Chris Tomlin
Chris Tomlin |
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Christopher Dwayne Tomlin (born May 4 1972) is a Christian worship leader and songwriter from Grand Saline, Texas, United States. He is a staff member at Austin Stone Community Church and is signed to EMI's sixstepsrecords. Tomlin also leads worship at many Passion events. Some of his most well-known songs are "How Great Is Our God", "Forever", "Famous One", "We Fall Down", and "Holy Is the Lord".
According to the Christian Copyright Licensing International, Tomlin is the most sung Christian artist in the United States.[1]. He was awarded Male Vocalist at the 2006 and 2007 Gospel Music Awards, and was named Artist of the Year in 2007.
Biography
Tomlin received his first guitar from his father, Connie, at the age of eleven after contracting a case of mono[2]. Then, Tomlin wrote his first worship song at age fourteen. He entered college planning to study medicine, but he stated that he felt God's calling to something else and did not pursue that career.
In the mid-1990's Tomlin spent time leading worship at the Dawson McAllister Youth Conferences, as well as at various camps around the state of Texas.
Following college, at Texas A&M University Tomlin continued to play and write songs, and in 1997, Louie Giglio asked if he would be interested in working with the Passion Conferences. Tomlin agreed, and he has played a key role ever since. His first nationally released solo project, entitled The Noise We Make, was released in 2001, which saw the emergence of songs "Forever" (his most famous song other than "How Great Is Our God"), "Be Glorified", and "Kindness", all of which made the top 200 in the CCLI 2005 top 500 worship songs[3]. Since then, he has released many more studio albums, most notably Arriving, which is considered his breakout album, since it produced four number one hits ("Indescribable", "Holy Is the Lord," "How Great Is Our God," and "The Way I Was Made"), and two other songs ("On Our Side" and "Mighty is the Power of the Cross", written with Shawn Craig of Phillips, Craig, and Dean) which landed in the 2005 top five hundred worship songs according to Christian Copyright Licensing International.[3] His last, See the Morning, has been nominated for two Grammy Awards [4] and has helped him win 6 Dove Awards in 2007, including a second consecutive "Artist of the Year" win[1].
Although a solo artist, Tomlin travels around with a consistent band lineup. His band, in which he performs vocals, acoustic guitar, and piano, consists of Daniel Carson (electric guitar, backup vocals), Jesse Reeves (bass guitar, harmonica, backup vocals, co-songwriter), and Travis Nunn (drums, loops). The latter replaced Joey Parrish as drummer in 2004. Although not considered an "official" band member, Matt Gilder regularly plays the keys for Tomlin. Tomlin and the band developed while working with the Harvest Ministry at The Woodlands United Methodist Church in The Woodlands, Texas in the late 1990's.[5]
According to Christian Copyright Licensing International's list of the top 25 worship songs in the United States as of August 2007, Tomlin held 5 spots with songs he has either written or co-written with other songwriters: "How Great Is Our God" (#1), "Forever" (#5), "Holy Is the Lord" (#7), "We Fall Down" (#12),and "Indescribable" (#22).[6]
Tomlin has toured with several prominent acts in the Christian Contemporary Music, such as touring as a support act of Delirious? during his first ever tour,[7] and as a support act of Steven Curtis Chapman during his All Things New Tour[8]. Tomlin has also headlined several tours, such as headlining the Chris Tomlin Indescribable Tour, which featured world renowned worship artist Matt Redman, and prominent speaker Louie Giglio[9], and headlining the See the Morning Tour. As of April 2007, Tomlin is touring on his "How Great Is Our God" tour with Louie Giglio and Matt Redman, which recently was extended until October.[3]
On May 31, 2007, Chris Tomlin returned home to Grand Saline, Texas, to play a free show during their annual Salt Festival.[3]
On June 14, 2007, Tomlin's song "Indescribable" was used as the official wake-up call for Mission Specialist Patrick Forrester on Space Shuttle mission STS-117.
On January 7-11 2008, Tomlin participated in the Compassionart International Songwriting retreat, a retreat, which was dedicated to writing songs whose revenues will go to the poorest of the poor. Other prominent Christian songwriters that went included Matt Redman, Martin Smith, Stuart Garrard, and Steven Curtis Chapman. [10]
In March 2008, Tomlin and his band began recording a new studio record. The album will include the song "Sing, Sing, Sing" and "There is Love." [11]
Discography
- Inside Your Love (1995)
- Authentic (1998)
- Too Much Free Time (with Ross King) (1998)
- The Noise We Make (2001)
- 545 (Promo) (2002)
- Not to Us (2002)
- Arriving (2004)
- Live From Austin Music Hall (2005)
- See the Morning (2006)
- The Early Years (2006)
- See the Morning Deluxe Edition (2007)
- Arriving Platinum Edition (2008)
- TBD - New studio project (2008)
Passion event albums
- Live Worship From The 268 Generation (1998)
- Better Is One Day (1999)
- The Road to OneDay (2000)
- OneDay Live (2000)
- Our Love Is Loud (2002)
- Sacred Revolution: Songs From OneDay 03 (2003)
- Hymns: Ancient and Modern (2004)
- How Great Is Our God (2005)
- Everything Glorious (2006)
- The Best of Passion (So Far) (2006)
- Live From Passion 07 Pts. 1 & 3 (2007)
- God Of This City (2008)
Other songs (not included in an album)
- "Where the Streets Have No Name" [Sparrow/EMI CMG] - In the Name of Love: Artists United for Africa (2004)
- "You're The One" [Disney/EMI CMG] - Music Inspired by the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe (2005)
- "Angels We Have Heard On High" [Word] - WOW Christmas: Green (2005)
Songs
Song - Billboard (North America)
| Year | Title | Peak Chart Positions | Album |
|---|---|---|---|
| Hot Christian Songs | |||
| 2004 | "Indescribable" | 1 | Arriving |
| 2005 | "Holy Is the Lord" | 1 | Arriving |
| 2005 | "How Great Is Our God" | 1 | Arriving |
| 2006 | "Made to Worship" | 1 | See the Morning |
| 2007 | "How Can I Keep from Singing" | 4 | See the Morning |
| 2007 | "Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)" | 2 | See the Morning |
Music videos
- "Expressions of Your Love" (With Rebecca St. James) (2004)
- "Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone)" (2007)
GMA Dove Awards
2005
- Praise and Worship Album of the Year for Arriving
2006
- Song of the Year for "How Great Is Our God" [12]
- Male Vocalist of the Year
- Artist of the Year
- Special Event Album of the Year for Music Inspired by the Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe
- Worship Song of the Year for "How Great Is Our God"
2007
- Artist of the Year[13]
- Male Vocalist of the Year
- Worship Song of the Year for "Holy Is the Lord"
- Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year for See the Morning
- Special Event Album of the Year for Passion: Everything Glorious
- Praise & Worship Album of the Year for See the Morning
Bibliography
- Chris Tomlin, The Way I Was Made: Words and Music for an Unusual Life, Multnomah, 2004. ISBN 978-1590523278
References
- ^ a b Associated Press. Chris Tomlin wins at Dove Awards April 26, 2007. Retrieved April 26, 2007.
- ^ Tyler Paper, "Superstar's homecoming brings memories, praise"
- ^ a b c d Chris Tomlin's official Site
- ^ Chris Tomlin's Biography at Billboard.com
- ^ Article in CCM Magazine
- ^ CCLI Top 25 Worship Songs List
- ^ Delirious? Bio
- ^ Arriving E-Card
- ^ Chris Tomlin Indescribable Tour poster
- ^ Compassionart News Release
- ^ Ed Cash's Blog
- ^ GMA Dove Awards - History
- ^ 2007 GMA Dove Awards winners list, Retrieved April 27 2007
