This blog, in two separate entries, has already featured two musical groups — Black Oak Arkansas and the Dan Blocker Singers — that relocated to the Ozarks to start their own community, whether it be called a “commune” or something else.
Another act worth mentioning is John Michael Talbot, who, along with his brother Terry, was in the late 1960s country rock band, Mason Proffit. The band, which sang socially conscious lyrics (such as the one above), has been hailed by music critics as one of the best country rock bands to never hit it big.
Talbot’s biography is that of many musicians from his era. After a while in the music business, he became disillusioned with the rock ‘n’ roll lifestyle and in search of something more meaningful. His spiritual journey led him to Catholicism and monasticism. While in Mason Proffit, Talbot, who was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, bought land near Eureka Springs where, several years later, he founded a monastic community named The Brothers and Sisters of Charity at Little Portion Hermitage/Monastery, listed on his website as “an ‘integrated monastic community’ with celibate brothers and sisters, singles, and families.” The community is still going strong today and offers retreats for those wishing to explore monasticism.
He continues to sing and perform, this time Christian music — and successfully, as well. Several of his albums have made the Billboard’s Top Contemporary Christian album charts and won awards.
Here Talbot talks about both his spiritual journey and his music in this interview:
And, lastly, here’s a recent song by Talbot:
Echoes of the Ozarks 