Kim Gentes

Easily the best music theory book I've found for those who know very little theory. Intensely formally trained musicians will balk at this book, but "garage band" musicians will love it.  The book covers four main areas: Notation, Rhythm, Chords (4 sections), and Writing Music. The breakdown of the various topics into clean sections makes it easy to use the book as a reference for later. I often grab it when I need to refer back to some point on chords (for which it has extensive information). In addition to a good structured outline to the book, it starts off easily and takes nothing for granted- you learn as quick as you can pick up, because he starts off assuming you need to learn everything from timing to notes and more. If you are a beginner, its all there, if you somewhat knowledgeable you can move along quicker.

This is a compressed music theory book that is easy to pick up and learn from. It is tremendously helpful for musicians with gift and abilities, but little formal musical training. It gives the basics in excellent format (simple and straight forward) and style (humorous). The pithy style of this book makes it like reading a music book written by David Letterman.

I recommend this book to two crowds: first, if you are a rock musician that has played for years and just never got around to having a good grasp of theory, this book is made for you. Second, if you are a worship leader or musician in a local church but likewise finds yourself with a less than clear understanding of the all the salient musical theory points, then you will likely be helped a lot by reading this book as well. 

When I first read this book (back in 1999) I bought a printed paperback copy (literally just 100 pages long). When I lost the book about 10 years later, I bought another copy, simply because it is such a helpful reference. The book is now available on Kindle/eBook format too.

Amazon Link: http://amzn.to/12sLxBe

Review by Kim Gentes

I've spent the last 15 years evaluating and recommending resources for worship ministries, churches, leaders, musicians, vocalists, audio/video techs and pastors. I've even written a book highlighting the best of those resources that I've found relevant to worship and music. But in that time and search, I've yet to recommend a resource that completely covers the topic of how to lead worship. There are several books and DVDs and resources that drill down on specific details, skills, issues or ideas- all of them good and needed. But what I was looking for was the one book that could serve as the manual or textbook for those with a calling to leading worship.  My search has ended.

In "How To Lead Worship Without Being a Rock Star", Dan Wilt has crafted a values-based approach to the calling, development and practice of worship leading. As the title indicates, Wilt is as concerned with answering the question of why to lead worship as he is to how. Right from the start, the author identifies the 800lb gorilla in church music: the fact that leadership of sacred worship has collided with the "American Idol" pop-culture on the Sunday morning music platforms of churches around the world. Wilt's pithy phrase brings these tensions into crystal clear focus in his introduction:

Excitement and danger - that is the privilege of worship leading.1

From that place, the book takes the reader on an eight chapter course that will engage all the necessary components of development to bring a person through detailed information, study, evaluation and questioning- all as a means to growth into worship leadership. The first chapter drills deep into the subject of why we worship and why leading is a part of local church expression of worship. This flows nicely into the second chapter which continues to carve out the foundations by addressing the core values that we must have undergirding our understanding and practice of worship leading. The final foundation stone of his book comes in chapter three, which is titled "The Character of the Worship Leader", in which the reader is made to face the hard questions of motivation, calling and desires in their hopes of participation in leading worship. These first three chapters are worth the cost of the book on their own, and as someone who has worked for years at developing other worship leaders the importance and value of these foundations can't be overlooked.

Chapters four and five kick into practical guidance on the skills, planning, practices and thinking behind great worship leading. Chapter four focuses on the functions, techniques and skills of the worship leader and chapter five drills down on the leadership of a worship band. Chapter six deals with the pastoral relationship and the role of mentorship as you help others in growing in worship leading. Chapter seven culminates this practical guidebook approach by articulating excellent points to helping you in "Becoming a Great Worship Leader". The final chapter revisits the main points of the book and returns the reader to foundational concepts of values that undergird this book.

Dan Wilt's book is as virtual "course in a book" on worship leading 101. If you are looking for a rock solid manual to help with teaching the foundational values of worship leading along with the essentials of practical worship ministry, you have struck gold with "How To Lead Worship..." by Dan Wilt. I would especially recommend this to those of you who may be training, mentoring or leading other worship leaders (whether Sunday morning or small groups)-- this is the one manual that can help you and those that you are mentoring! Because the book is laid out in eight distinct sessions (including salient points, chapter discussion questions and summaries), you can use it as you "ready-to-use" study that both you and your trainee will learn from. Wilt has used his years as a local church worship leader, pastor, college professor and mentor to worship leaders around the world to inform his very practical approach to creating and developing this manual- and it shines through.

There are certainly more things to learn and technical concepts to be drilled down on as a worship leader develops, but this book should be at the starting point as a foundational course text for churches, worship departments, and Christian colleges everywhere. It is practical, readable, honest, values-centered and encouraging! Get a copy of this physical printed book in your hands now! While it will be life-changing for the beginner, it can also serve as a great structural inspection for the values and operational architecture of those already operating in the call of worship leading.

Book Link: http://bit.ly/1a3U5w9

Review by Kim Gentes

1. Wilt, Dan (203). How To Lead Worship Without Being a Rock Star: an 8 week study.  (Page 4). Wild Pear Creative.

REVIEW: “I was shocked! When Kim Gentes asked if I’d take a look at his new book, I agreed, although not enthusiastically. 2011 Ultimate Worship Resources Guide: Songs and Media Edition, really didn’t sound like something that was going to be exciting, compelling reading. I was wrong.

Beginning with a brief history of modern worship music, and then offering practical sources to find songs and song-related media, this book really lives up to its title.

I know a lot about worship music. As one who teaches on worship for a living, I try to keep up on what’s going on in worship music. But I’ll be honest, there are great sources in this book that had somehow totally eluded my attention. After all, who has time to research everything out there?Well, apparently Kim Gentes does and he put it all together in this book.

The day I finished reading the book I told the worship leader at our church that he needed to get a copy. I don’t recommend things to him very often. This one, though, is definitely worth it. You probably ought to get one, too… Don’t miss out. This book will save you tons of time and effort!“

Tom Kraeuter, Training Resources, Hillsboro MO

The book is now available in BOTH regular paperback and eBook (Kindle formats), links below.

FREE: a full chapter sample from the book is available for download here.

Revelation is something that must not only be received by the mind, but lived in the present reality of our bodies and spirits. In "The Worship God Is Seeking", pastor, worship leader and songwriter, David Ruis takes this difficult road of attempting to connect theology and passionate service. He succeeds wonderfully! This is a book that should be read by everyone, not just pastors and worship leaders and musicians. This is a prophetic message for all of us in the Body of Christ.

In the first 3 chapters, Ruis examines God-centered devotion in which the centrality of the Cross, the foundation of God's love, the necessity of the power of the Spirit, and the essential gathering of the community of Christ are the basis of "The Worship God is Seeking". As the chapters continue, David argues convincingly that true worship will be a journey not only marked by discovering God more fully as the fuel of all things "spirit and truth", but the center of creativity itself, as initiated by His actions at the creation of the universe. He goes on to link our relational connection to God as "Abba Father" as an important truth in unlocking authenticity and freedom in worship, not just in our culture, but around the globe.

But do not think the book aspires to some unreachable utopia. Ruis takes careful aim to ground his theological outline (which is heavily influenced by theologians N.T. Wright and Don Williams) in a lifetime of personal experience. Ruis's constant call in this book is for the church to focus on God, remember the community of Christ and show the fruit of worship through the fragrance of justice.

On the whole, this book is substantially more challenging to pastors and leaders than a simple book on worship. On practical terms, he covers everything from the place of artists and musicians in our churches to the importance of expectation in our gatherings. But this book is not really a practitioners guide as much as it is a prophetic challenge to the church. It is a distinct call to complete surrender to Christ, who has done all that is needed for worship, and an ongoing welcome to those who would walk in step with the advancing kingdom of God as we become participants that "let justice roll".

Product Link  http://amzn.to/omCmRp

Review by Kim Gentes

When I first began reading this book, it occurred to me that I had a generally low opinion of the acumen of the Christian leaders to write a good book. That notion was thoroughly destroyed by the recent work of Paul Baloche and Jimmy & Carol Owens. God Songs, is a stellar new book that triumphs in teaching the church how to write its new music liturgy, as it is inspired by the Spirit of God. As I began to read God Songs, I found myself getting lost in the book. I began pulling out old songs I had written, and started eating up each concept, page after page. The density of information in the book is substantial. So much so, that I found myself needing significant breaks to digest the materials. I suppose if I wasn't a worship leader and songwriter myself, I could have just perused over the details of the book. But for those who are involved in local churches or worship ministry, and have creative giftings, especially in songwriting, you will find God Songs is the first real "epic" to be written precisely for the purpose of helping to craft today's new liturgy for the church.

Without giving a complete chapter listing, you will have to trust me that this book covers, in detail, literally every single topic related to worship songwriting. Everything is included in this book: launching a new song idea; developing a single theme; crafting excellent lyrics that "sing"; melodies, harmonies and rhythms that enhance the song; marrying music and lyrics; stimulating creativity in the writer; getting your songs heard; developing your worship ministry; selecting songs that minister; and even a final kick in the pants to just get going and "do it"! The only problem with me listing my main topics I gleaned from the book is that someone out there is going to think "oh, Kim didn't mention this important item about songwriting, so maybe the books is missing that". Well, nothing could be further from the truth. Suffice it to say that you will not find a more comprehensive treatment of exactly how to create, develop and perfect the essential components of a worship song: lyrics and music.

As a product, the volume is really better thought of as a textbook than a conversational "how I did it" peice from Paul or Jimmy & Carol. In fact, while there is quite a nice conversational tone to the writing, there is simply too much to digest for a serious reader to walk through this book in an afternoon or even a couple of days. If you are a songwriter or worship leader, you will want to start this book with your notebook or shoe box of song ideas close at hand. You will find that you may have a one or two day stops in any number of the chapters, as you engage in the craft of songwriting. And that is the way it should be. This is as much a lab manual as it is a theory textbook. So don't be ready to just read a book on songwriting- be ready to write those songs!

In my mind, this book should really have a place as the text of a college course (or maybe 2 or 3) on songwriting- there is just that much excellent, well-written material to work through. I would look to Christian colleges around the country to seriously consider using this as the core course content for a songwriting track in music ministry degrees- it is that comprehensive and well written. Because of that, I could find only one relatively minor critique in the book- the layout. At one point, I discovered no less than dozen different styles and fonts used as I read. Along with regular highlight blocks, inset text items and centered lyric quoting, I found the layout almost distracting to the depth of the information being presented. Frankly, because the fonts and style changes so constantly, it made reading through the book a little more difficult than I think it may have needed to be. But again, this would be perfect for a course or class room setting, where you tackle just one chapter at a time and you aren't trying to read the entire book in a few days.

One of my favorite things about the book was the very specific details they gave to why some techniques work and others don't. And while you may not have heard of "the ubiquitous 3rd", "the nuance of feel" or the "cardinal rule" in arranging and performance, you won't feel like your being talked down to as you learn these things. The authors leave a wide berth for their own personalities and understanding by prefacing all they are teaching with an acknowledgement that each technique will work different for different people and songs.

But the bottom line is that this book is simply fantastic in covering a topic that has had no significant treatment to date: writing the worship songs for today's church. If you are a writer, or worship leader, who has a desire to write songs out of God's heart you won't find a better text book anywhere than God Songs. Not only do I highly recommend this book, but we have given it our Editor's Choice Award to help show our approval and appreciation for the great contribution made by the authors! Anyone interested in songwriting will not be disappointed in this book!

Product Link  http://amzn.to/r96Cgi 

Review by Kim Gentes