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CD Review
Worship and Faith
Randy Travis
© 2003 Word Entertainment
Review by Jo van Leerdam
Worship & Faith is a collection of traditional hymns and spirituals, and
contemporary praise and worship songs that will appeal to a wide
audience. The album has an easy listening, acoustic country style which
complements these hymns and songs in a very satisfying manner. The
musicianship on this album is excellent, and as on every Randy Travis
album, his baritone vocals communicate the depth of meaning and emotion
in these songs beautifully. It’s not just a performance though – Travis
is a strong Christian whose faith and sincerity are evident throughout
this album.
These hymns and songs express faith, adoration and joy in knowing that our salvation comes from Jesus Christ. They range from the worshipful reverence of ‘How Great Thou Art’, ‘Blessed Assurance’ and ‘Above All’ to the celebration of ’You Are Worthy of My Praise’, ‘The Unclouded Day’ and ‘Love Lifted Me’, a joyful duet with Mac Powell (lead vocalist with Third Day). While this is not a vocal collaboration I would have expected, the result is amazing!
Some, particularly younger people, may ask “Why should I bother with a CD of hymns?” I believe hymns offer far more than just tradition or old fashioned words and tunes. My appreciation for the meaning and teaching of the hymns we sing has grown as I’ve gotten older and experienced both highs and lows in my journey through this life and my relationship with the Lord. I believe that most of the older members of our congregations appreciate the hymns more than the younger people, not because it’s what they’ve always sung, but because they have a greater appreciation of the substance of those songs.
The blend of older and newer songs is very pleasing. ‘You Are Worthy of my Praise’ and ‘Open the Eyes of My Heart’ are both songs from my Sonic Flood CD (“Sonic Praise”, 2001), but I haven’t heard them like this before. ‘Above All’ and ‘We Fall Down’ are other contemporary praise and worship selections on this album. Arranging these songs without drums and electric instruments and with the focus is on the lyrics and vocals will increase their appeal to older generations. Likewise, changing the context of the older hymns from a traditional style to a more contemporary setting will serve to make them more culturally relevant to the youth and middle generations than perhaps they might have been in the past.
I recommend this CD not only to those who love hymns, but also to anyone who is willing to have their concept of praise and worship music challenged and extended. Gaining a new perspective on something with which we are already quite familiar can be very refreshing and edifying, and I hope you find this album as enjoyable an experience as I found it to be.
The DVD called “Worship & Faith” by Randy Travis
features live performances of some songs from this album, and some songs
from “Rise and Shine”, Travis’ previous gospel album (reviewed in T&S,
April 2003). This could be a great gift idea for anyone who has enjoyed
either album.
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