Petra (band)

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Petra
In 2003 (l-r): Paul Simmons, John Schlitt, Bob Hartman, Greg Bailey
Background information
Origin	Fort Wayne, Indiana, USA
Genre(s)	Christian Rock, Classic Rock, Progressive Rock, Alternative Rock, Hard Rock, Country Rock
Years active	1972 – 2006
Label(s)	Word, Star Song, Inpop, Myrrh, DaySpring
Website	Petraband.com
Former members
Bob Hartman John Schlitt Greg Bailey Paul Simmons

Petra, which means "rock, massive" in Greek, was a Christian Rock band formed in the 1970s. For three decades, the band showed stability and continued to produce albums despite changes in genre and the general taste of the public. Through numerous line-up changes, Petra maintained its commitment to preaching the gospel through music. The band won numerous awards and sold millions of albums.

During its career, Petra released 24 albums, selling nearly 10 million copies. It won 4 Grammys, 10 Dove Awards, and was inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame.

On May 24, 2005 Petra announced that, after 33 years of ministry, the band was retiring. Members recorded one of their final performances, in Franklin, Tennessee, to release as Petra's last album. The final performance finished in the early hours of January 1, 2006 in Murphy, North Carolina. They released a Petra Farewell DVD in 2006.

Contents 1 Musical Style 2 History 2.1 1972-1979: The birth of Petra 2.2 1980-1985: The Greg X. Volz era 2.3 1986: John Schlitt Arrives 2.4 1987-1994: Petra finds success 2.5 1995-2000: Decline in the 90s 2.6 2001-2004: Petra in the new millennium 2.7 2005: Petra Farewell 2.8 II Guys From Petra 3 Critical Reception 4 Influence 5 Tributes 6 Awards 6.1 Grammy Awards 6.2 Dove Awards 7 Band members 7.1 Former Members 7.1.1 Lead Vocals 7.1.2 Drums 7.1.3 Guitars 7.1.4 Bass 7.1.5 Keyboards 8 Discography 9 Trivia 10 Notes 11 External links

[edit] Musical Style

Petra's musical style changed greatly during its 33 years. During the early years (1972 - 1977), the band's style was eclectic, borrowing from musical influences as diverse as Genesis (art rock), The Eagles (country rock),^[1] Lynyrd Skynyrd (southern rock),^[2]Deep Purple (1970s heavy metal),^[3] and Kansas (progressive rock).^[3]

With the 1980s, arrived the era of synthesizers and keyboards, and Petra shifted to that genre for the first half of the decade. In 1986-87, under the tutelage of John and Dino Elefante, it transitioned to a hard/arena rock style. Contemporary bands with similar styles include Def Leppard, Cinderella, and Journey. This style garnered the band their most successful albums.

In the middle of the 1990s, with the decline of slick commercial rock music and the rise of alternative rock, the band revamped and tried to adapt to the new style. These changes met with mixed reviews. Petra returned to its roots with a blues/metal rocker in 2003 (Jekyll & Hyde) which earned better reviews than the band had received in years. However, it wasn't enough to reverse the band's fortunes and turned out to be their final studio album.

[edit] History

[edit] 1972-1979: The birth of Petra

In 1972, at the Christian Training Center in Fort Wayne, Indiana, guitarists and songwriters Bob Hartman and Greg Hough teamed up with bassist John DeGroff (with whom Hartman had played in the past) to form Petra. Drummer Bill Glover was added later.^[4]

In the early years, Petra played mainly in the Midwest at small venues like coffeehouses or church basements. Their concerts were evangelistic, with a Gospel presentation to the audience.^[5][6] This mix of evangelism with rock placed Petra among other early pioneers of Jesus music, part of the larger Jesus Movement of the late 1960s and early 1970s.^[7] Although Petra never achieved great commercial success during this period, the band did develop a solid fanbase.

Billy Ray Hearn heard Petra perform at "The Adam's Apple" coffeehouse and signed them to Myrrh Records, a subsidiary of Word Records, in 1973. He produced the band's self-titled debut album, which was released in 1974.^[8][9] On Petra, Hartman and Hough shared singing duties. Petra featured a southern rock sound similar to that of the Allman Brothers and included the track "Backslidin' Blues", the first blues song in Contemporory Christian Music.^[6] Teh album was ultimately a commercial failure, partially because the band didn't tour.^[6] For their next album, Come and Join Us, the band invitied Greg X. Volz to help drum and allowed him to sing lead vocals on several songs, foreshadowing the band's future.^[10] The song "God Gave Rock and Roll To You" (originally written by Russ Ballard and recorded by Argent) displayed Volz's range and projection, and gave Petra their staple message of the decade.^{[citation needed]} The album included other guest vocalists including Steve Camp and Austin Roberts, who also produced the album.^[6] Stylistically, the album featured a heavier rock sound.

Shortly after, Hough, DeGroff, and Glover left the band, and Hartman was left alone with Volz. A period of instability surrounded the release of the band's third album in 1979, Washes Whiter Than, where Volz shared singing responsibilities with newcomer Rob Frazier.^[11] Although the album tried hard to "please" a non-condoning audience, Petra found themselves as a non-membered band lacking identity. At the behest of Star Song, their new label, they moved toward a pop-oriented sound.^[6] The band was touring with new players, and Christian radio was playing their new album, but it was unavailable for sale in most areas due to record-pressing and distribution problems.^{[citation needed]}

[edit] 1980-1985: The Greg X. Volz era

After floundering through the turn of the decade, Hartman and Volz again found themselves without a stable band, and with no sales from their records. Despite some thoughts of disbanding, they regrouped and decided to try again. They hired bass player Mark Kelly and keyboard player John Slick while giving Greg Volz full lead singing position. With this newly reformed band, they went to the studio again for a new more rock-focused album.^{[citation needed]} They also hired Mark Hollingsworth as manager. Hollingsworth, who had experience in the general market, is closely associated with the swift success that was to come.^[6]

Never Say Die in 1981 started the band's rise to gospel stardom, and gave Petra the audience and radio space they needed. They toured that album as an opening act for Servant. During the tours they captured a solid fanbase that continued to grow, while starting a new era of Contemporary Christian music.^[12] Sometime after the release of Never Say Die the band acquired drummer Louie Weaver, who would stay in Petra for the next 22 years.^[13]

With the momentum gathered by that album, the band released a string of three successful albums and toured as often as possible. During this period, Slick departed and John Lawry joined as the new keyboardist. Being on the road for such lengthy durations began to take its toll, and in 1985, Volz decided to leave the band to spend more time with his family and pursue a solo career.^[6] The band released their first of two live albums: Captured In Time and Space.^[14] Volz's departure ignited a frantic search for a suitable lead singer to replace him.

[edit] 1986: John Schlitt Arrives

Halfway through the 1980s, the band made two key changes that cemented their direction for the rest of the decade.

At the end of 1985, Hartman was looking for someone to replace Volz. He managed to coax John Schlitt—former Head East vocalist—out of a self-imposed retirement from rock music to join Petra as lead singer.^[15]

The band also needed to replace producer Jonathan David Brown, the man who helped mold Petra's sound through the early 1980s. Petra turned to brothers John and Dino Elefante. The Elefantes would produce every subsequent Petra album but one through the end of the century.^[16]

Schlitt's voice, fuller and more raspy than Volz's delivery, necessitated changing to a more hard rock/heavy metal sound.^[3] Guitars now would be central to song arrangements and keyboards would be ornamental. Back to the Street was the first album to feature Petra's new arena-rock sound.^[16]

[edit] 1987-1994: Petra finds success

With these key pieces in place, Petra entered the period of its peak popularity, releasing what might be considered the band's most successful albums: This Means War!, On Fire!, Petra Praise: The Rock Cries Out and Beyond Belief. This Means War! reflects radical changes in the band's lyrical themes. The album presents the band's worldview in the language of spiritual warfare. This shift toward fundamentalist Christianity lead one reviewer to summarize the album as "Faith can bulldoze anything in the way".^[6] The band also began publically supporting political causes, including a Constitutional amendment to legislate school prayer.^[6] Their next release, On Fire!, mostly backed off warfare themes. Petra Praise was the group's first Gold album, and it set a new standard for praise and worship music.^[6] It was 1990s Beyond Belief that catapulted the band to the top of the charts of gospel music. The album also won a Grammy for Best Rock/Gospel Album. Petra partnered with Christian author and apologist Josh McDowell for several tours, helping to legitimize the band's ministry in the eyes of many Christians.^[17][6] During this period, Kelly left the band and was replaced by Ronny Cates.^[18]

The line-up comprised of Schlitt, Hartman, Cates, Lawry and Weaver turned to be the most stable in the band's history. These five members remained together until 1994 when Lawry left.

The following albums, Unseen Power and Wake-Up Call, won the band several more awards, including two more Grammys, and several Dove Awards. Unseen Power is considered to be their most diverse and experimental album.^[6]

[edit] 1995-2000: Decline in the 90s

As the decade reached its mid-point, several situations brought the band to what could be considered their worst period. First, guitarist and founder Hartman decided to leave the band during tours to dedicate time to his family.^[19] He did remain as producer, songwriter, and studio guitarist.^[6][3] John Lawry also left the band to pursue other goals. In came David Lichens (guitar) and Jim Cooper (keyboards), and the band released their next album in 1995: No Doubt.^[20]

Although the album was a commercial success, it signaled a change in the band's music, departing from the edgy hard-rock they had played. Also, rumored situations between the new members and Schlitt prompted them to leave the band a year later.^[21] During this transition period, Cates left the band and was replaced by Lonnie Chapin. They released their second praise album (Petra Praise 2: We Need Jesus) in 1997 to much critical praise and commercial success.

With Chapin came guitarist Pete Orta and keyboardist Kevin Brandow. This line-up of young musicians combined with the experience of Schlitt and Weaver geared for the band's next album. The new members, along with Hartman, immersed themselves in the writing and composing of God Fixation which was released in 1998.^[21]

Despite some favorable criticism, the album didn't perform as it was expected. Additionally, changes in the rock genre veered towards an edgier sound, whereas the album focused on a more soft-rock vein.^[6] The band continued to struggle, trying to gain new audiences and bring back old audiences. They re-recorded new versions of some of the band's classic songs for an album released in 2000 called Double Take.^[6] The album also featured two new songs, one of which was written and sung by guitarist Orta.

Although the album won the band their fourth Grammy, it was shunned by most purists as a "heresy" and an insult to the classic hits.^[22] Shortly after, Chapin left the band to join Tait, and Orta went on to pursue a solo career. Brandow also left. To make matters worse, the band was dropped from their record label afterwards.

[edit] 2001-2004: Petra in the new millennium

The band signed with Inpop Records in 2001. Inpop convinced the band to release another praise album, this time with a "modern worship" sound. Inpop brought in former Sonicflood members Jason Halbert and Dwayne Larring to produce the album, which would be titled Revival. Though it was an obvious reference to the song "Send Revival," it was also a subtle message about what Inpop hoped to do for the band.^[23]

One step the label made toward reviving Petra's image was to focus on the "core" of the band: Schlitt, Hartman, and Weaver. They ignored the other touring members in the product packaging and marketing.

And there were new touring members. Bryce Bell (keyboards), Quinton Gibson (guitars) and Greg Bailey (bass) joined Schlitt and Weaver for the Revival tour in 2002. The tour was somewhat of a success: There were more dates, Petra made its first trip to India,^[24] and Bob Hartman performed with the band for a special "Night of Joy" concert at Disney World.

But more change was afoot in 2003. Gibson left to join the band Strange Celebrity and Bell joined Rebecca St. James' tour. Hartman later came out of "touring retirement" to replace Gibson as the band's guitarist on the road.

The biggest bombshell came in May when Petra confirmed rumors that Weaver was no longer part of the band. A statement on Petra's website said Weaver and the band had reached "an impasse" and that they felt "this is the Lord's will for this situation."^[25]

Weaver disputed the notion of an amicable split. On his website, Weaver claimed he did not leave Petra, but was fired months earlier by lead singer John Schlitt and manager Wayne Seboa. Weaver said he had been "shocked" by the move.^[26] Hartman later acknowledged Weaver was fired, but said that it was Schlitt alone who made the decision after consulting with a pastor and Hartman. No reasons for the firing were given publicly by either side.^[27] Weaver eventually joined the band Viktor.

In August 2003, Petra released what is considered their heaviest album to date: Jekyll & Hyde. Schlitt said the album's harder sound was a result of fans' demands for a straight-up rock album, not another praise album or acoustic retread.^[28] Jekyll & Hyde was noteworthy for its lack of keyboards, which had been a staple of Petra's sound, and was well-received by critics.^[29]

Without keyboards, Petra became a four-member band. The band needed a drummer, so they used Justin Johnson briefly before hiring Paul Simmons as Weaver's replacement. The band played more dates in 2004 than it had in several years, hitting many U.S. festivals and traveling to Europe. The band's performances were re-energized by Hartman's return and the harder sound.

On June 12, 2004, the band held a reunion concert in Angola, Indiana. Founder Hartman performed with original members Greg Hough and John DeGroff for the first time since the 1970s. Original drummer Bill Glover was invited but unable to attend. Sandwiched between two sets from the 2004 incarnation of the band, the original members joined Hartman and Simmons for a set of eight classic Petra songs from the 70s.^[30]

[edit] 2005: Petra Farewell

After much consideration and praying, Schlitt and Hartman decided to retire the band at the end of 2005.^[31] A Farewell Tour was hastily booked. On October 4, 2005, Petra taped a concert performance in Franklin, Tennessee, for release on a final live CD and DVD titled Petra Farewell. Former members Greg X. Volz and John Lawry joined the current band on stage for a few songs each, including a ballad medley in which Volz and John Schlitt traded off vocals on songs from their respective eras. Volz took the stage alone for the classic "Grave Robber," and keyboard player John Lawry played his signature keyboard solo "Jesus Loves You" from the Captured in Time & Space album. The CD was released in November 2005, and the DVD was released in March 2006.^[32]

More reunions took place later in the "Farewell" tour. The original Petra lineup of Bob Hartman, John DeGroff, Greg Hough, and Bill Glover performed together at two shows. The sets for these shows were comprised mostly of tracks from the "Petra" and "Come and Join Us" albums, but also featured an unrecorded song written in the 1970s called "Rocking On With Jesus."

[edit] II Guys From Petra

Following Petra's retirement, Schlitt and Hartman joined forces again for a self-produced Praise and Worship CD entitled "Vertical Expressions". The CD was released in January 2007 under the band name "II Guys From Petra" and is available exclusively through Petra's website. The idea for the album came about when Hartman was invited to lead worship for a youth retreat in Canada and asked Schlitt to join him. The "Vertical Expressions" CD has a sound similar to "Petra Praise 2" and is very much in the same vein as Petra's material released from the mid '90s onwards. Also included are two bonus live tracks, "Lord I Lift Your Name On High" and "Judas Kiss" which are outtakes from the "Petra Farewell" concert and CD.

[edit] Critical Reception

When Petra started their career in 1972, their music was considered groundbreaking for the genre at that time, and was generally well-received by most people. However, when they were signed by Myrrh, their first recording efforts didn't sell as expected and they were dropped from the label. However, they continued touring until StarSong approached them and signed them for a record contract in the late 70s. The resulting album (Washes Whiter Than) garnered the band their first radio hit with "Why Should the Father Bother?".

For their next album, producer Jonathan David Brown was brought in. He paved the way to what will soon become the traditional Petra sound, taking them into bigger success. Their first album with Brown (Never Say Die) produced several hits like "The Coloring Song" and "For Annie". During this time, Petra had the opportunity to tour with Servant which helped them improve their craftsmanship on stage. Their next album (More Power To Ya) continued their string of hits with "More Power To Ya", "Road to Zion", and "Stand Up."^[33] They inmediately followed it with Not of this World which gave them their first Grammy Award nomination and sold a quarter milion units alone.^[3] Its follow-up (Beat the System) also gave them a second Grammy nomination.

After their first live album (Captured In Time and Space), singer Greg X. Volz left the band to pursue a solo career. John Schlitt was hired shortly after. This change also brought in a change of producers, and in came John and Dino Elefante to work with the band. The Elefante Brothers continued to define the band's hard rock style and guided them into a more arena rock style and lifting the band's status to stardom. Proof of it is that all ten albums produced by them (from 1986 to 2000) at least got a Grammy nomination, winning four of them. Also, during this time, two of the band's album were certified gold.

In the new millennium, despite slower sales than their peak years, the band has continued to draw crowds not only on the United States, but around the world. After a change in record label and producer, the band has continued to produce varied albums and has kept on touring. During their last years of tour, the band played in South America, Europe, Asia and Africa. However, it must be said that the band was sometimes criticized for abandoning their hard rock roots and "softening" their music. This claim was shut down by the band's last studio album, Jekyll & Hyde, which is considered by many their heaviest.

[edit] Influence

During its 33-year career, the band influenced countless artists in and out of the Christian scene. Petra was the only Christian band to play at the 1992 Farm Aid concert and the first Christian band to be included in the Hard Rock Cafe.^[6] In 2000, Petra was the first Christian rock band to be inducted to the Gospel Music Hall of Fame. "The doubts about popular music mixing with Christian lyrics have mostly vanished due to their 25-year track record of proven ministry and changed lives. Petra was a true pioneer for our industry," GMA President Frank Breeden said at the time.^[34]

Petra's influence can also be evidenced by tributes to the band made by other Christian artists (see Tributes section below). Even secular artists Tim McGraw has included "More Power To Ya" in some of his concerts.^[35]

The band's daring presence during the early 80s, wearing camouflage clothes in their presentations, helped drew attention to the genre during times when Christian rock wasn't that well-received. Over the years, Petra refused to water down their clear Christian message like other bands have done to try to break into the mainstream market. Though Petra was opposed by Bill Gothard, Jimmy Swaggart, David Wilkerson, and other evangelists, the band is credited with opening conservative Christians to rock music as a form of ministry.^[6]

Petra's founder and lead guitarist, Bob Hartman, is respected as one of the best guitarists in the scene. Singer John Schlitt is also acknowledged in the scene, first for his stint as the lead man in Head East, and then with Petra.

[edit] Tributes

During their 33 years of tenure, several bands have made tribute to Petra. The most known tribute album is called Never Say Dinosaur released by Star Song Records in 1996. This tribute contained 12 revisions (or re-imaginings) of several classic Petra songs, all from their pre-Schlitt years,^[6] by some well-known Christian artists like Jars of Clay, MxPx, Galactic Cowboys, and Sixpence None the Richer among others.

Star Song also released two compilation albums with Petra songs performed by a youth choir. These albums were produced by John Lee.^[36][37]

• The Petra Youth Choir Collection - 1984
• Petra Youth Choir Collection 2 - 1987

Two similar compilations were released by Word Records using Spanish choirs. These were released in the 90s.^[38][39]

• La Colección de Petra en Español - 1993
• La Colección Coral de Petra en Español 2 - 1995

This last compilation was arranged by Alejandro Allen, who later went on to work on the Spanish version of Jekyll & Hyde.

Other artists have included single song covers of Petra in some of their albums. These are:

• "Road to Zion" by Sixpence None the Richer (, 1985)
• "Thankful Heart" by Nathan Digesare (Jubilaté!, 1989)
• "Judas' Kiss" by One Bad Pig (Swine Flew, 1990)
• "More Power to Ya" by The RapSures (Loud, Proud and Born Again, 1990)
• "All Over Me" by Die Happy (Intense Records Presents Die Happy Recorded Live - Intense Live Series Vol. 4, 1993)

[edit] Awards

• Inducted into the Gospel Music Hall of Fame (2000)
• Inducted into the Hard Rock Cafe

[edit] Grammy Awards

• Best Rock/Contemporary Gospel Album – Beyond Belief (1990)
• Best Rock/Contemporary Gospel Album – Unseen Power (1992)
• Best Rock Gospel Album – Wake-Up Call (1994)
• Best Rock Gospel Album – Double Take (2000)

[edit] Dove Awards

• Recorded Music Packaging – Petra Praise: The Rock Cries Out (1990)
• Long Form Music Video – "Beyond Belief" (1990)
• Group of the Year (1991)
• Rock Album – Beyond Belief (1991)
• Rock Recorded Song – "Beyond Belief" (1991)
• Recorded Music Packaging – Beyond Belief (1991)
• Rock Recorded Song – "Destiny" (1993)
• Rock Album – Wake-Up Call (1994)
• Rock Album – No Doubt (1996)
• Praise and Worship Album – Petra Praise 2: We Need Jesus (1998)

[edit] Band members

The band's original lineup consisted of:

• Greg Hough – guitar and vocals
• Bob Hartman – guitar and vocals
• John DeGroff – bass guitar
• Bill Glover – drums

The band's parting lineup (2005) consisted of:

• John Schlitt – vocals
• Bob Hartman – guitar
• Greg Bailey – bass guitar
• Paul Simmons – drums

[edit] Former Members

(This is a partial list. It does not include all of the members that have toured with the band, especially during the late 70's.)

[edit] Lead Vocals

• Bob Hartman & Greg Hough (1972-1978)
• Rob Frazier (1979)
• Greg X. Volz (Guest 1977, lead 1978-1985)
• John Schlitt (1986-2005)

[edit] Drums

• Bill Glover (1972-1978)
• Greg X. Volz (1980-1981) note: played percussion on tour, not in studio
• Louie Weaver (1981-2003)
• Paul Simmons (2003-2005)

[edit] Guitars

• Bob Hartman (1972-1995, 2000-2005) & Greg Hough (1972-1979)
• Rob Frazier (1979)
• David Lichens (1995-1997)
• Pete Orta (1997-2000)
• Kevin Brandow (1997-1999)
• Quinton Gibson (2002-2003)

[edit] Bass

• John DeGroff (1972-1979)
• Greg Rupp (1979-1981)
• Mark Kelly (1981-1987)
• Ronny Cates (1988-1996)
• Lonnie Chapin (1997-2001)
• Mike Brandenstein (2001)
• Greg Bailey (2001-2005)

[edit] Keyboards

• Rob Frazier (1979-1980)
• John Slick (1981-1983)
• John Lawry (1984-1994)
• Jim Cooper (1994-1997)
• Kevin Brandow (1997-1999, 2000-2001)
• Trent Thomason (1999)
• Bryce Bell (2000-2003)

[edit] Discography

Main article: Petra Discography

See the main article for detailed information on all of Petra's albums and videos, including compilation albums. Also a list of Petra songs available on other artists albums.

[edit] Trivia

• Guitarist/founder Bob Hartman recorded guitars for all of the band's albums, even though he wasn't featured in the promotional material or album photos for No Doubt, Petra Praise 2: We Need Jesus, God Fixation, and Double Take. These four albums were released during the period of 1995 to 2000, when Hartman had retired touring with the band.
• After Hartman, the band members with the longest tenures were drummer Louie Weaver (22 years), followed by singer John Schlitt (19 years).
• After the departure of keyboardist Bryce Bell in 2003, Hartman convinced Schlitt to not include a keyboard player for the upcoming tour. It was the first time the band didn't have a designated keyboardist since 1981 when John Slick was hired.
• Fellow Christian band, Audio Adrenaline makes a reference to Petra in "The Houseplant Song" on their album Underdog.
• Around 1980, drummer Jerry Gaskill and bassist Doug Pinnick were invited to join the band. They performed on tour with Petra, but never recorded with the band. Their time in Petra was very short, but it was long enough for them to see a young guitarist named Ty Tabor perform. Jerry and Doug tracked down Ty and the trio were playing together shortly thereafter. The trio eventually formed the band King's X.^[40]
• In the early 1980s, some Christian preachers crusaded against rock bands, accusing them of "backmasking" or hiding subliminal messages in songs. The messages supposedly could be heard if the music was played backwards. Petra responded to the hysteria by opening their 1982 song "Judas' Kiss" with a deliberately backmasked message. Played in reverse, the message says "What are you lookin' for the devil for when you oughta be lookin' for the Lord?" (Both the backwards and forwards version of this message are included on the compilation album Rock Block before the medley "The Rock Block.")

[edit] Notes

[edit] External links

• Official site
• Fan message board
• Petra Means Rock
• Petra Rocks My World
• Guide to Petra
• Petraspective
• Petra Praise
• Australian Petra site
• Petra at Firestream.net