- First Call
"First Call" is a
Christian Contemporary music (CCM) group, originally consisting of Melodie Tunney, Marty McCall, and Bonnie Keen. [ [http://www.singers.com/gospel/firstcall.html Original First Call] ] Melodie's husband, Dick Tunney, acted as the arranger and producer for many of the group's early projects.In the 1970s, Marty was a member of a band called Fireworks [ [http://www.signpostmusic.com/mccall/mccall.htm Biography, Signpost Music] ] , while Bonnie was pursuing a career in musical theater [ [http://www.bonniekeen.com/meet_biography.htm Bonnie Keen Official Website] ] . They met at a studio in Nashville, Tennessee, singing backup for other singers and recording commercial jingles. Dick Tunney met the two during such a session and struck up a friendship. He introduced them to his singer-wife, Melodie. The three saw a benefit in marketing themselves as a ready-made trio for backup vocals and other studio recordings. They were considered the "first call" by music producers -- first choice for studio work. But the term also fit with their belief in making their Christian beliefs first in their lives. [ [http://christianpublicityservices.com/dramatic_rose/dramatic_rose/fcallpr.htm Article, The Adams Group, "The Redemptive Journey of First Call] ]
None of the three initially foresaw a recording or touring career. As a side project to their backing vocal careers, they agreed to record an a cappella Christmas album called “An Evening In December.” The album sold very well on the Contemporary Christian market, and propelled the trio into their own music projects. [ [http://christianpublicityservices.com/dramatic_rose/dramatic_rose/fcallpr.htm Article, The Adams Group, "The Redemptive Journey of First Call] ] Offers began to come in from high profile CCM artists such as Amy Grant and Sandi Patty to join them on tour. Their first album of non-Christmas music, "Undivided" (1986) was followed by "Something Takes Over" (1987) and "God Is Good" (1989). The two Christmas music collections, "An Evening in December" Volumes I (1985) and Volume II (1987), have long been bestsellers in the group's catalog. Many comparisons have been made to the group's style similarity to the recording group
Manhattan Transfer [http://www.christianitytoday.com/music/reviews/2006/rejoice.html Christianity Today, Music Review] .Around 1989, Melodie expressed a desire to try different styles of music, and left the group in 1990, yet continued her friendship with Marty and Bonnie. [ [http://christianpublicityservices.com/dramatic_rose/dramatic_rose/fcallpr.htm Article, The Adams Group, "The Redemptive Journey of First Call] ] [ [http://www.tunneymusic.com/about/bio.html TunneyMusic.com] ] MaraBeth Jordan, another session singer, joined the group's ranks. [http://www.christianmusicdaily.com/content/view/44/97/ Christian Music Today, Article "Bonnie Keen: Bouncing Back"]
The new lineup saw two successful albums, Human Song (1992) and Sacred Journey (1993). Unfortunately, MaraBeth was involved in a highly publicized affair with fellow CCM artist
Michael English in 1994, both of whom were married to other people at the time. The media attention surrounding the affair lost them their record deal and MaraBeth left the group shortly thereafter [ [http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2000/006/1.42.html Christianity Today] ] .After the incident, Melodie Tunney returned to the group for a short period to try and reduce damage to the group's image and complete their touring obligations. She also lent her vocals to several projects in which the group was currently involved. In late
1994 First Call acted as the backup group forDavid L Cook 'sInspirational single, [http://cdbaby.com/cd/davidlcook3 "When Heaven is My Home] ." The song was written and produced for Cook by Dick Tunney.After signing with Warner Alliance, another Christmas album, 1995's "Beyond December" and the eponymously-titled album "First Call" of 1996 were recorded by Marty and Bonnie as a duo. [ [http://christianpublicityservices.com/dramatic_rose/dramatic_rose/fcallpr.htm Article, The Adams Group, "The Redemptive Journey of First Call] ]
After reuniting the original group to record two songs for some compilation projects, music publishers
Discovery House signed the members of the original lineup to record together again. Their new collection, entitled "Rejoice" was released in 2006. [ [http://christianpublicityservices.com/dramatic_rose/dramatic_rose/fcallpr.htm Article, The Adams Group, "The Redemptive Journey of First Call] ]Awards
"First Call" was a recipient of
GMA Dove Awards in the "Group of the Year" category for both 1988 [ [http://doveawards.com/history/browse.cfm?year=1988 Dove Awards 1988] ] and 1989 [ [http://doveawards.com/history/browse.cfm?year=1988 Dove Awards 1989] ] . They also have multiple Grammy-nominations [ [http://www.christianitytoday.com/tcw/2000/006/1.42.html Christianity Today] ] .References
External links
* [http://www.first-call.org/index2.html Official Homepage] ( [http://web.archive.org/web/20070629100325/http://www.first-call.org/index2.html archived] )
* [http://www.first-call.org/history.html Official History Page] ( [http://web.archive.org/web/20070226095558/http://www.first-call.org/history.html archived] )
* [http://www.bonniekeen.com/meet_biography.htm Bonnie Keen Official Website]
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