HOT GALLERY: These Musicians Found Religion—Some of Them Will Surprise You!
You probably know about some of the more famous musicians who have made their faith public—Cat Stevens’ conversion to Islam, Bob Dylan’s to Christianity—but there are many more whose stories may surprise you. Sometimes it’s actually a rediscovery (many of them grew up in religious households, turned away from faith, and then rediscovered it later). So who are these stars who found God? By Nina Hämmerling SmithIt’s not as though Al Green was a stranger to religion before he became a Baptist minister. As a young boy, Al Greene (he dropped the “e” as a solo artist) was in a gospel group with his brothers—he only moved on to secular music after his father kicked him out of the Greene Brothers when he was discovered listening to “profane” music (Jackie Wilson, to be precise). He then formed a pop group before going solo and producing legendary R&B songs like 1972’s “Let’s Stay Together.” In 1974, Green’s girlfriend Mary Woodson tossed boiling-hot grits on his back, stormed off into a bedroom, and shot herself with his gun. Her death shook Green to the core, and he vowed to dedicate himself to God, becoming an ordained Baptist minister two years later and buying a church building that became the Full Gospel Tabernacle, where he still preaches. You can watch him in action in this excerpt from the 1984 documentary Gospel According to Al Green.
August 24, 2012 at 3:10 pm, alumin said:
I wonder what Al thinks of Obama singing his song? Since Al is a Baptist Minister and Obama obviously does NOT have Christian values.