Lenny Kravitz Loves Lovely Love

"This is the time/This is the vibe/Don't you want to get onto the ride?/... It's time for a love revolution." That proclamation ushers in Lenny Kravitz's eighth studio album, It Is Time for a Love Revolution. And any way you slice it, this album—as well as some of Lenny's attitudes—are retro, man.

First there's Kravitz's trademark sound, which recalls the defining moments of late '60s, early '70s rock. It's impossible not to hear strains of the Beatles here, Jimi Hendrix there, a bit o' Zeppelin, a bit o' James Brown and a dash of the Rolling Stones.

Then there's the fact the Mr. Kravitz has now been around long enough to be retro himself. It's a long way back to 1989, when his first album, Let Love Rule, debuted. More than a few musicians, not to mention a couple of genres (grunge and nu metal, anyone?) have come and gone since then.

I guess Kravitz figured it was high time to come full circle, returning to the '60s-esque theme of transforming love that marked his debut. He says of his latest effort, "It's like Let Love Rule on steroids. ... It's about beginning to love yourself and those around you."

He's not exaggerating. From start to finish, love—infused with big dollops of positive thinking and Jesus-centered faith (oddly marred by a couple of profanities)—is the star of the show.

A Southern Baptist Revival?
Here's where things get interesting. Many artists have, like Kravitz, identified love as the solution to our world's woes. What sets Mr. Kravitz apart is his conviction that it's God's love, not just fuzzy sentimentality, which leads to freedom. Echoing Scripture, he sings, "The truth will set you free, and you will find/That there is a love that won't let you down/... You are a child of the Most High."

Kravitz has never been the shy and retiring type when it comes to talking about God. The singer became a Christian at age 13 thanks to the witness of a friend. And since his earliest days, he's sung about Jesus. One of his first hits, "Are You Gonna Go My Way?" is written from the perspective of Jesus asking whom Lenny—and his fans—are going to follow. One of his tattoos proclaims, "My heart belongs to Jesus."

Shifting back to Love Revolution, Kravitz' bold, unambiguous allegiance to Christ is impossible to miss. His counsel to someone who's struggling on "A New Door" is to surrender to Christ: "Close your eyes and know that God is there/And if you reach out, He'll do the same/Just ask for what you need in Jesus' name."

Some supposedly faith-inspired bands are so ambiguous you're never sure whether they're singing about God or their girlfriends. Not Lenny. More than a few of his lyrics would be right at home at a Southern Baptist revival: "So drop your chains, and take up your cross/And let Jesus make your way/... You can change your evil ways."

Celibacy and the Rock Star
The fly in this spiritual ointment has often been Kravitz's parallel penchant for sensuality. He married Cosby Show star Lisa Bonet in 1987, but the pair split four years later amid rumors (which he denies) that the singer had been unfaithful and had perhaps had an affair with Madonna after co-writing "Justify My Love" with her. Since then, the list of women to whom he's been linked reads like a who's who of Hollywood hotties, including Penelope Cruz, Nicole Kidman, Kylie Minogue and Natalie Imbruglia.

Partner such rumors with steamy videos and Kravitz's sometimes sensually focused tracks, and you can see why some who've noticed his apparent Christian convictions have questioned just how deeply his faith really goes. On this album, for example, the song "Dancin' Til Dawn" finds him appreciatively glancing at a woman's backside at a club ("The way that she winds is truly divine/... She moves her behind/That only God could design").

But Kravitz has apparently begun to recognize this inconsistency as well. In a 2004 interview with Charlie Rose, he said he had embraced abstinence, a commitment that he reaffirmed in a recent Spin interview: "[I've been celibate] three years. [It's] a promise I made until I get married. Where I'm at in life, the women have got to come with something else, not just the body, but mind and spirit. [That] usually trips them out, but that's the way it's going to be; I'm looking at the big picture."

The catalyst for that commitment, he told another interviewer in Australia earlier this year, was a one-night stand that left him reassessing his approach to sexuality and faith. "What is this? What am I doing?" he remembers asking himself after waking up in bed next to an anonymous woman three years ago. In that moment, the singer vowed to change. "It was just a sincere moment when I was like, 'God, please take this away from me. Please, I want to stop now."

It's a pledge he says has gotten easier with time. "I'm three years in, and it just kind of becomes what it is. It frees you from a lot of things, and it also takes a lot of power away from people who are trying to seduce you. It's an interesting journey. Ultimately, I'm trying to do the right thing, to honor myself and the other person and honor God."

More Love, Less Stuff
The other prominent element of Lenny's Love Revolution is its critique of materialism. "Love, Love, Love," the album's first single, reads like a systematic rejection of what celebrities often value. Among the many things Kravitz says he could do without are stocks, cars, diamond jewelry and personal trainers. He also rejects alcohol, tobacco and drugs. Love, the chorus proclaims, is all he needs: "There ain't nothing you can give me, I'm already there/... I got love, love, love."

That attitude is something he inherited from his mother's family. "My grandfather came from a small island in the Bahamas with no electricity. I grew up with people who struggled, but they kept an amazing attitude. They taught me that through love and positivity, I could achieve anything. ... You can't let [earthly comforts] define you. And for me, I don't need anything except love."

The key word there is love, not sex. And since it seems Lenny Kravitz is on the path toward understanding that, I can't wait to see what the next few years and albums will reveal. Hopefully, he'll continue to let (true) love rule, which should further revolutionize the way he looks at his relationships—both with the people who surround him and with his many fans through his music.