There’s been so much written about the controversial and eccentric life of Larry Norman that I don’t even think I can adequately scratch the surface here. Norman has often been described as “the father of Christian rock music” and whether or not that title is accurate I’ll leave to historians. What we do know is that Norman was one of the first artists to perform rock music with a decidedly evangelistic tone. His albums in the late 60’s and early 70’s were a foothold into a culture that believed it was impossible to both follow Jesus and have long hair and play an electric guitar.

Norman appeared at Cornerstone from time to time. Here’s some footage of the start of his show at Cornerstone Festival 1985.

Larry Norman played a couple of times at the festival in the 80’s before taking a lower profile in the 90’s. He returned one last time to Cornerstone Festival 2001 for a mainstage appearance and a surprise reunion with Randy Stonehill. Norman, in failing health due to a heart condition, passed away in 2008. I don’t know that I would say I’m a huge fan of his music, but I am glad I got to see him in concert once before his death. I’ll discuss his performances at 2001 more when we reach that era.

Larry Norman’s classic album Only Visiting This Planet is available for download at amazon.com mp3