In 2001, Keith Getty and Stuart Townend wrote the song "In Christ Alone" with the purpose of creating a modern hymn that would explain the life of Christ.[1] They released it on the Kingsway album New Irish Hymns, featuring vocalists M ire Brennan, Margaret Becker, and Joanne Hogg. The song gained popularity, and by 2005 it was named by a BBC Songs of Praise survey as the 9th best loved hymn of all time in the UK. [2] It hit number one on the United Kingdom CCLI charts by 2006 and, in January 2009, it was still number one in the UK, number two in Australia, number seven in Canada, and number 15 in the United States.[3] The CCLI chart released for the February 2011 biannual copy activity report showed the song at number 11.[4] "In Christ Alone" has been covered by many other Christian recording artists.