Light Maneuvers

Servant (Artist) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Original Release Date: 1984
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Myrrh Records
• ASIN: B0006TI0JS
• Also Available in: Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #714,429 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Song List: 1)Poolside Logic 2)Surrender 3)We Are The Light 4)One At Heart 5)Neighborhood 6)Born In The Fire 7)BattleCry 8)Courage to Burn 9)Zero Minus One 10)War Dance

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The Forgotten Christian Rock Band, December 29, 2004

By 

Kevin Bowden "Eschatravagant" (Hillsdale, MI USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Light Maneuvers (Audio CD)

This album was the next-to-last effort by Servant, and contains more solid songs than their others, a more unified theme.
Being, of course, focused on the Light, it has a very light sound, much less heavy than Servant's last album, "Swimming in a Human Ocean" but with a more mature sound than "Caught in the Act of Loving Him."
The top songs are "We Are the Light," "One at Heart," "Courage to Burn," and "Zero Minus One." My sole regret, the only reason not to give this album 5 stars, is that "Wardance" is on this album. Granted, Servant was a fairly hippie, anti-war band. But the sound and sense doesn't really square with the rest of the album. Maybe "World of Sand," which is a far more confrontational album.
Perhaps the best example of pre-85 non-heavy-metal Christian Rock (outside of Petra, of course). After 85 was an explosion of artists, with another wave in 92 that completely altered the landscape, all older, non-CD-era bands now forgotten.

10 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Who are we?, January 30, 2005

By 

Jedidiah Palosaari "Not My Real Name" (Fes, Morocco) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Light Maneuvers (Audio CD)

Let me admit the biases first: Servant was our band, by that, I mean part of our commune, managed by my dad, and all the people in it close friends of mine. So I am going to be pretty supportive.

Servant was cutting edge- the first Christian band with an extensive light show, the first to use lasers, and the band that gave Petra their start. They were often honored with the insult of being "too preachy", for they called the Church to return to the ways of Christ, and they didn't allow any amount of persecution stand in the way of that calling. In this album, Servant left it's folk rock days most seen in it's first album, Shallow Water, and entered more of a mix of rock and new wave.

But why do I like the tunes on this album? A lot of what made Servant what it was comes through in this album. A lot of what the HMS commune was is also present here. The Jesus Movement never produced a tome like the Westminster Confession; for us, our theology was expressed in our music. Even today, when I contemplate an ethical action, I consult the Bible, and the music I grew up with. So the willingness to be martyred comes through strongly in "Courage to Burn". Our reason for being here at all in "We are the Light". And perhaps the best song on the album, "Wardance", reads like prophesy for the future wars in Iraq. Servant didn't pull it's punches. "Wardance, it's a sin."- Christ calls us to peace, and instead those who claim his name turn to war. This is an album calling the Church to remember who we are.

Shallow Water
Rockin' Revival
World of Sand + 2

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Great Forgotten Gem, April 1, 2005

By 

Roger Huggett Jr. (Minneapolis) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Light Maneuvers (Audio CD)

In the 80's I was as avid concert goer but hadn't even heard of "Christian" rock. When someone asked me to see Servant and the tickets were only $4 (truly servants for that price) the group blew me away and I got all their stuff I could and despite the many style changes the quality and honesty of the music never wavered. Light Maneuvers was an excellent example. Other than Wardance I liked every song. I haven't heard this album for 16 years but their powerful words stay with me from "We Are The Light" about doing our part in the great commission the "Poolside Logic" about the urge to ignore the needy and bask in our stuff. Its sad that Christian music is one of the few art forms that has forgotten most of its pioneers for their music and lyrics stand up to the test of time.