The work of SCC

Steven Curtis Chapman; Greatest Hits

In the summer of 1998 the leader of our band on board the Delta Queen got married. His name was Larry S., and he was a character. As you can imagine, all of us in the band were invited to attend the wedding in Oklahoma City, OK. My friend James F., the bassist on the Delta Queen at the time, is from Oklahoma and came to pick me up at the airport in his Jeep Cherokee.

With some time to kill before attending the festivities, we grabbed some lunch and then visited the Christian bookstore nearby. While I was in there I happened to see Steven Curtis Chapman’s Greatest Hits album on sale. I had heard of Mr. Chapman for years but had never availed myself of the opportunity to check out his music. So I bought the album.

Steven Curtis Chapman is a giant in the world of Contemporary Christian music. He has won five Grammy’s and dozens of Dove awards over the course of more than 25 years in the music business. His discography consists of 20 albums. Greatest Hits was released in October of 1997 and is made up of two new songs, two re-recordings of previously released songs and selections from eight previously released albums.

Mr. Chapman is a first-rate musician in any genre. His composing skills are impeccable and his singing and guitar playing are outstanding. I was totally knocked out by this cross section of his life’s work up to this point and acquired the perception that SCC’s Christian and musical integrity would propel him into a masterful artist who gains more confidence and attains higher quality with each album. His production from this album forward indeed bears this out.

A memorable track on this album is entitled, “I Will Be Here”. I have heard few songs that are more romantic than this. The marriage of Mr. Chapman and his wife is profoundly happy and secure if they hold true the sentiments expressed in this simply heavenly love song. James and his wife included this song in their marriage ceremony and it allowed me to remember Larry S., his wedding and the day that I first heard the soul enriching music of Steven Curtis Chapman.

Credits: To all who marry and bring to their union the love of Christ, and the vow “to be true / To the promise I have made / To you and to the One who gave you to me. I will be here.”