It’s a close call but due to starting with them earlier in my musical journey than any other band, Dctalk takes the honor of being the most influential on my formative years during the 90s. With four albums releasing in the decade and three of the four maintaining classic status to this day, they have a strong albeit short(ish) catalogue. After combing back through their body of work I was surprised to see the high amount of cover songs (11) that they mixed in to their albums. In fact, if you don’t count the covers, skits, and spoken word pieces, their original output was a mere fifty-seven songs.

Further still some of those originals don’t hold up well and remain on the cringe-y side. I’m mostly talking about albums one and two…However, all that said, Dctalk packed a powerful and undeniable impact on the Christian music world and subsequently my life. Each of their last three albums could pass for greatest hits compilations. Ultimately, there are just…So. Many. Great. Songs.

After attempting to rank every skit, song, or spoken word ever recorded by the band I decided to trim it down to a much more difficult list of a Top 25. There had to be some hard cuts that pained me to make, but such is the job list-maker. It is of course self-inflicted angst, but I find it fun to toil over and finally put a stamp on. So—here’s my reworked, and with some commentary on just the Top 10 Top 25 Songs of Dctalk. I’d love to hear your thoughts if you were/are a fan of the supergroup that ruled my favorite decade of Christian music so join the conversation in the comments and share your top 10 or 25!

25. “Atmosphere (Remix Feat. Dctalk)” – Tobymac Album Welcome To Diverse City (2004)

24. “Its Killing Me” – Supernatural (1998)

23. “Colored People” – Jesus Freak (1995)

22. “Lean On Me” – Free at Last (1992)

21. “Red Letters” – Supernatural (1998)

20. “Since I Met You” – Supernatural (1998)

19. “Free At Last” – Free at Last (1992)

18. “Day By Day” – Jesus Freak (1995)

17. “Mind’s Eye” – Jesus Freak (1995)

16. “Socially Acceptable” – Free at Last (1992)

15. “Jesus Is Just Alright” – Free at Last (1992)

14. “So Help Me God” – Jesus Freak (1995)

13. “Time Is…” – Free at Last (1992)

12. “Just Between You And Me” – Jesus Freak (1995)

11. “Say The Words” – Free at Last (1992)

10. “Consume Me” – Supernatural (1998)

What a killer hook. Kevin shines supernova being hot on the vocals of this great love ballad. Should have been huge on mainstream radio.

9. “Dive” – Supernatural (1998)

I’m almost certain it’s Michael wailing the high notes in the background, and it’s awesome. I like the use of Kevin’s lower register in this one as well.

8. “In The Light” – Jesus Freak (1995)

They didn’t write it, that would have been Charlie Peacock, but they took it to greater places. Great song, dctalk’s version is THE version.

7. “What Have We Become?” – Jesus Freak (1995)

Placed at number seven because it’s literally a perfect song and seven is the number of perfection. Much like the Newsboys “Lost the Plot” this one stands up to the time test super well and is as apropos as ever to our modern times.

6. “Luv Is A Verb” – Free at Last (1992)

Can I still sing this word for word? Why yes I can. Somewhat a nostalgic pick, I still love this one enough to play it regularly. My six year old requests the “Down with the Dctalk song” often to my great delight. Great mixture of rock and rap.

5. “My Will” – Exodus: Various Artists (1998)

A non-album song in the top 5?! When it’s this good, then yes. Released on worship compilation Exodus that Michael W. Smith compiled, this might be the best song on that album, though Sixpence None The Richer, Jars of Clay, and Crystal Lewis may raise an eyebrow at the assertion. Either way, it’s a cool look at a worship direction Dctalk could have gone post 2001 if they’d stayed together.

4. “Jesus Freak” – Jesus Freak (1995)

As only a fan of pop music (MWS, Amy Grant, SCC) to this point this song was an unexpected, albeit awesome jolt to my system. I Couldn’t get enough! It’s one of only a few songs (“Shine” by Newsboys “Big House” by Audio A and “Flood” by Jars of Clay being the others) I ever remember taping off the radio so I could listen again, and again. Some would cal it their best—to which I understand though disagree. Certainly their most iconic though.

3. “The Hardway” – Free at Last (1992)

Kevin’s vocals shine on groovy mid-tempo tune. Sounds a bit dated, but a terrific song nonetheless. Music video is terrific as well.

2. “My Friend (So Long)” – Supernatural (1998)

I almost chose this as my number one, and it was close. Love this song! They say it was purely hypothetical but I always thought it was about Kevin. Turns out now nearly 20 years later I think it’s about Toby.

1. “What If I Stumble” – Jesus Freak (1995)

This is hands down the best song of their entire discography and I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise! Okay, maybe not fisticuffs but perhaps a good verbal sparring. There’s a palpable concern dripping from these lyrics. It’s earnest, honest, and perfect.

There you have it! What do you think? How would you rank their top 10 songs? Top 25? I’d love to hear from you! Like the post if you liked it, leave a comment where you agree/disagree, or share it with a fellow dc Talk fan if you wanted foster conversation about the 90s best super group!

As always…Happy listening!

Other Posts you might enjoy: What If Dctalk Never Went Solo? A Hypothetical 6th Album, Dctalk’s “Free at Last” Is 25!, Tobymac: Momentum Turns 20, Ranking Dctalk: Discography Edition