How We Got the Name

Believe it or not, we were originally called “The Brethren.” Yep, for real. The name was more or less assigned to us by the small production company that brought us together (more about them in this post).

The name sounded like an aging, old school gospel group. Definitely not something we connected with, definitely not a name befitting a Christian rock band. Then there was the fact that few people in the early ’70s could figure out what a Christian rock band was exactly. People think of music in genres, and Christian rock bands scarcely existed at the time.

Needless to say, we set out to change our name. That decision led to the first, and perhaps only, market research conducted in GLAD history.

Each band member submitted a name, and we took the list to a mall and stopped people to ask which one they liked. The names were “Brass Feet,” “Metanoia,” “Mountain Faith,” “GLAD” and “The Brethren.” I am sure the sample size of our highly scientific poll was way too small, but “Mountain Faith” won. We thought that would become our name, but providentially, our first record company, “Olde Towne” didn’t like the name. When we recorded our first single, the records showed up with “GLAD” on the label. Since it was the one and only product we had created up to that point, GLAD stuck and became our official name.

Bob Kauflin was the one who had submitted “GLAD.” He related it to the joy that is every believer’s through knowing Christ Jesus. Joy in the Lord would become a significant theme of our music. I can’t speak for the experience of other bands, but for me, the name GLAD became part of the woodwork. At some point the band’s identity became inseparable from it even though it was not our first choice early on.