Gideon’s Army was born in 1973, during the early years of CCM. Hailing from the San Francisco Bay Area, the band worked to support the prison ministry that is now known as Follow Up Ministries.
Gideon’s Army worked closely with juvenile halls, the CA Youth Authority, and CA State and Federal prisons. Their sound started out as acoustic, laid back gospel similar to the Maranatha! bands out of L.A. Before long, the band would morph into a full-fledged aggressive Christian rock act. The change was better suited for their outreach which included street ministry (Jews for Jesus, S.O.S. San Francisco), Christian coffee houses, and concert ministry (Great America, Oakland Civic Auditorium, H.P. Pavillian San Jose) among many other ministry opportunities. It wasn’t until 1982 that the band recorded and independently released their debut album Rock n’ Roll For Your Soul. The album reflected what was happening in the S.F.B.A. music scene at the time – dual lead guitars, horns and an R&B feeling. Their follow up 1985 release of the now iconic Warriors of Love brought big changes both in personnel and sound. Gone were the horns, dual guitar leads and most notably there was a more aggressive rock format. The new sound stood shoulder to shoulder with bands like Van Halen, Night Ranger, Petra, and .38 Special. The album sold like crazy at shows, but with no formal distribution many people never got their hands on the now high dollar collectible vinyl of this legendary classic rock release. This problem continued with their third and final album, Grace, which was released in CS and CD formats on a small independent label that did not remain in existence for very long after the album’s release. Original CD copies of Grace are some of the rarest and most sought after CD collectibles in the world of AOR and Christian rock, almost never selling on eBay for less than $100 whenever one comes up for sale, which is usually only a few times a year at most. However, 2013 may be a landmark year for fans of this legendary band.
01. In The Summertime 04:09
02. Take The Floor 03:18
03. Don’t Look Back 04:05
04. Fly Away 03:26
05. Between The Lines 05:25
06. Burn For The Living 05:26
07. Someday 05:16
08. Shades Of Gray 05:12
09. My Jerusalem 04:15
10. Playing To Win 04:37
11. Bloodhound Sound 05:20
12. Holding Steady 04:09
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