Sweet Comfort Band
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Sweet Comfort Band was an American
Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. This music is typically performed by Christians, Christian individuals. The extent to whi ...
band that first performed in 1973 in
Riverside, California Riverside is a city in and the county seat of Riverside County, California, United States. It is named for its location beside the Santa Ana River. As of the 2020 census, the city has a population of 314,998. It is the most populous city in th ...
, and were active until 1984. The band was initially composed of keyboardist/lead vocalist,
Bryan Duncan Bryan Edward Duncan (born March 16, 1953) is an American contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music (CCM), also known as Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music, is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect ...
, and brothers Kevin (bass guitar) and Rick (drums/vocals) Thomson. The band was the brainchild of the Thomson brothers. Randy Thomas, guitarist/vocalist joined the group around 1976. After their second album, Sweet Comfort Band also became well known for their highly detailed, airbrushed album cover art by Kerne Erickson, a trend that had previously been considered too costly for Christian groups who did not produce the high-volume album sales of mainstream bands such as
Kansas Kansas ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the west. Kansas is named a ...
. The Sweet Comfort Band logo was created by Rick Griffin. Sweet Comfort Band was a late entry into
Jesus music Jesus music, known as gospel beat music in the United Kingdom, is a style of Christian music that originated on the West Coast of the United States in the late 1960s and early 1970s. This musical genre developed in parallel to the Jesus movement ...
with their 1977 self-titled release on Maranatha! Records. When they started, they had a funky, jazzy, R&B and 70's rock sound. This set them apart from many of the bands in the nascent
Contemporary Christian Contemporary history, in English-language historiography, is a subset of modern history that describes the historical period from about 1945 to the present. In the social sciences, contemporary history is also continuous with, and related t ...
music industry The music industry are individuals and organizations that earn money by Songwriter, writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling Sound recording and reproduction, recorded music and sheet music, presenting live music, concerts, ...
who were primarily performing folk-rock and
soft rock Soft rock (also known as light rock or mellow rock) is a form of rock music that originated in the late 1960s in the United States and the United Kingdom which smoothed over the edges of singer-songwriter and pop rock, relying on simple, mel ...
. Few bands had the musicianship displayed by this quartet. However, Maranatha! decided to quit releasing rock and roll albums and focus on children's releases, gospel and worship music. Light Records welcomed them for their second release ''Breakin' The Ice''. For the next six years they toured heavily to support their releases and the band drifted towards a more traditional radio-rock sound. Keyboardist, John Andrew Schreiner was added as a supplemental musician during their tours in later years, as Duncan took more of a vocal-heavy, lead frontman role on stage and away from performing integrated keyboard parts. The band members went their separate ways in the summer 1984, culminating at their final concert near their home at Riverside Municipal Stadium after releasing six albums and garnering a large fan base.
Bryan Duncan Bryan Edward Duncan (born March 16, 1953) is an American contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music (CCM), also known as Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music, is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect ...
released a number of solo projects over the next eighteen years. Randy Thomas went on to found the band
Allies An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not an explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are calle ...
and co-wrote radio hit Butterfly Kisses with former Allies band member
Bob Carlisle Robert Mason Carlisle (born September 29, 1956) is an American Contemporary Christian singer and songwriter. He performed with several bands, most notably Allies and Billy Thermal, before launching a solo career where he received a Grammy Award a ...
. Rick Thomson co-produced a compilation album called ''Voices'' (Myrrh Records) in 1987 featuring CCM artists such as Bob Carlisle, Bryan Duncan, John Elefante, Tommy Funderburk, Benny Hester, Howard Mc Crary, Rick Riso, Matthew Ward and others. The project had numerous hits. In 2001, the Sweet Comfort Band reunited briefly to perform together at 4 venues on the west and east coast. Rick was also licensed as a General Contractor in 1982 and has run a successful construction business for over 40 years. In 1986 he built Shelter Sound Studio in Riverside County and continued as a prolific songwriter and producer. He built a larger building for Shelter Sound Studio in 1992 and closed the other location. Many mainstream and Christian artists have recorded and filmed videos at the larger studio. Sweet Comfort Band recorded their 7th project there. On January 13, 2010, the wife of Rick Thomson reported online that Rick Thomson, Randy Thomas, and Bryan Duncan were in the studio for the first time in over twenty-five years, having written several new songs. ''The Waiting Is Over'' was the resulting 2013 release. Kevin Thomson, who was Rick Thomson's older brother and longtime bassist for the group, died on May 30, 2010, at age 57, after a long illness. Kevin's sons, Elijah Thomson stepped up to play the bass parts in the album along with his brother, Joshua who played rhythm guitar. Rick's long-time friends, Andrew Ford (bassist) and James Raymond (keyboards) also played on the record. The City of Prague Philharmonic orchestra also performed on two songs on The Waiting Is Over album, The title song, "The Waiting Is Over" and "Then I Remember".


Band members

*
Bryan Duncan Bryan Edward Duncan (born March 16, 1953) is an American contemporary Christian music Contemporary Christian music (CCM), also known as Christian pop, and occasionally inspirational music, is a genre of modern popular music, and an aspect ...
– keyboards, vocals * Kevin Thomson – bass guitar (died on May 30, 2010) * Rick Thomson – drums, vocals * Randy Thomas – guitars, vocals


Discography

* ''Sweet Comfort'' – 1977 ( Maranatha! Records) * ''Breakin' the Ice'' – 1978 (Light Records) * ''Hold on Tight'' – 1979 (Light Records) * ''Hearts of Fire'' – 1981 (Light Records) * ''Cutting Edge'' – 1982 (Light Records) * ''Perfect Timing'' – 1984 (Light Records) * ''The Waiting Is Over'' – 2013 (Shelter Sound Music, Inc.)


Compilations

* ''Prime time'' – 1985 (Light Records) * ''The Light Years'' – 1996 (Light Records)


Reissues

* ''The Definitive Collection'' – 2001 reissue of ''Breakin' the Ice'', ''Hold On Tight'', ''Hearts of Fire'' and ''Cutting Edge'' (Millenium Eight Records) * ''Breakin' the Ice'' – 2009 Remastered (Retroactive Records) * ''Hold on Tight'' – 2009 Remastered (Retroactive Records) * ''Hearts of Fire'' – 2009 Remastered (Retroactive Records) * ''Cutting Edge'' – 2009 Remastered (Retroactive Records) * ''Perfect Timing'' – 2009 Remastered (Retroactive Records)


Track lists

''Sweet Comfort'' (1977) * "It's So Fine (Soul Tune Boogie)" – 3:03 * "Ryan's Song" – 4:08 * "Childish Things" – 2:42 * "Let It Go" – 2:29 * "Your Life" – 2:25 * "Somebody Loves You" – 2:57 * "His Name Is Whispered" – 3:13 * "God's Got a Plan" – 3:14 * "Get Ready" – 3:04 * "When I Was Alone" – 3:46 ''Breakin' the Ice'' (1978) * "Got to Believe" – 3:56 * "Breakin' the Ice" – 3:40 * "Young Girl" – 3:15 * "Melody/Harmony" – 3:20 * "I Need Your Love Again" – 4:50 * "Good Feelin'" – 4:00 * "Searchin' for Love" – 4:06 * "The Lord is Calling" – 3:56 * "I Love You with My Life" – 4:01 ''Hold On Tight'' (1979) * "Hold On Tight" – 3:20 * "Take It – Save It" – 3:23 * "Falling Star" – 3:08 * "You're the One" – 3:13 * "Angel" – 3:13 * "Chasin' the Wind" – 3:32 * "Don't Tell Me You Love Me" – 3:10 * "Undecided" – 3:56 * "Carry Me" – 4:43 * "More Than You Need" – 4:35 * "Find Your Way" – 4:11 ''Hearts of Fire'' (1981) * "Isabel" – 4:08 * "You Can Make It" – 2:44 * "They Just Go On" – 3:34 * "The Road" – 3:49 * "Feel Like Singin'" – 3:32 * "Now or Never" – 3:33 * "Can You Help Me?" – 3:50 * "Contender" – 3:10 * "Just Like Me" – 2:47 * "You Need a Reason" – 3:16 ''Cutting Edge'' (1982) * "Runnin' to Win" – 4:06 * "What Have You Got?" – 3:10 * "Falling in Love With You" – 3:34 * "Haven't Seen You" – 4:47 * "Breakdown Love" – 3:12 * "Valerie" – 3:23 * "Changed Hearts" – 3:40 * "Live It" – 4:03 * "What Did It Mean?" – 3:31 * "Armed and Ready" – 4:47 ''Perfect Timing'' (1984) * "Perfect Timing" – 3:29 * "Habit of Hate" – 3:52 * "You Led Me to Believe" – 5:06 * "Don't Bother Me Now" – 3:31 * "Computer Age" – 3:28 * "Sing for the Melody" – 3:42 * "Looking for the Answer" – 4:42 * "Envy and Jealousy" – 4:08 * "Prodigal's Regret (Never Should Have Left You)" – 4:54 * "Neighborhood Kids" – 3:48 ''The Waiting Is Over'' (2013) * "Lay It All on the Line" – 4:57 * "Something Else Is Going on Here" – 4:07 * "Nothing Can Separate Us" – 4:23 * "Do You Love Me" – 4:47 * "Rock Steady" – 3:42 * "Then I Remember" – 4:36 * "All in Gods Hands" – 4:11 * "The Waiting Is Over" – 3:53 * "All Stand Together" – 3:41 * "Where Do We Go from Here" – 4:21 * "In the Light of Heaven" – 4:57


References


External links

* {{Authority control Christian rock groups from California Culture of Riverside, California Musical groups from Riverside County, California Musical groups established in 1974