John Willard Peterson (November 1, 1921 – September 20, 2006) was a
songwriter
A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music gen ...
who had a major influence on
evangelical
Evangelicalism (), also called evangelical Christianity or evangelical Protestantism, is a worldwide Interdenominationalism, interdenominational movement within Protestantism, Protestant Christianity that affirms the centrality of being "bor ...
Christian music
Christian music is music that has been written to express either personal or a communal belief regarding Christian life and faith. Common themes of Christian music include praise, worship, penitence, and lament, and its forms vary widely around ...
in the 1950s through the 1970s. He wrote over 1000 songs, and 35
cantatas
A cantata (; ; literally "sung", past participle feminine singular of the Italian verb ''cantare'', "to sing") is a vocal composition with an instrumental accompaniment, typically in several movements, often involving a choir.
The meaning of t ...
.
Biography
Born in
Lindsborg, Kansas
Lindsborg is a city in McPherson County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 3,776. Lindsborg is known for its large Swedish, other Nordic and Scandinavian Americans ( Nordic- Scandinavian), and German ...
, he served as an
Army Air Force
The United States Army Air Forces (USAAF or AAF) was the major land-based aerial warfare service component of the United States Army and ''de facto'' aerial warfare service branch of the United States during and immediately after World War II ...
pilot flying the ''
China Hump'' during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
. Later, he attended
Moody Bible Institute
Moody Bible Institute (MBI) is a private evangelical Christian Bible college founded in the Near North Side of Chicago, Illinois, US by evangelist and businessman Dwight Lyman Moody in 1886. Historically, MBI has maintained positions that have i ...
and served on the radio staff there for a number of years.
In 1953, he graduated from the
American Conservatory of Music
The American Conservatory of Music (ACM) was a major American school of music founded in Chicago in 1886 by John James Hattstaedt (1851–1931). The conservatory was incorporated as an Illinois non-profit corporation. It developed the Conservato ...
in Chicago and shortly thereafter settled in Pennsylvania to continue his songwriting career. He then moved to
Grand Rapids, Michigan
Grand Rapids is a city and county seat of Kent County, Michigan, Kent County in the U.S. state of Michigan. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the city had a population of 198,917 which ranks it as the List of municipalities in Mi ...
, where for over ten years he was President and Editor-in-Chief of Singspiration, a sacred music publishing company. While there, he compiled and edited the hymnal, ''Great Hymns of the Faith'' (1961), which included 47 of his compositions out of a total of 548. He also served on the board of
Gospel Films, Inc. of
Muskegon, Michigan
Muskegon ( ') is a city in Michigan. It is the county seat of Muskegon County. Muskegon is known for fishing, sailing regattas, pleasure boating, and as a commercial and cruise ship port. It is a popular vacation destination because of the expa ...
.
He also had direct contact with popular Christian musicians of the day such as
Bill Pearce and Dick Anthony. He resided in
Scottsdale, Arizona
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, image_seal = Seal of Scottsdale (Arizona).svg
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, nick ...
, where he continued to write music. Peterson died September 20, 2006, aged 84, following a bout with
prostate cancer
Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...
.
Some of his more popular song titles include "It Took a Miracle", "Over the Sunset Mountains", "Heaven Came Down", "So Send I You", "Springs of Living Water", "Jesus is Coming Again", "Surely Goodness and Mercy", "This is the day that the Lord hath made" and "O Glorious Love". His cantatas include ''Night of Miracles'' and ''Down From His Glory''. He also composed
the musical "Jesus is Coming", arranged by Don Wyrtzen.
In 1986, he was inducted into the
Gospel Music Hall of Fame
The Gospel Music Hall of Fame, created in 1972 by the Gospel Music Association, is a Hall of Fame dedicated exclusively to recognizing meaningful contributions by individuals and groups in all forms of gospel music.
Inductees
This is an incompl ...
.
References
External links
Official web site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Peterson, John W.
1921 births
2006 deaths
People from Lindsborg, Kansas
Songwriters from Kansas
United States Army Air Forces pilots of World War II
American evangelicals
Christian music songwriters
Musicians from Scottsdale, Arizona
Musicians from Grand Rapids, Michigan
Deaths from prostate cancer
Songwriters from Michigan
Songwriters from Arizona
20th-century American composers
Hymnal editors
Deaths from cancer in the United States