Description
- Hardcover, Dust-jacket
- 248 pages
- 12 full-color insert pages
- includes online resources at www.GrandmothersPrayer.com
How do you go from Abilene, to Nashville, to Beverly Hills, to the rest of the world?
How does the musical influence of a country kid from West Texas expand globally? Chris Christian’s story begins in Abilene with a Grandmother’s prayer. Her prayer was that Chris would reach the world with the gospel of Jesus Christ. Mayme Christian Smith instilled in her grandson that he could become anything he wanted to become. Chris has done just that.
A Grandmother’s Prayer isn’t just the story of Chris Christian, it’s the story of the early days of Contemporary Christian Music and, in a way, the stories of many Artists, celebrities and professional icons that have intersected Chris’s life.
It’s also a story of how the gospel can reach the ears and hearts of millions through the power of music and the answer to a grandmother’s prayer.
Contents
Foreword by Pat Boone
- The Prayer that Changed Everything……………………..19
- I Heard It on the Radio…………………………………….27
- From Small Beginnings……………………………………..34
- Off to Music City with $100……………………………..40
- The Best Things Happen at Opryland……………………53
- Mister Las Vegas…………………………………………….58
- Elvis and Me………………………………………………..65
- Nashville, Take Two………………………………………..74
- A Studio Called Gold Mine……………………………….84
- Amy, BJ, and the Birth of an Industry……………………100
- Robbie Patton, Clive Davis, and Studio 54……………127
- Can I Swim with the Big Fish?…………………………..132
- Hanging with the Kardashians…………………………..144
- Home Where We Belong……………………………….154
- The Movie Studios………………………………………..159
- Gerbert’s World…………………………………………..165
- A Dallas Cowboys Christmas……………………………169
- RadioShack Days…………………………………………176
- Basketball………………………………………………….181
- Music Babies………………………………………………190
- Things that Shouldn’t Have Happened…………………204
- Since You Asked…………………………………………..208
- Lessons Learned………………………………………………215
- Appendix………………………………………………………217
My grandmother, Mayme Christian Smith was one of the godliest women I had ever known. She was always praying for me and instilling in me the idea that I could become anything I wanted to be.
Since I was a small boy, she prayed that God would use my talents to go into the world with the Gospel. Her prayer has been answered over the course of my lifetime through a series of defining moments that should not have happened and only God could orchestrate.
The first of these defining moments was in 1960. It was a day like any other in Mrs. Patterson’s 4th-grade class at Crockett Elementary in Abilene, Texas, but this day would set my path, and change my life as well as the lives of many others.
Whatever success or recognition I’ve seen in this life, I believe, is a result of the answer to A Grandmother’s Prayer.
Chris Christian has been a songwriter, record producer, and a record label executive. He has produced or had songs recorded by Elvis Presley, Olivia Newton-John, Natalie Cole, The Carpenters, Sheena Easton, The Pointer Sisters, Al Jarreau, Amy Grant, Patti Austin, Dionne Warwick, The Imperials, B.J. Thomas, B W Stevenson, Marilyn McCoo, Jerry Reed, Dan Peek, Cheryl Ladd, Jane Olivor, Pat Boone, Robbie Patton, Steve Archer, Donnie Osmond, Cotton, Lloyd & Christian and others.
Outside the music industry, Chris helped create the popular children’s television series “Gerbert,” scored the movie “Dakota” starring Lou Diamond Phillips, produced two albums with the Dallas Cowboys, purchased the biggest movie studio sound stage between California and Florida, served as CEO of an entertainment conglomerate with three Fortune 500 Companies and is Vice Chairman of the Dallas Wings professional WNBA team.
Chris was inducted into the West Texas Music Hall of Fame, and the Christian Music Hall of Fame in 2007.
Chris and his wife, Shanon live in the Dallas
Curt –
A Grandmother’s Prayer is powerful
Have been a fan of Chris Christian since “Mountain Top” was released. Always wondered what happened to him after he stopped releasing new music. This book takes us back to the beginning, walking us through his wonderful career and accomplishments. Looking forward to rereading the book while listening to his wonderful music.
Anna –
Good book
Bought for a gift after hearing the author speak at church.
Monica Huber –
Very interesting and unusual autobiography
I began listening to Chris’ first album in 1980 when I was a freshman at UCSB. I knew he had something to do with Amy Grant’s career. When I moved to Dallas I read that he bought the Studios at Las Colinas and produced a children’s show called Gerbert that my kids used to watch. Later I saw he brought the Dallas Wings WNBA team from Oklahoma. I ordered the book to see what else he had done and found it very interesting to discover his relationships to Elvis, the Kardashians, and many others. He attributes his many successes to his grandmother who prayed for him every day. Reading this story, it is hard to argue against it.
J –
Reassuring Read That Prayers and Family Are All We Need
Heard author speak at luncheon and purchased book. Couldn’t put it down! Read it two more times! Neat to see the roots stemming back to Abilene, Texas. Great to see that someone who has rubbed shoulders with the big names, still puts things into perspective and traces everything back to a humble beginning. Also neat to see that the early stages of the CCM genre can be traced back to Abilene!! Grandparents can play an important role in all of our lives, this book revolves around that!!
Amanda Campbell –
Easy read! Highly recommend!
A fluid read that gives a wide spectrum of one man’s robust experience in the music industry over decades. Interesting, wholesome read with lots of history and stories you won’t hear about anywhere else. Highly recommend!
Randy O’Brien –
Writing a memoir is hard when you’ve had such a full and interesting life. Chris’s storied career started with a simple wish from his grandmother and that has led him to fame and fulfillment. Check out this remarkable story. And my grandmother’s name was Mamie, too.