Mark the second weekend of Advent with a Christmastide concert from southern California folk artist Bob Bennett.

Hear some of the artist's music:

About the Artist

If you tell Bob Bennett his songs don't sound much like Christian music, you're likely to invoke a smile. After all, Bob has always lurked outside the fringes of contemporary Christian music, crafting songs that detail not only his joys and victories, but also his disappointments, struggles and failures.

Bob's acoustic folk-style recordings have honestly confronted the messy side of human existence over the years. But those who have discovered his depth, wit, honesty and musicianship consider him to be one of Christian music's foremost songwriters. His classic tunes "Matters of the Heart," "Man of the Tombs," "A Song About Baseball," and others reveal a songwriting proficiency unmatched among his peers.

Bob was born in Downey, California, in 1955. He picked up his first guitar at age nine and formed a rock 'n' roll band in high school. In the late seventies he converted to Christianity and his songwriting began to reflect his newfound faith. His career was launched with the release of his 1979 folk-style debut recording First Things First. Three years later came Matters of the Heart, a recording Contemporary Christian Music Magazine voted 1982's "Album of the Year," ranking it among the top 20 contemporary Christian albums of all time. Soon after the release of his next recording, Non-Fiction, he served as opening act on Amy Grant's Unguarded tour. Lord of the Past: A Compilation followed, with its title song reaching number one on the Christian radio charts in early 1990, followed by his second number one song, "Yours Alone." Later that year Bob joined Michael Card on his The Way of Wisdom tour, performing in front of sold-out audiences across the country. Songs from Bright Avenue was released in 1991, a collection of songs he wrote while struggling with the dissolution of his marriage. The years that followed were a time of emotional healing, regrouping and moving forward with his life. Recently, Bob has found acceptance in the mainstream folk music scene, while performing in music clubs near his home in Southern California.