Stan Moser: ‘We Will Stand’ book review

We Will Stand: The Real Story Behind the Songs, Artists & Executives that Built the Contemporary Christian Music Industry is the first-hand accounts of long-time Christian music executive Stan Moser, who through a 40-plus years-and-counting career, has been associated with notables Word Records, Myrrh Records, Maranatha!Music, Star Song Records, Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Sandi Patty, The Imperials, Evie and countless other influential brands, companies, and artists that have impacted Christian music.

Moser even predates the term “Contemporary Christian Music,” and is widely considered as one of the few early executives to bring the genre to the forefront. In We Will Stand, Moser lifts the veil on the behind-the-scenes of artists from the mid-to-late-seventies and early-eighties involved in shaping the direction and sound of our music through its evolution to today with staples Steven Curtis Chapman, Newsboys, BeBe and CeCe Winans, Petra, Point Of Grace, among many others. Any life-long fan of Christian music to the casual listener will find Moser’s anecdotes both interesting and revealing.

You truly get the sense that Moser’s work has been a life passionately devoted to contemporary Christian music—even to a fault. His humility in both acknowledging others in the industry whom, in his words, may have been smarter and more talented, in addition even apologizing to artists that he and fellow executives may have missed—or dissed—is welcome sincerity and quite endearing. Weaving throughout the book is the self-narrative of Moser’s personal walk with Jesus Christ, and how his journey with the Lord has directly connected with the music that has now reached millions worldwide.

If you are a history buff, sang in the church choir, purchased vinyl recordings, 8-tracks and cassette tapes, enjoy chronicles on underdogs and growth, or a business person looking for inspiration—We Will Stand is a must read. The book is the flagship for the live DVD and Compact Disc We Will Stand: The Music, The Memories, and The Life-Changing Message of Contemporary Christian Music from the proclaimed “greatest night in the history of Contemporary Music” filmed and recorded from Brentwood, TN in January 2015—also marking the launch of Moser’s CCMUnited benefitting the Gospel Music Trust Fund, Voice of the Martyrs, ShowHope, and more.