Acappella Vocal Band (AVB) was a vocal group put together by Keith Lancaster in 1986 to augment the vocal group Acappella. AVB's popularity and ministry quickly grew, prompting Lancaster to launch AVB as a full-time touring group in 1988. AVB went through various lineup and stylistic changes before disbanding in 2000.

In addition to their early duties as Acappella's opening act and augmentation group, AVB performed and recorded as an independent ensemble. Many of their recordings, which included Give Me Light (1987) and Steppin' On A Cloud (1988), were later re-released on a CD titled The Early Years. In June 1988, with Acappella's expansion to a quartet, AVB branched off to tour on their own under the auspices of Acappella Ministries. Both groups underwent a shift in musical style during this period. Whereas previously, they had covered traditional hymns, praise songs and contemporary Christian pop music, both Acappella and AVB now recorded and performed primarily original music, much of which was composed by Lancaster. Acappella forged ahead with an adult contemporary sound while AVB targeted the youth market.

With Song In My Soul (1989), AVB made a major shift toward contemporary pop, rock and R&B sounds, though still entirely produced a cappella. On What's Your Tag Say?, the shift toward slick hip-hop and R&B was even greater, with a strong lyrical focus on the youth market and extensive choreography incorporated into their live performances. Former worship minister at First Street Church in Dumas, TX, and Altamesa Church of Christ in Fort Worth, TX.

  • John K. Green (d. November 3, 2020) Singer/songwriter/producer in Los Angeles, CA. John was diagnosed with cancer in 2016.

Discography

The labels are taken from the original releases; many of the albums have been re-released with new distributors.

  • Give Me Light (1987, Clifty Records)
  • Steppin' On A Cloud (1988, Clifty Records)
  • Song In My Soul (1989, Clifty Records)
  • A Savior Is Born! (1989, Clifty Records, with Acappella)
  • What's Your Tag Say? (1991, Word)
  • Celebrate And Party (1992, Word)
  • U And Me And God Make 5 (1993, Word)
  • Caminando en la Luz (1994, Word)
  • The Road (1995, The Acappella Company)
  • Way Of Life (1996, The Acappella Company)
  • Real (1999, The Acappella Company)
  • The Early Years (2002, The Acappella Company)

AVB also appeared on numerous other recording projects for the Acappella Company (Acappella Series, Acappella Praise and Worship, Acappella Scripture Songs, Keith Lancaster solo projects) and made three video projects: Song In My Soul (1989), Video Party (1993), and The Land of Five (1994).

References

  • AVB page on The Acappella Company's website
  • Acadisc.com - Christian acappella homepage with all AVB lyrics