Michael H. McLean (born 1952) is an American songwriter, playwright, author, and filmmaker based in

Heber City, Utah Heber City is a city and county seat of Wasatch County, Utah. The population was 16,856 as of the 2020 United States census. The city is located 43 miles southeast of Salt Lake City. History Heber City was first settled in 1859 by Robert Broad ...

Early life

McLean attended high school in the Chicago area, where he served as student body president and performed in the school's production of ''

The Music Man ''The Music Man'' is a musical theatre, musical with book, music, and lyrics by Meredith Willson, based on a story by Willson and Franklin Lacey. The plot concerns a confidence trick, con man Harold Hill, who poses as a boys' band organizer and ...

''. He is a member of

the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, informally known as the LDS Church or Mormon Church, is a Nontrinitarianism, nontrinitarian Restorationism, restorationist Christianity, Christian Christian denomination, denomination and the ...

(LDS Church) and was the only

Latter-day Saint The Latter Day Saint movement (also called the LDS movement, LDS restorationist movement, or Smith–Rigdon movement) is the collection of independent church groups that trace their origins to a Christian Restorationist movement founded b ...

in his graduating class. McLean served an LDS

mission Mission (from Latin 'the act of sending out'), Missions or The Mission may refer to: Geography Australia *Mission River (Queensland) Canada *Mission, British Columbia, a district municipality * Mission, Calgary, Alberta, a neighbourhood * ...

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the Southern Africa, southernmost country in Africa. Its Provinces of South Africa, nine provinces are bounded to the south by of coastline that stretches along the Atlantic O ...

. After returning from his mission he formed a band. They went around at the bottom of the club circuit, but never made a break. While a student at

Brigham Young University Brigham Young University (BYU) is a Private education, private research university in Provo, Utah, United States. It was founded in 1875 by religious leader Brigham Young and is the flagship university of the Church Educational System sponsore ...

(BYU) he took a music theory class in which he received a C and was told that he did not have what it would take to make it in music professionally. After this McLean went to the

University of Utah The University of Utah (the U, U of U, or simply Utah) is a public university, public research university in Salt Lake City, Utah, United States. It was established in 1850 as the University of Deseret (Book of Mormon), Deseret by the General A ...

. He took a weekly composition class with Merrill Bradshaw. He made some professional progress writing music for local commercials in

Salt Lake City Salt Lake City, often shortened to Salt Lake or SLC, is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Utah. It is the county seat of Salt Lake County, the most populous county in the state. The city is the core of the Salt Lake Ci ...

. McLean finally quit college after his wife, Lynne, was in an auto accident. His first significant professional break through came from writing commercials for the LDS Church's "Homefront" campaign. He took a job as producer for the

Mormon Tabernacle Choir The Tabernacle Choir at Temple Square, formerly known as the Mormon Tabernacle Choir, is an American choir affiliated with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). It has performed in the Salt Lake Tabernacle for o ...

in 1976. McLean would work with the Choir until 1993. In late 2021 McLean was diagnosed with stage-five

renal failure Kidney failure, also known as renal failure or end-stage renal disease (ESRD), is a medical condition in which the kidneys can no longer adequately filter waste products from the blood, functioning at less than 15% of normal levels. Kidney fa ...

after a dangerous bout of

COVID-19 Coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) is a contagious disease caused by the coronavirus SARS-CoV-2. In January 2020, the disease spread worldwide, resulting in the COVID-19 pandemic. The symptoms of COVID‑19 can vary but often include fever ...

. His life was saved by a kidney donor from Heber Valley Utah.

Career

As a composer, McLean has produced more than 20 albums of original music, selling over one million copies since his 1983 debut. Focused mainly on a

audience, McLean has also produced albums with a broader appeal, such as ''The Forgotten Carols''. McLean's most recent musical releases have been through

Shadow Mountain Records Deseret Book () is an American publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, that also operates a chain of bookstores throughout the western United States. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), the ...

, with ''The Forgotten Carols'' on a separate

Deseret Book Deseret Book () is an American publishing company headquartered in Salt Lake City, Utah, that also operates a chain of bookstores throughout the western United States. It is a wholly owned subsidiary of Deseret Management Corporation (DMC), th ...

label. In 1986, McLean began work on a musical called ''The Ark'', in collaboration with BYU professor Kevin Kelly, which originally debuted at the Plum Alley Theatre. In 2000, the musical participated in the Festivals of New Musicals in New York City. The play was later produced off-Broadway in

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

by Erik Orton, with the first performance in November 2005.''BYU Daily Universe'' Sep. 26, 2005
In the early 1980s, McLean convinced

James Stewart James Maitland Stewart (May 20, 1908 – July 2, 1997) was an American actor and military aviator. Known for his distinctive drawl and everyman screen persona, Stewart's film career spanned 80 films from 1935 to 1991. With the strong morali ...

to work with him at a reduced rate in a made-for-TV film entitled '' Mr. Krueger's Christmas''.

Discography

*'' You're Not Alone'' (1983) * Stay With Me (1984) * Celebrating the Light (1985) * A New Kind of Love Song (1988) * One Heart in the Right Place (1990) * The Forgotten Carols (original, 1991) * You've Always Been There For Me (1992) * Distant Serenade (1993) * The Collection, Volume 1 (1994) * Soundtracks (1994) * The Garden (1995) * Our Unspoken Song (1995) * Celebrating the Light Soundtrack (1995) *'' The Collection, Vol. 2'' (1997) * ''Father and Son ''(1997) * The Ark (1998) * Safe Harbors (1999) * Michael Sings McLean (2000) * Connie Lou's Christmas (2000) * Arise and Shine Forth (2000) * The Forgotten Carols: Anniversary Edition (10th, 2001) * Something's Changed (2002) * The Best Two Years (2004) * As I Am (2005) * The Other Side of Down (2008) * Hope Hiding (2008) * It's Not Love 'Til It's Been Through a Storm (2008) * See Us Shine (2008) * Tender Mercies (2008) * The Forgotten Carols: Anniversary Cast Recording (20th, 2011) * Threads (2013) * Encountering Jesus (2015)

Memoir

* Hold On, The Light Will Come: And Other Lessons My Songs Have Taught Me (2003)

References

External links

*
Michael McLean MusicCsardas
by Michael McLean performed by the Lamb Sisters Trio on the radio show

From the Top From the Top is an independent nonprofit organization known best for its longstanding NPR radio and PBS television programs with the same name. Co-founded by Gerald Slavet and Jennifer Hurley-Wales in 1995, the organization showcases and devel ...

. {{DEFAULTSORT:McLean, Michael 20th-century Mormon missionaries 1952 births American male composers 21st-century American composers Latter Day Saints from Illinois American Mormon missionaries in South Africa Brigham Young University alumni Living people Musicians from Utah People from Heber City, Utah Latter Day Saints from Utah