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"Given that perception in the broader culture that that's what Christian music is, Sixpence went in and let the music lead first. They did it in sort of a subversive way and that was part of the plan. They used this great, charming love song."

See our related story, " Singing Briner's Praises | A review of the Roaring Lambs CD."

The Roaring Lambs CD can be purchased at the Christianity Online Store and other music retailers.

Read ChristianityToday.com's Books and Culture Corner about Briner and Roaring Lambs.

The Roaring Lambs CD can be previewed at www.roaringlambs.net . You can read about the featured artists, chat about the book , and learn more about Bob Briner at this site.

CCM Magazine has an obituary for Bob Briner, another review of the Roaring Lambs CD, and a lot more information about the Roaring Lambs influence in Nashville. It also has a 1988 cover story about Steve Taylor , several articles about Sixpence None the Richer , and other such pieces about the CCM world.

Visit the official Sixpence None the Richer homepage. Squint Entertainment also has clips of the band playing the Today Show and Tonight Show.

Over the Rhine's Web site has more information about the band, its music, and tour dates. There are also several MP3 s to download.

Don't miss out on the excellent stories Beliefnet ran on Briner and Roaring Lambs: Christianity Today's Michael G. Maudlin wrote a review of Briner's latest book , and artists from Jars of Clay and Sixpence wrote responses to a critical Beliefnet review .

More on Steve Taylor is available from fan sites Quantitative Roland Stephen Taylor Ubiquitous Volume and Steve Taylor On the Fritz .

Crosswalk's music channel has a chat transcript with Taylor about the Roaring Lambs project.

Read Steve Taylor's Roaring Lambs chat transcript from Crosswalk.com.

The Violent Femmes is a Christian band? The Violent Femmes FAQ explains: "[Lead singer, guitarist, and songwriter] Gordon Gano is a devout Christian while [bass player] Brian Ritchie is a hardcore atheist. Can you just imagine the arugments [sic] these 2 must have?!! And [drummer] Guy [Hoffman] worships aliens. (DON'T GIVE ME THAT LOOK!! THAT'S WHAT THEY SAID . …)" The Seattle Times has more:

The Femmes is headed by Gordon Gano, a Baptist preacher's son whose songs express wildly conflicting views of religion. Straightforward ones about Christian grace—which early on caused some critics to mislabel the band as Contemporary Christian—are contrasted by intensely angry songs about religious-induced guilt and paranoia. All of his songs, which also deal with such dark subject matter as violence, death, sexual frustration, irrational fears, or just being teased in the school lunchroom as a child, express a kind of visceral uneasiness, which makes them deeply affecting. Interestingly, the only answer he ever offers for such troubles is GOD (always spelled in the lyric sheets in capital letters). In the early years, bassist Brian Ritchie used to display his independence from Gano's thinking by appearing onstage dressed in full yellow, orange and red Hare Krishna gear, complete with shaved head. But in the '90s he's come to share many of Gano's beliefs, and has dropped the garb.

There's more on the Femmes at Tweak , emusic.com . and other sites.

Here's some links on the faith of Bruce Cockburn ( here and here , too), U2 members ( here , here , and about a million other places), and Johnny Cash (here's his official site ).

When Joan Osborne's " One Of Us " was popular, The Detroit News ran a story titled " Finding their religion: More pop stars are proclaiming their versions of God's message to heaven, earth and airways."

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October 2 2000, Vol. 44, No. 11