Rich Mullins - Music Career

Music Career

Mullins had a distinctive talent both as a performer and a songwriter. His compositions showed distinction in two ways: unusual and sometimes striking instrumentation, and complex lyrics that usually employed elaborate metaphors.

Mullins did most of his composing and performing on piano and acoustic guitar, but he also had a prodigious talent for obscure instruments. He displayed arguably virtuoso skills on the hammered and lap dulcimers (in "Calling out Your Name" and "Creed") and the Irish tin whistle (in "Boy Like Me/Man Like You" and "The Color Green").

Mullins formed his first band in 1976–77 while attending Cincinnati Bible College. His musical career formally began with Zion Ministries in the late 1970s, where he wrote music and performed with a band called Zion. The band released one album in 1981 entitled Behold the Man. While working for this ministry, Mullins wrote a song called "Sing Your Praise To The Lord" which was recorded by singer Amy Grant in 1982 and became an immediate hit on Christian Radio. In 1983 Debby Boone recorded Mullins' "O Come All Ye Faithful" (first presented on January 19, 1977 during a concert entitled In Worship of the Coming King), for her Surrender album. In 1984, the song was also featured in a TV movie called Sins of the Past.

In 1986, Rich Mullins released his eponymous debut album, followed in 1987 by Pictures in the Sky. Neither album sold very well, but the Christian radio hit "Awesome God" on his third album, Winds of Heaven, Stuff of Earth, brought his music to a wider audience. The song "Awesome God" was written at a Christian camp "Rock Lake Christian Assembly" in a small town in Michigan.

In the early 1990s, Mullins released a pair of albums entitled The World As Best As I Remember It, Volume One and Two. These albums featured more of a stripped-back, acoustic feel than his earlier work, with nods to Irish music. "Step By Step", a song written by good friend Beaker and included on volume one, and incorporated into "Sometimes By Step" with additional lyrics by Mullins on volume two, became an instant hit on Christian Radio, and, like "Awesome God", it became a popular praise chorus.

In 1993, Mullins assembled a group of Nashville musicians (including Jimmy Abegg, Beaker, Billy Crockett, Phil Madeira, Rick Elias, and Aaron Smith) to form A Ragamuffin Band, whose name was inspired by the Christian book The Ragamuffin Gospel by Brennan Manning. The band recorded A Liturgy, a Legacy, & a Ragamuffin Band, which was later named the No. 3 best Christian album of all time by CCM Magazine. Liturgy was a concept album that drew its inspiration, in part, from the Catholic liturgy. The Ragamuffins also appeared on Mullin's 1995 record Brother's Keeper.

Mullins recorded a duet called "I Believe" with Hokus Pick on the album Brothers From Different Mothers in 1994. In addition to his vocals, Mullins performs on the lap and hammer dulcimers.

In 1997, Mullins teamed up with Beaker and Mitch McVicker to write a musical based on the life of St. Francis of Assisi, entitled The Canticle of the Plains. Mullins had great respect for St. Francis, and even formed "The Kid Brothers of St. Frank" in the late 1980s with Beaker.