Rejected by many old fans, Dylan pressed on and the new album garnered many new friends and brought old ones back, as he continued to pound the gospel message and soul/blues culture with good songs and hooks.  The CCM and CR worlds embraced Dylan and his conversion albums, and many articles showed up in the few, but growing number of Christian magazines that existed.

 

Another well-known rocker, Kerry Livgren of Kansas, came out with his Seeds of Change (EMI), a collaboration of his friends that pushed a new sonic boundary in the Christian music sub-culture.  The album soon led to a book by Kerry and a new band, AD.

 

One of the coolest albums of the year was newcomer Arkangel's The Warrior, which was the first complete Medieval Rock work in the young industry.  Totally innovative and pioneering, the band was led by Kemper Crabb and the album became an instant classic with its onslaught of quality hard rock combined with soft, worshipful influences from the old British Isles.

 

Two of the most revolutionary albums came from the mother country, including Ishmael United's If You Can't Shout Saved... and Zionic Bonds by Andy McCarroll and Moral Support.  Both were picked up by Starsong and featured some of the very first punk and in-your-face new wave.  Ishmael pushed a raw version of very cool punk, while Moral Support had a more pop punk.  Both were effective in pioneering new styles throughout the expanding CCM universe.

 

Historically, one of the best and most important albums in 1980 was Boy (Island), which pushed U2 to the next level in Ireland.  Their second album became more accessible to Americans, and its energy and quality helped the boys prepare for their meteoric rise during the 1980s.

 

But, arguably, the best Christian Rock album of the year could have been Horrendous Disc (Solid Rock), the first full, new wave work of Daniel Amos.  Shedding their folk and country roots of Calvary Chapel origins, the Larry Norman-produced masterpiece included intelligent lyrics, Beatlesque vocals and instrumentations, quailty technology, and an upbeat outlook based on Biblical themes.  Many say it was the Sgt. Pepper's of Christian Rock.

 

That year, Norman also produced Randy Stonehill's great work, The Sky is Falling (Solid Rock), further propelling both to new heights as the oldest rockers in the big community.

 

1980 was also kind to hard rock fans, as Sweden's Jerusalem put out their second album, Volume 2 (Lamb + Lion), which emphasized their unique brand of blues-based rock and blatant lyrics.  The Resurrection Band continued their string of awesome albums with Colours (Light), leading the way as the most extreme rockers and preachers in the land.

 

Canadian Singer-songwriter Bruce Cockburn also put out his brilliant Humans (Millennium) in 1980 as well.  The socially-conscious Christian solidified his place of influence in the folk-hippie element that still existed after the Jesus Movement waned.