lambert (05/14/82)
From the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer, Owensboro KY
HOT ROCK: CHURCH GROUP BURNS ROCK 'N ROLL RECORDS
Pleasant Ridge, KY - The birds had just stopped singing
Friday night on the hillside near Greenbriar Baptist Church
when the congregation began singing.
Billows of black smoke rose from an incinerator behind the
church, and about 60 members of the congregation stood in
the flickering light singing "Victory in Jesus".
In the fire were more than $1000 worth of records, tapes,
and romantic novels, church officials said.
A revival meeting had just ended in the tall, white-sided
church on Greenbriar Road, and the members had come to burn
what they called "instruments of the devil" -- records by
rock and country artists such as Kiss, Olivia Newton-John,
and Kenny Rogers.
"I hope the devil sees this." said a bearded man who was
holding a leather-bound Bible. "We want to send him a
message."
The Rev. Rex Payton, minister of the church, said, "We
thought we would have eight or ten more young people come
and bring their records. But they didn't show up."
Members of the congregation dumped several armloads of
albums, 45 rpm records, and books into the flames.
"That 'Let's Get Physical' album just doesn't want to burn,"
a woman in the crowd said.
People stood for several minutes watching the flames and
smoke, and then moved slowly toward their cars.
Payton and the Rev. Joey Gilstrap said they wanted to show
that the records were evil and the work of Satan himself.
Gilstrap said many groups use a technique called "backward
masking" to impress a satanic message on some rock 'n roll
recordings.
"You hear it backwards, but your mind turns it around and
you get the message subconsciously," he said.
"Any music that doesn't praise the Lord is bad music,"
Gilstrap said. "There are so many groups, I don't know
which to point out."
He said that Kiss, the Eagles, Stevie Nicks and Queen came
to mind as particularly bad examples.
"I'm just guessing we have $1000 or more burning here,"
Payton said. "I know one young person who said he brought
$350 worth, and another brought about $600 worth. My kids
-- I don't let them listen to too much of this -- but they
probably brought about $200 worth," he said.
The aroma from pine trees around the church was mixed with
the odor of burning vinyl.
"We don't want to put up with the devil's works," Gilstrap
said later at the fire. "He makes them so tempting."