Description

Swedish version with gatefold cover Jerusalems message was primarily aimed at youth, with their lyrics describing the band's relationship to God in an ordinary, but radical way. The band's purpose was expressly evangelistic. Their concerts have been described as a series of revival meetings which often included altar calls and occasionally exorcisms. When the band first toured in the mid-1970s in Sweden, their combination of Christian lyrics with a hard rock sound was very controversial. The band was only permitted to perform at a few churches. Over time, Jerusalem gained broader acceptance, and after three years of touring record companies began making offers to record the band. The Christian record company Prim signed Jerusalem, without much expectation of success. However, the band's self-titled debut album, Jerusalem, became an instant hit among Christian listeners, and within the first six months the record sold 20,000 copies, unheard of within the genre of Christian rock in Europe. Buoyed by the response, Jerusalem toured both in Sweden and the rest of Scandinavia. The next album, Volym 2, was released in 1980. Lead vocalist Ulf Christiansson might not posses the talent of fellow Swedes Sonny Larsson and Peo Pettersson, but he holds his own with a solid gut level and mid-octave ranged vocal style. Christiansson also capably handles all rhythm and lead guitar duties. Drummer Klas Anderhell and bassist Anders Mossberg combine to form a tight sounding rhythm section. The talented Dan Tibell (Heartcry) adds just the right amount of texture on keyboard. After Glenn Kaiser (Resurrection Band) obtained a copy of Volume 2 when he caught Jerusalem's performance at the Greenbelt festival in England, he gave the record to Lamb And Lion Record owner Pat Boone upon returning to the states. Boone subsequently released English versions of the bands first two albums (the title to the English version of the debut was changed to Volume 1) for the American and Canadian market. This exposed Jerusalem to a global audience. The band's schedule became filled with tours in Germany, France, England, Belgium, and Finland. Listen to the heaviness in tracks like Getsemane, Jag Behover Dej or Introduktion and youll understand how unique this band was when it comes to Swedish Christian music. An interesting album indeed however the first two albums were a bit inconsistencies in the areas of songwriting and performance and the band would definitely come into its own with the blues based seventies influenced hard rock of its third effort Warrior. Track listing 1. Pass Pa 2. Bara Rock N Roll 3. Karlekssang 4. Getsemane 5. Jag Behover Deg 6. Introduktion 7. Dialog 8. Ajoss Med Dej Varld 9. Jag Vill Ge Dej En Blomma