Call Me the Seeker: Listening to Religion in Popular Music
“Gilmour’s book is a welcome addition to the growing academic literature on the sources, themes and audiences of religion in popular music. The range of topics, and the variety of perspectives brought to bear on the material, make this an original and interesting collection.” —Mary Ann Beavis, Associate Professor of Religious Studies, St. Thomas More College, and founder and academic editor of the Journal of Religion and Popular Culture (Mary Ann Beavis)"Call Me the Seeker should be the latest library addition for scholars and students working in the field of popular culture and religion. Gilmour's volume gives us what the field has been missing-a broad, expansive, and easily accessible study of popular music. Pick up this book, strap on the headphones, and follow Dylan, Guthrie, U2, Sinead O'Connor, Tim McGraw, and the like on a lyrical journey through popular culture and religion." -Conrad Ostwalt, author of Secular Steeples: Popular Culture and the Religious Imagination (Conrad Ostwalt)“One rarely unearths an in-depth study of religion and popular music like this essay collection” – Library Journal, August 2005 (Library Journal)"Modern-day scholars frequently study theinterplay between religion and popular culture, especially comic books, movies,television, and literature; however, one rarely unearths an in-depth study ofreligion and popular music like this essay collection...[Gilmour's] book isrecommended for religious studies collections in larger academic libraries."— Library Journal(Library Journal)"Gilmour hasprovided readers with a invaluable tool that will assist in the way we look atmusic — aligning popular song with thecore of its deeper religious message so that we might come to understand thefull scope of the art form. Gilmour is one of the most knowledgeable religionwriters in the country... Accordingly,Seekeris like no other book on pop musicbecause it looks like at what'sbehindthe medium- investigating the inner/sacred meaning ofsong, dissecting the holy force driving the rhythms that drive us.Obviously, the text is quite bold and it covers much ground, with a throughanalysis of many of the religious themes that are found in popular music.<!—[if !supportEmptyParas]—><!—[endif]—></p><p>Recommended because: Of its uniqueness and depth, and because it attempts tounmask a component of the art form that often goes unrecognized by scholars andcritics...Michael Gilmour's book, then, is meant to shine a direct light on thefact that religion is found everywhere in the history of popular song. In theend, <i>Seeker</i> teaches us that if we can<i>see</i> what inspired the creation of thesongs, a deeper richer experience will be attained by the listener. " —<i>electricreview.net, December 2005</i></p><br  /> (electricreview.net)<br  /><br  />