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Biography

Barry McGuire (born 15 October 1935) is an American singer-songwriter best known for his 1965 hit with the song "Eve of Destruction", and later as a pioneering singer and songwriter of Contemporary Christian Music. As a folk-rock solo singer in the 1960s, McGuire is best known for his hits "Eve of Destruction" and "Sins of the Family", both written by P.F. Sloan, as were his other chart successes, "Child of Our Times" and "Cloudy Summer Afternoon (Raindrops)." The latter two were co-written by...

Barry McGuire (born 15 October 1935) is an American singer-songwriter best known for his 1965 hit with the song "Eve of Destruction", and later as a pioneering singer and songwriter of Contemporary Christian Music.

As a folk-rock solo singer in the 1960s, McGuire is best known for his hits "Eve of Destruction" and "Sins of the Family", both written by P.F. Sloan, as were his other chart successes, "Child of Our Times" and "Cloudy Summer Afternoon (Raindrops)." The latter two were co-written by Steve Barri.

McGuire's LP, The Eve of Destruction reached its peak of #37 on the Billboard album chart during the week ending 1965 September 25. That same day the single of that name went to #1 on both charts. McGuire was never again to break into the top 40 of the Billboard Hot 100.

The album This Precious Time was released in 1966, his second with Dunhill Records. It includes a version of California Dreamin' with The Mamas and the Papas singing backing vocals.

McGuire appeared in the 1967 movie The President's Analyst with James Coburn and in Werewolves on Wheels in 1971. He also starred for a year in the Broadway musical Hair.

McGuire became a born-again Christian in 1971. In 1973, he joined the Myrrh label and released the album Seeds. This album is also notable for the backing vocals provided by the family trio that would become known as the 2nd Chapter of Acts. In 1974, McGuire released his second Contemporary Christian album Lighten Up, which included a remake of "Eve of Destruction". He toured with 2nd Chapter of Acts and "a band called David" and in 1975 this collaborative effort resulted in the live double album To the Bride.

In 1976, he left Myrrh, joining former Myrrh executive Billy Ray Hearn's new label Sparrow Records. He recorded seven albums on Sparrow, the best known of which is Cosmic Cowboy, released in 1978. That year he also released a top-selling children's album Bullfrogs and Butterflies for Sparrow's subsidiary label Birdwing. Read more on Last.fm. User-contributed text is available under the Creative Commons By-SA License; additional terms may apply.