The Rance Allen Group

Emerging from Detroit in the 1960s, this classically schooled Black gospel ensemble became the first traditional gospel act to blend rock, jazz, and soul into its sound. By doing so, the group helped lay the groundwork for the contemporary Christian music wave that caught on in the late 1970s thanks to Andrae Crouch, Amy Grant, and the Winans. In 1979 Rance Allen landed a Top 30 R&B single on Stax with “I Belong to You,” one of just two releases from the label to reach the charts that year. His sessions for Gospel Truth, Capitol, and Stax found a strong following inside gospel circles while also pulling in a portion of the soul audience. Allen kept writing and touring into the 1990s, issuing Miracle Worker with the Rance Allen Group in spring 2000.