On Angels of Fire and Snow: $50 from Bad Cat Records

It's Just the Beginning Pt.1
It's Just the Beginning Pt.2
It's Just the Beginning Pt.3
A very moving documentary of the 1968 Baha'i National Youth Conference
+

Thanks to one of the friends in our cluster, I have a CD of the songs from "Reflections on a New World Order," a classic for any Baha'i who was a youth in the late 1960's and early 1970's. The CD comes complete with the scratches and background noise of the LP used to burn it from. I don't know where he got the LP, but the songs on it sure bring back memories. Found on the web, another copy of the LP for fiddy bucks. The seller's review alone is worth that kind of money, given the chuckles it gave me. -gw

Genre: folk-rock
Rating: *** (3 stars)
Title: Reflections of a New World
Company: Baha'I Publishing Trust
Catalog: CBF 2009
Year: 1969
Country/State: US
Grade (cover/record): VG/VG
Comments: --
Available: 1
GEMM catalog ID: 4624
Price: $50.00
Cost: $66.00

Clearly one of the weirder items in my collection ... Not exactly Jesus music since it was recorded by the Baha'i Publishing Trust, but in terms of concepts and enthusiasm for the cause it actually fits in the same category ...

I know absolutely nothing about this one ... never seen another copy of "Reflections of a New World Order" and as far as I can tell, there's nothing to be found about this album on the web. So what can I tell you about this early 1970s relic? Well it's a compilation featuring 16 tracks with material from eight artists. Most of the performers are allotted two songs, though Phil Lucas is credited with four selections. The material is largely acoustic folk with religious oriented themes running through it, though such themes are more apparent in some selections than others. I'm assuming all of the performers were/are members of the Baha'i faith. Most of the tracks are at least mildly entertaining in a weird, dated kind of way. Probably because they reflect an Eastern influence (for some reason I thought the Baha'i religion tracked its roots to Persia), tracks like 'Baha'u'llah' and 'Baha'u'llah, The Nightingale' are the most interesting efforts (Mighty Baby fans might find those tracks worth hearing). To my ears the standout track is Chris Ruhe's 'Blues for Jere'. A rather personal narrative of his trek to preach the Baha'i faith in Honduras, it's funny and touching at the same time. Best voice probably goes to Joany Lincoln, though her crystal clear voice is wasted on two rather bland tracks.

"Reflections of a New World" track listing:

(side 1)
1.) World Citizens (Phil Lucas) -
2.) Mount Your Steeds (Phil Lucas) -
3.) The Glory of God (Claire Segue) -
4.) There'll Come a Time (Claire Segue) -
5.) Baha'u'llah (Creadell Haley) -
6.) There's Only One God (Creadell Haley) -
7.) Robin's Song (Greg Dahl) -
(side 2)
1.) I've Got a Song To Sing (Roy Flournoy) -
2.) Baha'u'llah, The Nightingale (Roy Flournoy) -
3.) Let Go (Chris Ruhe) -
4.) Blues for Jere (Chris Ruhe) -
5.) Dawn Song (Joany Lincoln) -
6.) Hollow Reed Prayer (Joany Lincoln) -
7.) Angels of Fire and Snow (Joany Lincoln) -
8.) Summer Sunshine (Phil Lucas) -
9.) New Wind Blowin' (Phil Lucas) -

At least a couple of these folks are still active in their faith - Chris Ruhe, Creadell Haley and Joany Lincoln. Here's a brief web reference I found about Mrs. Lincoln: "She and her family lived a number of years in French-speaking Africa before she was appointed to the International Teaching Centre here in Israel. She recently spent two weeks in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is one of those French-speaking African countries (formerly Zaire)."

Chris Ruhe appears to be the only one still active in music. He has a small informative website located at:

http://www.chrisruhe.com/index.html

Via a brief email Mr. Ruhe added the following comments: "... the LP was recorded perhaps in 1969 in a church/studio in Northampton, Mass., and produced by Greg Dahl. They picked two of my least favorite songs for the LP, but hey.. "

http://www.geocities.com/badcatrecords/FIREsnow.htm