In 1984, at the age of 15, Lewis auditioned for a children's musical called Hi Tops, written and produced by Ernie and Debbie Retino, creators of Psalty, the Singing Song Book. Lewis passed the audition and was able to go into the studio and participate in the Soundtrack recording with the rest of the cast members. While working with the musical, Lewis met a member of the Rockabilly band, The Lifters. After becoming friends with the members of that band, Lewis was asked to join. Soon after, the band changed its name to Wild Blue Yonder. Lewis also met her current husband, Brian Ray, through her association with the band.
Wild Blue Yonder was together for two years and recorded a single full length album, produced by Daniel Amos frontman Terry Scott Taylor, for Frontline Records in 1986. She would also sing on D.A.'s album Fearful Symmetry in 1986, and Taylor's solo album A Briefing for the Ascent in 1987. After Wild Blue Yonder disbanded, Frontline offered Lewis a solo recording contract at the age of 17. Beyond the Charade, her first solo project, was released in 1987. Lewis went on to record two more albums for Frontline, Joy in 1988, and Let Love In in 1990, before starting her own record label, Metro One Music in 1992 with a distribution deal through Diamante Music Group.
For a brief time, Lewis starred in a Nickelodeon Television series called Roundhouse. Lewis left the show after one year.
Her next solo project, Remember, was recorded and released on Metro One label in 1992, followed by The Bride in 1993, and Hymns: My Life in 1995. The Bride was listed at # 97 in the 2001 book, CCM Presents: The 100 Greatest Albums in Christian Music. A greatest hits collection released that year landed Lewis in the # 1 spot on the Pop/Dance charts with her rendition of "Shine Jesus Shine." Beauty For Ashes was released in 1996, the first album from Metro One to be distributed through a new arrangement with Myrrh Records. Ashes was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, and the song "People Get Ready...Jesus Is Comin' " was the # 1 song of the year (1996) in Christian Radio. The album also won an ASCAP award for "Beauty For Ashes" as the most played song (1997). The album contained four # 1 radio singles: "People get ready...Jesus is Comin' ", "Beauty of the Cross", "God's been good to me", and "Beauty for Ashes."
Gold was released in 1998 and gave Lewis two # 1 hits, "Lord, I Believe in You" and "Not the Same". Gold was later re-issued that same year with a new recording of "Lean On Me" (lead vocals by Crystal Lewis), which originally appeared on Kirk Franklin's album The Nu Nation Project that included "Lean on Me" featuring Mary J. Blige, R.Kelly, Bono, Crystal Lewis and The Family. That same year, Crystal won Dove Awards for "Female Vocalist of the Year" and "Spanish Language Album of the Year" for La Belleza de la Cruz. Lewis also joined Franklin along with Gerald Levert, Mary J. Blige, and Bono on stage at the 1999 Grammy Awards for a performance of "Lean on Me."
Lewis returned to her Rockabilly roots briefly in 1999 with The Attack of the Screamin' Rays. The live project Live @ The Woodlands, recorded live in Houston, Texas on November 6, 1998, was also released that year. Crystal picked up two more Dove awards in 1999 for "Special Event Album" for her contribution to the project Exodus, and "Spanish Language Album" for Oro. In 2000, Lewis released Fearless, which was nominated for "Best Christian Pop Album of the Year" at the 2000 Grammy Awards. The song "Only Fools" from that album was voted song of the year by ASCAP. Her first Christmas album, Holiday! A Collection of Christmas Classics, went on to be voted the 5th Best Christmas album of all-time by CCM Magazine.
Crystal released her second greatest hits project More in 2001. A second live project, More Live, recorded at the Sun Theater in Anaheim, California on November 17, 2001, was released in 2002, along with another collection of hymns and gospel standards, Holy, Holy, Holy. See was released in 2005, and, the children's project, Joyful Noise was released in 2006.
GOD
Crystal Lewis Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Oh, God's always been good
God's been good to me
Oh, God's always been good
I don't always say the right things
Boy I try
I don't always live
But God is faithful to forgive me
When I fail or fall
I am unworthy of it all
Still He keeps on givin'
God's been good to me
Oh, God's always been good
God's been good to me
Oh, God's always been good
My God has given me
More than I ever dreamed
A precious family
And friends who care for me
Why should he love me so
Oh, that I'll never know
I am unworthy of it all
Still He keeps on givin' to me
God's been good to me
Oh, God's always been good
God's been good to me
Oh, God's always been good
It would take hours and days at a time
For me to sit down and write down
All the things
He's done
Let me say this that
Its nothing I've done
But its the grace
He gives freely to everyone
Tell everybody
Tell everybody 'bout it
Tell everybody
Everybody 'ought to know
Crystal Lewis's song God's Been Good To Me is a powerful testimony of gratitude for the unending goodness of God towards her. The first verse paints a picture of someone who is far from perfect, admitting that even though she falls short at times, God is always faithful to forgive her. She feels unworthy of His continuous blessings and generosity, but despite her imperfections, God has always been good to her.
In the second verse, Lewis acknowledges that God has given her more than she ever dreamed, including a loving family and caring friends. She questions why He loves her so much even when she's undeserving of His gifts. She testifies that the list of all the things God has done for her is so long that it would take hours and days to write it all down. She concludes that it's not because of anything she has done, but because of His grace that is freely given to everyone.
Overall, the song is a reminder that despite our flaws, God's love and goodness towards us never waver. Lewis encourages everyone to tell others about God's goodness and the many ways He has been good to us.
Line by Line Meaning
God's been good to me
I am grateful for how God has blessed me in my life
Oh, God's always been good
I acknowledge that God has always been good, even when I fail to recognize it
I don't always say the right things
I struggle with speaking the right words in certain situations
Boy I try
But I do my best to communicate in a positive way
I don't always live
I sometimes make poor choices
My life the right way
In these choices, I sometimes fail to live my life the way I know I should
But God is faithful to forgive me
I believe that God is forgiving, even when I make mistakes
When I fail or fall
In times when I struggle or make errors in judgement
I am unworthy of it all
I recognize that I don't deserve the good things in my life, particularly God's grace
Still He keeps on givin'
Despite my shortcomings, I believe that God continues to bless me
My God has given me
I am forever grateful for the blessings God has bestowed on me
More than I ever dreamed
God has exceeded my expectations of what I thought was possible for my life
A precious family
I value the love and support of my family
And friends who care for me
I cherish the friendships I have in my life
Why should he love me so
I humbly recognize that God's love for me is beyond what I could ever comprehend
Oh, that I'll never know
The depth of God's love for me is a mystery that I will never fully understand
It would take hours and days at a time
There are so many blessings in my life that it would be impossible to list them all
For me to sit down and write down
If I were to try and make a list of everything God has done for me, it would take a long time
All the things
The blessings, big and small, that I have experienced in my life
But its the grace
I believe that the blessings in my life come from God's grace
He gives freely to everyone
God's grace is available to all who seek it and it is given generously
Tell everybody
I want to share with others the blessings that I have received from God
Tell everybody 'bout it
I believe that the good news of God's love and grace is worth sharing with others
Everybody 'ought to know
I believe that everyone should be aware of and experience God's love and grace
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
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