Mylon LeFevre
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
 |
This article does not cite any references or sources. (June 2008) Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. Unverifiable material may be challenged and removed. |
| Mylon LeFevre | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 6, 1944 (age 62) |
| Origin | Gulfport, Mississippi |
| Genre(s) | Gospel, Rock and Roll, Southern Rock, Christian |
| Website | http://www.mylon.org/bio/index.php |
Mylon LeFevre (born on October 6, 1944 in Gulfport, Mississippi) is the former Christian rock singer of the Grammy Award-winning band Mylon and Broken Heart. He is currently a preacher on the Trinity Broadcasting Network.
Contents |
[edit] Early history
Mylon was born into a musical, touring, Southern gospel family, The Singing LeFevres, but stopped attending church when he left home. At 17 years old, while in the Army, he wrote his first song, "Without Him." The gospel song was recorded by Elvis Presley in 1963, and within the next year, 126 artists recorded his songs. Mylon's first royalty check for "Without Him" was for approximately $90,000, which would be approximately $634,000 in 2008 dollars.
[edit] One of the earliest Christian rock albums
He recorded his classic song "Gospel Ship" on his first album, Mylon (alternately titled We Believe) on Cotillion Records. Many regard this as one of the first Christian rock albums. While Mylon has claimed for many years to have been a founding member of seminal Southern rock act Atlanta Rhythm Section, the band's website disputes this claim. He did, however, appear as a fill-in vocalist on several tracks from their album Third Annual Pipe Dream. Barry Bailey, Paul Goddard, and Dean Daughtry from Mylon's band on We Believe went on to become founding members of ARS.
[edit] Straying from the faith
While the We Believe album contained many overt references to his Christian faith, these would become fewer on subsequent albums until he experienced a spiritual rebirth in 1980. In his secular career, he recorded, toured, or socialized with Eric Clapton, Elton John, Alvin Lee, Billy Joel, Duane Allman, Berry Oakley, Little Richard, the Who, Yes, Ten Years After, Rick Derringer, Traffic, George Harrison, Paul McCartney, Charlie Daniels, Tina Turner, Willie Nelson, Mick Fleetwood, Mountain, Felix Pappalardi, ZZ Top, and Grand Funk Railroad. This period of his life was marked by heavy drug use. After a near-fatal heroin overdose in 1973, he began his return to the Christian faith.
[edit] Rededication
In 1980, LeFevre "committed [his] life to Jesus" and stopped performing secular music. He got a job as a janitor at his church, Mt. Paran Church of God, in Atlanta. He started a Christian band called Mylon and Broken Heart in 1981 with some musicians he met in a Bible study. A small offshoot gospel label from MCA Records known as Songbird released his "comeback" album Brand New Start in 1981.
Over the next ten years, he released twelve albums and traveled over a million miles. In 1987, the group attempted to cross over to mainstream rock by rechristening itself Look Up! and releasing an album on non-Christian industry label Columbia Records. The album contained a retooled updating of "Peace Begins Within" from the We Believe album and a cover of DeGarmo and Key's "Love is All You Need", but it was not commercially successful. In 1988, his band was honored with a Grammy Award for Best Gospel Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group, Choir or Chorus for its album Crack the Sky. LeFevre and his band were awarded two GMA Dove Awards and sold another million records.
About this period (1982-1991), LeFevre said, "I was a Christian musician who preached a little, worshipped a little, and rocked a lot." He suffered a massive heart attack in 1989 while on a tour bus that summer while touring with White Heart. Doctors advised him to stop singing and touring, but he went against their advice that same year, and the group released a couple more albums before it released a compilation of hits in 1992, which marked the end of Mylon & Broken Heart.
Later, LeFevre became a preacher and a teacher, and his recordings focused on worship and praise music. He and his wife Christi minister in about 75 churches a year. He has also spoken at motorcycle rallies, NASCAR owner/driver chapel services, NFL and NBA chapel services, and in Russia, Australia, Canada, the Philippines, the Cayman Islands, and Mexico.
He is the father-in-law of Peter Furler of the Christian band Newsboys.
[edit] Discography
- 1970 Mylon (We Believe) Cotillion Records
- 1971 With Holy Smoke
- 1972 Mylon with Holy Smoke
- 1972 Over the Influence
- 1972 Pierce & Mylon Lefevre (from days with Singing LeFevres)
- 1973 [[On the Road to Freedom]] (with Alvin Lee)
- 1977 Weak at the Knees
- 1978 Love Rustler
- 1980 Rock 'N Roll Resurrection
- 1981 Brand New Start; Songbird Records
- 1983 More; Myrrh Records
- 1983 Live Forever; (Live) Myrrh Records
- 1985 Sheep In Wolves Clothing; Myrrh Records
- 1987 Crack the Sky; Myrrh Records
- 1987 Look Up!; Columbia Records
- 1988 Face the Music; Star Song Records
- 1988 Greatest Hits; Star Song Records
- 1989 Big World; Star Song Records
- 1991 Crank It Up; Star Song Records
- 1992 A Decade of Love; (anthology) Star Song Records
- 1992 Faith Hope & Love; Star Song Records
- 2003 Bow Down
