My favorite Christian music album of all time is DC Talk’s 1995 masterpiece, “Jesus Freak.” Through the years, there have been a handful of other truly great Christian rock and pop albums. As William Booth once said, “Why should the devil have all the good music?” But for generations, Christian music was mostly hymns—with a couple of converted drinking songs thrown in.

A million of years ago, back in the 1960s, there was a brief moment where a music group from The Salvation Army actually made it onto the music charts in the U.K. Not the Christian music charts, the real ones. The group, called The Joystrings, was a Salvation Army pop group, comprised of officers (pastors) and cadets (seminary students). They had a Top 40 hit in 1964, getting their song “It’s an Open Secret” all the way to #32. For reference, the #32 song on the charts on January 4th  this year was “Raising Hell” by Kesha. I’m sure the songs were very similar.

Started by Captain Joy Webb, each member of the Joystrings was in the process of training to be a Salvation Army officer (pastor). It was General Frederick Coutts, the newly-elected General who believed The Salvation Army should capitalize on the popularity of “Beat Music.” Captain Webb, who had never written a song before their big hit, penned the words to “It’s an Open Secret” with the intention they would go into pubs and nightclubs, and evangelize. They were trying to present the Gospel in fresh terms for young people and teenagers.

But an invite to appear on the BBC’s “Tonight” show sparked a chain reaction. The record label that produced The Salvation Army’s brass band music quickly released a Joystrings album. Their song shot up the charts. They received requests for concerts, playing in clubs, appearing on television—all while studying to become ministers and completing the necessary educational requirements of The Salvation Army’s training college.

The Joystrings showed that Christian music could follow a new path. And while the group’s success was short-lived, their legacy lives on.

So What?

The Joystrings wanted to present the Gospel in a way that would reach new audiences by using the elements of the culture around them. What are some redeemable parts of culture today? Are there lines that shouldn’t be crossed?