Sister Janet Mead

Janet Mead (15 August 1937 – 26 January 2022) was an Australian religious sister who was best known for recording a pop-rock version of the Lord's Prayer. The surprise hit reached Number 3 on the Australian singles chart (Kent Music Report) in 1974 It sold over one and a half million copies and was awarded a gold disc by the RIAA on 8 April 1974. It was also certified gold in Australia.

Mead became the second woman to have a top 10 single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart whilst a religious sister, Jeanne-Paule Marie Deckers, also called "Sœur Sourire" and "the Singing Nun", had a Number 1 pop hit in 1963 with Dominique.

Mead taught music at St Aloysius College, Adelaide, where the music video for The Lord's Prayer was filmed. After recording, Mead continued to visit the school to teach the junior students basic music.

Life and career Mead was born in Adelaide, South Australia, in 1937. She formed a band, simply called the Rock Band, when she was 17 to provide music for the weekly Mass at her local church. She studied piano at the Adelaide Conservatorium before joining the Sisters of Mercy order and became a music teacher at two local Catholic schools. She began to explore the "Rock Mass" concept in the early 1970s, desiring to make the Mass more interesting and accessible for her students. This led to a successful series of Rock Masses which she held at St Francis Xavier's Cathedral, Adelaide. earning a gold record award for Mead and Martin Erdman. Mead donated her share of the royalties to charity while Festival Records used their portion of the proceeds to refit one of their studios. In October 2001, she directed the Romero Company's annual production at the Melbourne Trades Hall Auditorium, an inventive adaptation by Damien Mead of Victor Hugo's Les Misérables.

Death Janet Mead died from cancer in Adelaide on 26 January 2022, aged 84.

Discography Albums + List of albums, with Australian chart positions Title Album details Peak chartpositions AUS With You I Am Released: June 1974 Format: LP Label: Festival Records (L 35148) 34 A Rock Mass: But I Am Smaller Than My Song Released: 1975 Format: LP Label: Festival Records (L 35552) - Brand New World Released: 1983 Format: LP, Cassette Label: K-Tel (NA648) 46 A Time to Sing Released: 1999 Format: CD Label: du Monde -

Singles + List of singles, with Australian chart positions Year Title Peak chartpositions Certifications Album AUS CAN AC US 1973 "The Lord's Prayer" 3 3 1 4 AUS: Gold US: Gold With You I Am 1974 "The Earth Is Filled" - - - - "Take My Hand" - - - - "Hold On" / "Gloria" - - - - 1975 "I Will Raise Him Up" - - - - 1982 "The Lord Is My Shepherd" - - - -