Personal tributes are pouring in for Chuck Girard, a pioneering voice of the 1970s Jesus Movement whose music shaped contemporary Christian worship, as friends and family prepare to celebrate his life on Aug. 26 in Franklin, Tennessee. Girard, known for his songs “Sometimes Alleluia” and “Rock ’N’ Roll Preacher” and for co-founding the band LoveSong featured in the film Jesus Revolution, died Aug. 11 after a battle with cancer. He was 81.
Girard passed away at home at 11:15 a.m. after being diagnosed with stage four cancer last fall. He had undergone chemotherapy and later received hospice care.
On Facebook the same day, his wife, Karen Girard, informed friends and supporters of his passing.
“This is Chuck’s wife, Karen. It is with great sorrow, yet also great joy, to let you know that Chuck has moved to Heaven and will be eternally with Jesus! He left this earth at rest and in total peace, surrounded by family.
“We praise the Lord for His great mercy and for His gift of Chuck’s music, message, and heart. ‘To be absent from the body is to be present with the Lord.’
“We’re grateful for Jesus who paid the price for all who receive Him. Thank you to all of you who have prayed for Chuck and held us in prayer.”
On Aug. 7, his daughter Cherie had shared on Facebook that her father was in the “final stages of his battle with cancer” and asked for prayers for the family.
“Chuck had hoped to share some parting words with you all, but he’s too weak right now,” she wrote. “I know he would want you to know that serving the Lord, and each of you, through his music has been the greatest honor of his life.
“Thank you for the continued love, support, and prayers. It means the world.”
Another daughter, apologist and author Alisa Childers, released a 45-minute YouTube tribute titled A Tribute to My Dad, Chuck Girard 1943-2025, encouraging viewers to place their trust in Jesus Christ, as her father would have wanted.
Recalling her own struggles with faith, Childers said her father “was amazing” in helping her.
“He was so not rattled by any of the things I was bringing up. And I just saw the reality of a real Christian life with my dad. And I’m so thankful he was my dad.”
She also reflected on how Girard became an “unintentional” contemporary worship leader when he and other former hippies began sharing their music with the world in a career that spanned five decades.
Born in Los Angeles and raised in California, Girard experienced hardship early on, losing his father to a drug overdose at age five and being raised by his grandfather. He left home at 16 and pursued work as a session singer in Los Angeles, collaborating with members of The Beach Boys, Gary Usher and Keith Green before Green’s conversion to Christianity.
“His life was so interesting and so amazing,” Childers said, “even before he became a Christian through the ministry of Chuck Smith at Calvary Chapel in Costa Mesa, California.”
In archival testimony from the early 1970s, Girard described how his search for God began with drugs and the counterculture, following spiritual influences such as The Beatles and experimenting with eastern philosophies.
After living off the land in Hawaii, Girard said he realized that his spiritual hunger remained unsatisfied. “I found this vacuum in my heart that wasn’t satisfied. And I realized that I wasn’t doing any man any good sitting on a rock over in Hawaii.”
Returning to California, he eventually attended Calvary Chapel, where he heard Pastor Chuck Smith deliver the gospel message.
“I was into LSD and drugs and marijuana and I just heard, ‘Jesus died on the cross to save you because no man can make it because we’re all just really rotten inside.’ His grace and His love is just so abundant. And that’s the answer to the world’s problems and there is no other answer.”
After his conversion, Girard dedicated his music to Christ alongside fellow members of LoveSong. “We found the Lord the same time and we just decided that we would start giving our talents to him and the Lord started giving us tunes,” he once said.
A celebration of Girard’s life will be held Aug. 26 at 2 p.m. at The Gate Church, 4040 Murfreesboro Road, in Franklin, Tennessee. A memorial service is also planned in Southern California in September, with a date to be confirmed. A livestream will be available.
“Thank you everyone for your outpouring of love and support,” Karen Girard said. “All of your memories and stories have meant so much to us.”
