Luke Hellebronth “Stand Up” Album Review

Luke Hellebronth “Stand Up” Album Review

The veil is finally torn asunder.  No longer is worship music the church’s best kept secrets where only church goers get to enjoy.  Blasting out of the speakers of cinemas across the world will be Luke Hellebroth’s “Spirit Break Out.”  This Hellebronth, Tim Hughes, Ben Bryant and Myles Dhillon worship anthem will be one of the feature songs on the soundtrack of the forthcoming blockbuster movie to be “Noah.” Hellebronth is not stranger in setting new trends and eradicating domestic scaffolds.  Hailing from London, England, where Hellebronth serves as co-leader of Worship Central, many of his songs have had made it across the Pond.  “Stand Up,” which is essentially Hellebronth’s debut album for Integrity Music, finds him working with fellow Worship Central leader Ben Cantelon with the album executively produced by Tim Hughes and C. Ryan Dunham.  The album contains 9 songs with live recordings of 2 of Worship Central’s favorites with the rest finding Hellebronth sharing the pen with notables such as Aaron Keyes, Tim Hughes, Nick Herbert and the aforementioned Cantelon.

“Stand Up” bears all the imprints of what a good opening worship song ought to be.  The atmospheric ambiance creates in us an urgency to meet with God that is heightened by the song’s strident guitar.  By the time Hellebronth gets to the chorus we are already in an hypnotic gaze dwelling richly in God’s presence as we sing with him: “Stand up, everybody stand up/Come on lift your eyes up, see the King/Our God, such a mighty fortress/You are with us, for us, Jesus our King.” “Love Like This” is where Matt Redman’s piano chops and Hillsong’s “woo-oah” converge into a modern Brit pop worship ballad that celebrates God’s great love for us.  Lyrically, “Awesome is He” is a Biblically-rich treasured trove that not only unpacks the infallible nature of God’s word but the song trumps in terms of its plethora of images used to illustrate the power of God’s word.  In a genre that is so often devoid of poetical depth and littered with overwrought clichés, “Awesome is He” is a breadth of fresh air.

In the context of corporate worship, not everyone may come with an exuberant delight to praise Jesus.  Often worship leaders forget that there are some in the congregation who have had to drag their heavy plaintive hearts to church.  Yet, without any pastoral sensitivity we just bulldoze over such brokenness with screeching guitars and incessant propulsive songs. “Miracle of Grace,” actually gives expression for the broken to approach our King with grace and mercy.  Long time fans of Worship Central would have recognized “Ready for You;” Hellebronth’s cover doesn’t deviate much from the original template that makes one wonder if it would be better serve on an already short album of only 9 songs to have another new composition.  The same can be said about the two live Worship Central re-cuts stuck to the end of the record “Our Generation” and “Now is the Time for Us.”

The album’s highlight is definitely “Spirit Break Out.”  Like a little movie that slowly reels, “Spirit Break Out” starts off with a distorted guitar intro before layer upon layer of sound is hewed one upon each other until you get an explosive outcry for God to break out in the spirit of revival. Though the song runs for over 7 minutes, the song just brims with some much anointing that you are just lost in the awe of the moment.  In fact the song is so powerful that Jesus Culture had also recorded their own version of it.  And given the right promotion and the divine push of God’s Spirit, this song is destined to bring a resurgence of worship back into our society.  “Stand Up,” by God’s providence, will then be a record that lives up to its titular as more and more Jesus followers stand up to proclaim that our King reigns.

Aaron and Amanda Crabb “Mercy” Album Review

Aaron and Amanda Crabb “Mercy” Album Review

No seminary or Bible College prepares us to minister with more pastoral sensitivity than the school of hard knocks.  Suffering offers us a first-class tutelage that affects us beyond the cognitive.  By God’s mercy, sufferings can often soften us to be more malleable towards God and His Word; as a result, our entire being changes.  We begin to exude affectibility towards God and hurting that is more compassionate, loving and contagious.  This is the impression one gets when listening to Aaron and Amanda Crabb’s “Mercy.”  The Crabbs themselves have seen their own share of sufferings.  On the night of the 2009 Dove Awards, while Aaron and Amana Crabb were driving to the show, Amanda received a shocker of a call from their nanny.  Their 2 year-old daughter Eva had just fallen off a 15-feet high two storey window; she had landed on an air-conditioned unit below covered entirely in blood. When fellow artist and friend Donnie McClurkin received the news, in the middle of the Dove Awards, he even paused to pray for Eva and the Crabb Family.

After a tumultuous time of having to witness their two year-old screaming in a bloody mess, Aaron and Amanda had to hold on to Eva so that a proper CT scan could be administered.  By God’s grace, Eva not only did not suffer any broken bones or internal injuries, she looked like she was just scarped herself falling on the sidewalk.  Yet, the experience was monumental in the spiritual formation of the couple’s lives.  And such an added heft of spiritual gravitas is heard right through these songs especially the album opener “If I’m Guilty.”  Setting the theme of the record “If I’m Guilty” is a propulsive country-flavored toe-tapper that finds Aaron basking in God’s unending mercy.  Mercy empties its emotional quotient on Jeff Ferguson and Reggie Stone’s “God Loves the Broken.”  The crackles in Amanda’s falsetto pack so much punch that we can’t help but fight back our tears as she wrestles with us in our desperation for God.

“Guide Me,” one of 6 songs written or co-written by the Crabb couple, is a gorgeous piano cum strings ballad that has both the vintage charm of a hymn and the contemporary nuances of a power ballad. Being worship leaders at John Hagee’s San Antonia’s Cornerstone Church, the Crabb allow us to see them in action with the worship anthem “Holy.”  Though “Holy” is not really earth shattering, it’s good to see them stepping out of their bounds to tackle something different.   But remember to schlep an umbrella when the Crabbs step into the shoes of the prophet Elijah in calling for rain in the midst of a drought on the Gospel infused “It’s Gonna Rain.” This is indeed a mountain-moving song at its best.  Never parochial, producers Ben Isaacs and Aaron Crabb have even serviced “I’m Learning,” a paean to self improvement and betterment, to contemporary country radio.

Inspired by their trip to Israel where after Amanda prayed for inspiration at the Western Wall, “Take Him to the Place” was born.  Never relegating the Cross and the resurrection of Jesus as a mere event in history, “Take Him to the Place” is a beautiful illustration of how Christ can still transform the dead things in our lives back to life.   “Mercy” in many ways is like Aaron and Amanda Crabb’s own diary set to music.  In the light of what they had been through over the last few years, you can hear their struggles, their season of drought and their own frustrations.  But on this record, you will also witness how they have overcome with God’s mercy, God’s provision of rain and how through the resurrection of Christ brings dead things back to life.

Collin Raye “Still on the Line: The Songs of Glen Campbell” Album Review

Collin Raye “Still on the Line: The Songs of Glen Campbell” Album Review

Someone once asked Glen Campbell if he had the ears to spot a potential hit.  Unabashedly, the Rhinestone Cowboy responds with a twinkle, “I can not only ‘hear’ a hit song but I can ‘feel’ one.”  Regardless of whether this anecdote is an urban legend or not, Campbell certainly not only has an intuition of blessing us with a treasury of hits, but many of his songs have enriched us with a musical vocabulary in articulating our feelings.  Since 1962 when he first debut on the Bilboard Country Singles chart with “Kentucky Means Paradise” to his last country charted song in 1993 with “Somebody Like That,” Campbell holds 5 no.1 hits, 81 charted singles and 9 no.1 albums.  More importantly, Campbell is also a visionary:  never one to be domesticated by his own success, Campbell always has an eye for burgeoning talents.  It was Campbell who first gave the then unknown Alan Jackson a chance when Campbell was first approached by Jackson’s wife who was a flight attendant on one of Campbell’s flights.  Also, Campbell has often been credited for being influential to Keith Urban’s career.  Now we have Collin Raye, another receipt of Campbell’s graces, paying his tribute via this newly released “Still on the Line: The Songs of Glen Campbell.”

Though Collin Raye may not have the growling lower registers of Campbell, but his high tenor has always been reminisce of Campbell.  Like his mentor, Raye has never been afraid of coloring outside the straight confines of country music.  In fact, Raye has made a career out of his neo-country cosmopolitan balladry with hits like “Love, Me,” “In This Life,”  “Not that Different” and “I Can Still Feel You.”  Though Raye is no longer one of the headliners of country music as he once was in the 90s, he has never stopped churning out solid records.  After a short detour in into Contemporary Christian Music with 2011’s“His Love Remains,” Raye is now back with his first country record since 2009.  “Still on the Line: The Songs of Glen Campbell” is as self-explanatory as the titular:  this is an album of 12 Glen Campbell songs re-recorded by Raye.  With a prodigious catalog that stretches over 5 decades, Raye certainly has a buffet of songs to choose from.  Nevertheless, Raye has chosen the safe (albeit somehow disappointing) route in tackling most of Campbell’s biggest hits; at least, most of these songs should be familiar with the casual Campbell fan.

“Gentle on My Mind” is arguably Campbell’s career saver.  In a time when Capitol Records was about to let Campbell slip away from their roster in the late 60s, Campbell laid down his golden cut with “Gentle on My Mind.”  Though this John Hartford composition only peaked at no. 30, it won Campbell two Grammys.  Instead of slavishly Xeroxing Campbell’s original Raye (with some help from Ricky Skaggs) delivers “Gentle on My Mind” as a bluegrass extravaganza quipped with some superb rustic banjo and mandolin lines.  “By the Time I Get to Phoenix,” on the other hand, is arguably Campbell’s first major hit when it peaked at no.2 on the Country Singles chart.  Here Raye keeps the plaintive 60s sounding strings that accompanied the original that is the perfect package for the song’s heartbreaking lyrics.  This is the first of many Jimmy Webb songs Campbell would cover throughout his career.  And this includes Campbell’s signature hit “Wichita Lineman.”  When Rolling Stones voted “Wichita Lineman” as one of their “500 Greatest Songs of all Time,” they aren’t exaggerating.  Loneliness has never had such a personal treatment as this song ever does; “Wichita Lineman” is indeed a national treasure.

Despite its title, “Rhinestone Cowboy” is arguably Campbell’s biggest pop hit to date.  It’s only one of two titles of his that ever topped thepop and country charts simultaneously.  Raye here teams up with 90s country peer Billy Dean on a rousing yet reverential treatment of “Rhinestone Cowboy.”  Campbell’s 1987 “The Hand that Rocks the Cradle” has to be one of Campbell’s most tender pieces as he glowing spells out the importance of maternity to a child’s growth and development.   Nevertheless, one would have wished a little more attention were paid to one or two of Campbell’s lesser known songs such as latter material including  “Unconditional Love” or “She’s Gone, Gone, Gone” or even his Gospel material.  Perhaps, this is also a way to entice us to eagerly anticipate a second volume…. 

 

Gloria Gaynor “We Will Survive” Album Review

Gloria Gaynor “We Will Survive” Album Review

We are a culture that thrives on action heroes.  We love to read, watch and hear about people who have conquered an impediment; our hearts are set aglow with pride when we ourselves have come out of the fiery furnace of suffering unscathed.  This is reality TV shows like “Survivor” have chartered unprecedented ratings; this is why Destiny Child’s “Survivor” and Reba McEntire’s “I’m a Survivor” have topped Billboard’s charts.  Deep in our hearts we wish Cinderella were more than just a fairy tale; we all want to be redeemed from our evil stepmothers and our mire of sufferings.  This is why after all these years Gloria Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” still strikes a chord in so many of us.  And though Gaynor’s “I Will Survive” is easily her biggest song in her career, it’s more than just notes and music to her.  As she has articulated in this CD’s accompanying book “I Will Survive,” this song has become her life’s mantra.  Before Gaynor had recorded her iconic song, she had just lost her mother.  Her recording career was slowing itching south when newer artists were already upstaging Gaynor.  And just when you thought nothing could get worse, Gaynor suffered a back injury that she had to appear to her recording sessions with a back brace.

This is when she recorded Freddie Perren and Dino Fekaris’ “I Will Survive.”  Not only did the song revive Gaynor’s fledging career, but it won her the first and only Grammy Award for Best Disco song. Now, the song has gone through so many permutations that it has been translated in over 20 languages.  However, not long after Gaynor recorded her career song, she became a devout Christian.  Over the years, she has often tweaked her song’s lyrics to reflect her Christian convictions:  "I will survive; He gave me life; I stand beside the Crucified One; I can go on; I will be strong; For my strength to live is not my own; I will survive!"  Later in her career, Gaynor would even go on to record more Christian oriented songs and albums.  And this includes her latest release “We Will Survive,” a brand new collection of 7 songs (plus a radio remix of “I Will Survive” tagged on as the album’s final cut). 

“We Will Survive” finds Gaynor teaming up with producers Bernie Herms (husband and producer of Natalie Grant), Mark Baron, Willie Wist, Jamie Siegel and DJ Shpank.  Unlike many of her peers who have adulterated their sounds by trying to sound like a seasoned Beyonce or Rihanna, Gaynor has stuck to what she does best.  These are solid and well crafted songs that lean heavily towards the Adult Contemporary Christian balladry with doses of Gospel and dance thrown in.  Yet threading through these songs is the theme of survival.  Like the dozy of the sounds of a flowing river, the majestic piano riffs of “You’re Right on Time” bring a sense of relief to the parched soul as Gaynor sings about how God often saves us from our pains always in the nick of time.  While the angular chord changes of “He Gave Me Life” slowly builds up to the song’s crescendo where Gaynor shows us she not loss an iota of her vocal prowess as she belts with declarative praise of Christ’s finished work on the Cross.

With “I’m Grateful,” Gaynor explores her Gospel roots.  The brass horns sound, the call and response of her ensemble of her backing vocalists, brings us back to church again as Gaynor leads us into a worship paean of thanksgiving to God for leading us through the tough times.  But God’s saving love is never individualistic; it translates to how we treat others too.  The Apostle John would have been proud of Gaynor and American Idol’s Melinda Doolittle’s “If I Love You” which translates God’s love into human actions as taught in 1 John 1.  “I Will Survive” is re-recorded again here under the auspices of producer Bernie Herms.  Still sounding as fresh as tomorrow’s news “I Will Survive’s” empowering message is still as relevant as it was when it was first released in 1979.  Yet, this time round, Gaynor brings in a more of a Godly perspective: ultimately, it is because of God we can survive through all our injustices, hurts and betrayals.  At the end of day, Cinderella is not just a fairy tale; Jesus Christ has come to redeemed us of all our evil stepmothers, sins and depravities of this world so that we can truly be survivors.

Crystal Lewis “Twenty Five” Album Review

Crystal Lewis “Twenty Five” Album Review

Few can get away with doing a couple of Whitney Houston covers unscathed by some of the most searing critical darts.  Yet, together with Angie Stone and Yolanda Adams, Lewis brought the house down at the 2012 Dove Awards with their soul-piercing renditions of Houston’s Gospel numbers such as “Hold On, Help is on the Way” and “I Love You Lord.”  Lewis is one of the few artists that could cross over genres with the ease of chameleon and yet proudly hold her ground majestically as a peacock.   Over the last 25 years, she is one of the few non-African Americans to rock the Gospel & R&B charts with her ensemble cast of R. Kelly, Kirk Franklin, Bono and Mary J Blige with the song “Lean on Me.”  She’s a rare breed to even top the dance charts with none other than the old worship staple “Shine Jesus Shine.”  Besides Amy Grant, Kim Hill and a few elites among Christian music, she was offered a contract by Interscope Records to cut a secular album to which she turned down.  Over her 25 years in the music enterprise, she has astonishingly amassed 13 major studio albums, 7 Spanish-language CDs, 4 compilation records, 2 Christmas efforts, 1 EP and 1 Remix project.

“Twenty Five” as the titular indicates is a retrospective journey; one that itineraries through some of the sonic landmarks of Lewis’ career.  For starters, there are no surprises in terms of new recordings, non-album cuts, special remixes, songs Lewis has had cut for her side projects, Spanish-language paeans, and there are no songs from her children’s CD whatsoever.  Rather, this is a strait jacket chronological sampling of most of Lewis’ studio albums starting from her debut “Beyond the Charade” to 2012’s “Plain and Simple.”  Most of her albums get represented with one or two cuts while we get a greater sampling of three to four songs from her career biggies (such as “Beauty for Ashes,” “Gold” and “Fearless”). “Precious Lord” not only is the first of the 25 songs on this proceeding, but it is also Lewis’ debut single that got her illustrious career rolling.  Here Lewis takes the hymn “Precious Lord” weaves it with her own thick Gospel growls and soars paving the way for many more hymns she would tackle later in her career. “Precious Lord” is also to be noted as one of the few songs not to be produced by Lewis’ hubby, Brian Ray.  Rather, it is produced by Rhett Lawrence who has produced Mariah Carey’s “Vision of Love,” Kelly Clarkson’s “Miss Independent” and the Black Eyed Peas (featuring Marcy Gray)’s “Request + Line.”  

1993 is a monumental temporal marker for Lewis.  “Bride,” released that year, finds her stepping out from being a mere vocalist to being an audacious worshipper of Jesus where she sings with a holy abandon on “My Redeemer Lives.”  This is going to be a trait that is going to give definition to later worship leaders such as Bethel Live’s Jenn Johnson and Jesus Culture’s Kim Walker-Smith. 1996’s “Beauty for Ashes” is deservedly her most successful records.  Thanks to Brian Ray, many of the songs here are so vivid and picturesque that they make the words of Scripture take a three dimensional form with the title cut “Beauty for Ashes” and “Lion and the Lamb.”  Nevertheless, the pride of place is “People Get Ready… Jesus is Coming.”  Imbued the desperation of the old African spirituals and the hippest R&B groove, “People Get Ready… Jesus is Coming” presses with an Apocalyptic urgency that transforms.   Lewis follows up her monstrous hit of an album “Beauty for Ashes” with “Gold.”  “Gold” features two back to back number 1 hits with the confessional anthem “Lord I Believe in You” and the testimonial beat ballad “Not the Same.” 

 

“Fearless” finds Lewis going on a limp again this time incorporating elements of electronic dance into her music with the irresistible “Trust Me” still standing the test of time.  Naysayers who say that Lewis’ career tapers off with the close of the 90s ought to listen to her 2002’s hymn collection “Holy, Holy, Holy.”  Resurrecting “His Eye is on the Sparrow,” a decade before Whitney Houston, Lewis’ version is soul stirring.  Criminally ignored often by fickle fans is her 2005’s “See.”  Containing some of her best tunes “Learn to Fly” has to be one of the best songs about faith.  Even her most recent “Plain and Simple,” represented by “All Day Long,” shows that Lewis has not mellowed with time.  Her genre transcending, no nonsense Jesus centered approach to many of her songs show us that when Christ is exalted people of all stripes and tastes will be enamored.  25 years represented by 25 songs at the price of one single disc, this is a treasured trove too good to be true.   

 

 

Shout Praises Kids Featuring Jared Anderson & New Life Worship Kids “We Belong to Jesus” Album Review

 

Shout Praises Kids Featuring Jared Anderson & New Life Worship Kids “We Belong to Jesus” Album Review

Before the tail lights recede into the darkness and the sound of goodbye fade into oblivion, there’s a serious call for churches to minister to the vanishing young people in our congregations.  Incrementally direr through the passing of time is the shrinkage of our numbers of teens and young adults in our churches.  Though some churches have rightly look at radical ways in revive youth programs, the nexus of the problem starts earlier.  Often teenagers leave because they did not receive a solid Gospel-grounded foundation while they were still in church.  Sunday School, for many such churches, is nothing more than sanctified babysitting where the songs and messages are nothing more than moralistic lessons without much engagement with Jesus and the Gospel.  This is where Integrity Music is of such a Godly resource to churches.  Not only is the worship-centered imprint committed to provide new expressions of congregational worship through their copious catalog, they are also committed to the next generation.  “Shout Praise Kids” is a series of CDs/DVDs designed to be used be used in churches and homes that provide opportunities for children to worship via songs that are fun, catchy and speak to these young hearts. 

“We Belong to Jesus” is the latest release to roll off this series.  This time they have engaged New Life Worship (with worship leader Jared Anderson taking the lead) and the kids from the Colorado Springs based New Life Church to front the worship.  Best known for housing the ever popular “The Desperation Bad,” the church is also known for originating some of the best-loved anthems sung across churches worldwide, including songs like “Overcome,” “Great I Am,” “I Am Free,” “Your Name,” “My Savior Lives” and many more.  And more recently, New Life Worship (also signed to Integrity Music) has just released one of their best worship oeuvre “Strong God.”  As for “We Belong to Jesus,” what Anderson has done is that he and his team have re-recorded 11 of their more popular songs imbued in a more simplistic format with the kids from the children being invited to sing with the team.

Pumping with sugar-infested adrenaline, “Counting on God” is a power house kicker that will get the most soporific kids wide awake praising God as soon as the case Anderson and his team calls upon us to praise God for his faithfulness.  Nothing draws a child attention quicker than an irresistible tune and this is the case with he hooky “Impossible Possible.”  You get bet the imaginations of kids lighting up with glee when they sing especially on the line of the song about crooked thieves: “Come all you crooked thieves /Cast your cares and believe/He is the water/The water that never runs dry.”  In a time where kids are often bombarded with the latest toys and video games, it is important to ground such young minds that it is truly Jesus and His Word that truly satisfies on “According to Your Word.”  Not only will children be singing along to some of the latest worship songs, they do get to learn a hymn too with the medley of “Just Give Me Jesus/’Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus.”

But not only is this a great album for the spiritual edification of kids, other than the kids’ backing, many of these songs are also for adults.   “Strong God,” the title cut from New Life Church’s latest release, is already becoming a worship anthem across numerous churches.  Nevertheless, this makes the skeptical among us question if the weightier themes (and language) of songs such as “Victorious God” and “Never Be Shaken” behoove the younger kids?  Would Jared Anderson and his team do better if they have actually written songs geared specifically for children rather than just trying to squeeze adult-songs into smaller minds? Nevertheless, if you do not want to see your teenagers leave the faith later in life, start now by soaking their ears, hearts and minds with worship that is contemporary, intelligent and cool. Encountering the Risen Christ through worship, not church programs, is what will ultimately stop the goodbye generation from leaving.

Doug Anderson “Drive” Album Review

Doug Anderson “Drive” Album Review

Often when we drive our focus is on the destination.  But when God takes the wheels, the journey is sometimes more important.  This is why he hardly arrives at the time as our GPS would predict.  Yet, he’s never late.  It’s through this long scenic tour we get to smell the roses we never even notice in our rush.  It’s through such trips we get to chat and appreciate him with such intimacy that we wouldn’t have cultivated if we were in the driver’s seat.   And it’s through such apparent tedium we get to meet people we would have overlooked if we had always put on foot on the accelerator.  Such are themes found in Doug Anderson’s sophomore solo release “Drive.”  As an exhibition of his centrality of the “driving” theme, the CD itself is poised with a picture of a speedometer.  And disc front depicts Anderson in a suave pose of sitting in a red convertible donning on some cool looking sun glasses.  Released under the ever reliable Stow Town Records (with Ernie Haase and Wayne Haun as the co-owners), “Drive” is a follow-up to Anderson’s hugely successful debut “Dreamin’ Wide Awake.”This predecessor record garnered for Anderson the highly coveted GMA Dove Awards “Country Album of the Year” in 2012 and the CD produced three Top 40 radio singles. 

Keeping all frills to a minimum, the ebullient title cut and lead single “Drive” has a steely-eyed focus of surrender invoking God to take the car keys of our lives.  Featuring some delightful Keith Urban-like banjo licks and a sunny melody that propels us into the wide open unknown with only God at the helm, faith has never been more gorgeously depicted.  On “Yes I Will” Anderson digs deep into his Southern roots for some old time Gospel with a choral call and response reinforcing the same trust in God as the title cut “Drive.”  Calling to mind the current sounds of Florida Georgia Line, “Love With Open Arms” correctly check marks all the right categories for a great radio single to be.  Given the right promotion, “Love With Open Arms” could even work on secular country radio as these are the songs country DJs would gulp.   “God Works” is a track that is difficult to get tired of.  It’s a powerhouse of a pop-country ballad that puts Isaiah 64:4 into music where God works on the behalf of those of us who rest in him.

Just as Anderson covered Billy Dean’s 1990 album cut “Only There for a Little While.”  This time around Anderson reaches even further back in time to resurrect Dolly Parton’s 1975 no. 2 hit “The Seeker.” Described by Parton as her “talk with Jesus,” “The Seeker” is a modern day pilgrim’s prayer for God in the midst of his pain and despair.  Here Anderson gives “The Seeker” a Southern Gospel-upgrade with the patented four part harmonized chorus.  More tete-a-tete intimacy comes with “Moment by Moment Grace,” a first class ballad where we find a pastoral sensitive Anderson offering us hope in Jesus when we feel like our world have caved in.  The emotional shadings of this track really make a home run for the heart.  Just as it is traditional these days for Southern Gospel albums to house a track on heaven, Anderson’s contribution this time is the piano-cum string laden “I’ll Be There with You.”  The soaring crescendo with its haunting coda leading to its explosive chorus truly makes this song as transcendent as the song’s subject matter.

“Drive” again raises the bar for Stow Town Records.  Exquisitely produced that stands toe-to-toe with the best of the major label outputs out there, “Drive” is aurally pleasing to the ears.  Nevertheless, the pride of place is still the thematic focus of these 11 songs.  With the windows rolled down, the wind in our hair, and Jesus at the driver’s seat, this CD is a ride of faith filled with uncertainties, surprises and joy.  Joy because the one who holds the steering never loses his grip.