Born in Gulfport, Mississippi on October 6, 1944, Mylon LeFevre was a popular Christian rock singer-songwriter and leader of the band Mylon and Broken Heart. The Gospel Music Hall of Fame inductee was born into the Southern gospel family The LeFevres and began singing and playing guitar with them at a young age and wrote his first song at the age of 17. That first song, “Without Him,” was heard by Elvis Presley, who recorded it for his 1967 album How Great Thou Art. After releasing his debut album, New Found Joy, (1964), Mylon LeFevre became a member of the Stamps Quartet from 1966 to 1968. After leaving the gospel singing group, he released his second solo album, Your Only Tomorrow (1968). The gospel / Christian music scene had issues with his long hair and sideburns, so he chose to bring his brand of Christian rock to the masses and released the album We Believe (1970) on Atlantic / Cotillion Records. Considered a pioneer in ‘Jesus Rock,’ Mylon LeFevre began to work with many mainstream artists including Billy Joel, Duane Allman, Eric Clapton, Elton John, Little Richard, The Who, and others. He collaborated with British guitarist Alvin Lee on the 1973 album On the Road to Freedom, which featured Ron Wood, Steve Winwood, Mick Fleetwood, and Jim Capaldi. However, the pressures and stress of the music industry led to drug use and Mylon LeFevre had a near-fatal heroin overdose in 1973. He checked himself into a drug treatment program and came out clean seven months later. He continued recording for the secular market but after attending a 2nd Chapter of Acts performance in 1980, he realized that the Christian music industry had changed in his absence. He left secular music and devoted his life to Christianity again. After forming several early bands, his new group became Mylon and Broken Heart in 1982. Over the next decade they released 10 successful albums and travelled all around the world. In 1987, Mylon and Broken Heart won a GMA Dove Award for their album Crack the Sky while also winning a Grammy Award for Best Gospel Performance by a Duo, Group, Choir, or Chorus. He also won a GMA Dove Award in 1989 for Rock Song of the Year (“Won by One”). After suffering a heart attack while on tour in 1989, he chose to disband Mylon and Broken Heart the following year. While he continued to release solo albums, Mylon LeFevre focused on preaching and teaching the gospel across the US. Several compilations were released during his career including the Mylon and Broken Heart collection Greatest Hits (1988) and The Definitive Collection (2007). Mylon LeFevre died of cancer on September 8, 2023, at the age of 78.
