Actress Oscar-winner Luise Rainer, who turns 102 today. Her beautiful, romantic 1938 film "The Great Waltz," which is "loosely based" on the life of composer Johann Strauss (played by Fernand Gravey), was recently remastered for its DVD debut, see here. You can get DVD copies of Rainer's Oscar-winners here and here, and a trio of her rarely-seen films from the 1930s is now available here. Happy Birthday, Luise!

[ The Keller-York Quartet ]

Dennis Plies

 

Artist: Dennis Plies

LP: Marimba Melodies

Song: "Springs of Living Water"

[ listen ]

I was feeling a little under the weather this morning, but a sip from Dennis and Jan's bubbly "Springs of Living Water" quickly put things right again. Originally from California, Dennis Plies was a young man of only 15 when he and his marimba took first place at the local, state, regional and national musical contests sponsored by Youth For Christ. According to the internet, Plies now teaches at Warner Pacific College in Portland, Oregon, where he's been since 1979—and according to Dennis himself, this record was released in 1963. Some friends and I took a weekend road trip getaway down to Portland just this past weekend; if I'd known Dennis was there, I'd have invited him to join us for some delicious chocolate cake at the Rimsky-Korsakoffeehouse, where he could have signed his LP for me while we enjoyed the cafe's live classical piano music provided by a lovely Brazilian woman named Diana.