Straight Ahead (Amy Grant album)

Straight Ahead
Studio album by Amy Grant
Released	1984
Recorded	1983–1984
Studio	Caribou Ranch, Nederland, Colorado The Bennett House, Franklin, Tennessee Bullet Recording, Nashville, Tennessee; Mama Jo's Studio, North Hollywood, California Bill Schnee Studio, North Hollywood, California Air Studios, London, England
Genre	Contemporary Christian music
Length	38:36
Label	Myrrh
Producer	Brown Bannister
Amy Grant chronology
A Christmas Album (1983) Straight Ahead (1984) Unguarded (1985)
Singles from Straight Ahead
"Angels" Released: 1984

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic

Straight Ahead is the sixth studio album by Christian music artist Amy Grant, released in 1984.

Straight Ahead was the follow-up to Grant's ground-breaking 1982 album Age to Age. Containing songs that were more aggressive than the ones found on Age to Age, Straight Ahead was not as commercially successful as its predecessor. Nonetheless, it still topped Billboard's Christian album chart for sixty-one weeks, knocking Age to Age from the number-one position. The song "Angels" was also a No. 1 Christian radio hit for thirteen weeks, and won a Grammy Award for "Best Gospel Performance, Female." Straight Ahead would be certified gold in 1985. The song "Thy Word" is based on Psalm 119:105.

In 2007, Straight Ahead was reissued and digitally remastered by Grant's new record label, EMI/Sparrow Records. The remastered edition is labeled with a "Digitally Remastered" logo in the 'gutter' on the CD front.

Straight Ahead was the first Christian album to chart on the Billboard 200 chart. A&M reissued it in 1985, just as Grant was appearing on the Grammy Awards performing "Angels".

Track listing

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
1.	"Where Do You Hide Your Heart"	Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith	3:57
2.	"Jehovah"	Geoffrey P. Thurman	5:57
3.	"Angels"	Grant, Brown Bannister, Gary Chapman, Smith	4:10
4.	"Straight Ahead"	Grant, Chapman, Smith	3:47
5.	"Thy Word"	Grant, Smith	3:19
6.	"It's Not a Song"	Robbie Buchanan, Chapman	3:27
7.	"Open Arms"	Grant, Chapman, Bruce Hibbard	3:22
8.	"Doubly Good to You"	Rich Mullins	3:12
9.	"Tomorrow"	Grant, Chapman, Hibbard	3:24
10.	"The Now and the Not Yet"	Pam Mark Hall	3:36

Personnel

• Amy Grant – lead vocals, background vocals (1, 5, 9, 10)
• Robbie Buchanan – Roland Jupiter 8 (1, 2, 5), acoustic piano (2, 3, 8), synthesizer (4), keyboards (6, 7), arrangements (6), Fender Rhodes (7, 9)
• Michael W. Smith – keyboards (1-5, 8, 9, 10), Yamaha GS-2 (1, 2, 3, 8), acoustic piano (4, 5, 9, 10)
• Alan Steinberger – additional synthesizers (1, 5, 6, 9), synthesizers (10)
• Shane Keister – additional synthesizers (2, 5, 8), synthesizer (3), organ (4)
• Gary Chapman – background vocals (1, 4, 5, 9), guitar (4), guitar solo (4)
• Jon Goin – electric guitar (1), "fly" guitar (1), guitar (2, 3, 4, 6-10)
• Dann Huff – guitar solo (1), guitar (9)
• Dean Parks – guitar (7)
• Mike Brignardello – bass guitar (1-4, 6-10)
• Andy Widders-Ellis – stick bass (3)
• Duncan Mullins – bass guitar (4)
• Paul Leim – drums (1-4, 6-9)
• Kenny Malone – drums (10)
• Lenny Castro – percussion (1, 7, 9)
• Farrell Morris – percussion (8, 10)
• Alan Moore – string arrangements (2, 8)
• Donna McElroy – background vocals (1, 2, 4, 5, 9)
• Kim Fleming – background vocals (1, 4, 5, 9)
• Gary Pigg – background vocals (2, 3)
• Debrorah Black – background vocals (3)
• Bill Champlin – background vocals (3)
• Tamara Champlin – background vocals (3)
• Carmen Twillie – background vocals (3)
• Marty McCall – background vocals (3)
• Leann Jones – background vocals (5)
• Curt Lyles – background vocals (5)
• Mark Mason – background vocals (5)
• Steve George – background vocals (6)
• Richard Page – background vocals (6)
• Thomas Cain – background vocals (6)
• Chris Harris – background vocals (7)
• Billy Sprague – background vocals (7)
• David Thornton – background vocals (7)
• Ron Downey – background vocals (10)

Production

• Brown Bannister – producer
• Michael Blanton – executive producer
• Dan Harrell – executive producer
• Gary Chapman – executive producer
• Jack Joseph Puig – audio engineer
• Jim Baird – additional engineer
• Kevin Burns – additional engineer
• Gene Eichelberger – additional engineer
• Steven Ford – additional engineer
• Jerry Mahler – additional engineer
• Daniel Garcia – additional engineer
• Dennis Hill – design
• Mike Borum – photography
• Aaron Rapoport – photography

Charts

Album - Billboard (North America)

Year	Chart	Position
1984	Top Contemporary Christian	1
1985	The Billboard 200	133

Singles - CCM Magazine (North America)

Year	Single	Chart	Position
1984	"Angels"	Christian Radio–Adult Contemporary	1
	"Thy Word"		4
	"Jehovah"		2
	"The Now And The Not Yet"		20

End of year charts

Year	Chart	Position
1984	U.S. Billboard Inspirational Albums	3
1985		1
1986		8

End-of-decade charts

Chart (1980-1989)	Rank
US Billboard Top Contemporary Christian	11

Certifications and sales

Region	Certification	Certified units/sales
Canada (Music Canada)	Gold	50,000^
United States (RIAA)	Gold	500,000^
^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

Accolades

GMA Dove Awards

Year	Winner	Category
1985	Straight Ahead	Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year

Grammy Awards

Year	Winner	Category
1985	"Angels"	Best Gospel Performance, Female