Brisbane, Australia’s Citipointe LIVE just released its 8th and latest live praise and worship album – Holy Ground. It has 12 tracks in a CD+DVD format, a great resource to any Christian specially to lead worshippers. It is already available in Australia and worldwide through iTunes and is set to release here in the Philippines on the 15th of July 2013.
It was recorded live at Citipointe Church by their key lead worshippers-- Aaron & Becky Lucas, Joel Ramsey, Chardon Lewis, Beau Lamshed and the Citipointe worship team. The majority of the songs were written by Aaron Lucas, Joel Ramsey and Collin Moore.
The album title was taken from the passages in the book of Leviticus 20:26 (The Message): “Live holy lives before me because I, GOD, am Holy. I have distinguished you from the nations to be my very own.” While the album art depicts the burning bush when YHWH spoken to Moses.
THE ABSOLUTE, words & music by Aaron Lucas, this song declares the Lordship of Jesus Christ; the absolute truth of His Kingship and endless power. It was led by Aaron Lucas, and it started and ended with a shout “All glory to You” (taken from the end of the chorus). It has resemblance to the worship anthem “Break the Silence” (also from Citipointe). “You’re the absolute King of endless worth… Awesome God of truth…”
UNSHAKEABLE, words & music by Aaron Lucas, this song proclaims the unshakeable hope found in Jesus for He is Elohim—The All-Powerful One. This energetic song was also led by Aaron Lucas. Christ alone is the Unshakeable and the Solid Rock on whom we can put our trust—a song of Faith. “The waters crash around but my feet will remain on Christ the solid rock…”
HOLY GROUND, words & music by Aaron Lucas, the title track of the album. This song is short in composition but intimate, which makes it an ultimate worship anthem. Its chorus is very powerful and will surely stir up your spirit as you shout the holiness of God. This song is easy to master and so congregational. As you sing this song, an atmosphere of worship will surely touch your heart as if you are Moses, back in the bible times—having an encounter with GOD in the burning bush. “I stand on holy ground, lifting a holy sound… Angels dancing all around…”
THE NINETY-NINE, words & music by Collin Moore, led by Becky Lucas, this song was taken from Matthew 18:12 (NIV), “What do you think if a man owns a hundred sheep, an one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one who wandered off?” It declares the love of God for humanity that he chose to leave the heavens above to save us—to find us who were lost. Our God is YHWH Rohi—the Lord our Shepherd. ”Merciful and Mighty, for love you left the ninety-nine.”
EMMANUEL—GOD WITH US, words & music by Chardon Lewis, led by Chardon Lewis, this song is an anthem of praise for our God who never leaves us. It is a broad declaration of faith—“whom shall I fear, for you are always near,” Chardon sang soulfully (as always) never forget Becky’s powerful second voice as the drum line beats. It’s my favorite track in the album, so powerful!
WE’VE COME ALIVE, words & music by Joel Ramsey/ Colin Moore; it proclaims the All-Sufficient GOD—YHWH El Shaddai. His faithfulness through the ages and His power to save is the message of the powerful chorus.
EL SHADDAI, words & music by Joel Ramsey, led by Becky Lucas, this song is another worship anthem for the God who saves, our only hope. Becky’s voice never fails us to give us very soulful and anointed songs that will surely push anyone to a moment of worship. “Jesus our hope El Shaddai there is no one like you!”
SURRENDER, words & music by Aaron Lucas, another song led by Becky. As the title conveys, this song is an anthem of surrender. Beautifully crafted, this song will surely put you at the foot of the cross to surrender everything.
HOLD ME NOW, words & music Beau Lamshed, it started with strums of guitar, this song coveys the Power of God who created us that resonates with Psalm 139:13 (NIV), “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.” I love how the song ends, a shout of “I am Yours!”
HEAVENLY LIGHT, words & music by Joel Ramsey/ Aaron Lucas; a Father to the fatherless; Eyes to the blind; Hope where all hope is gone, your name is Jesus Christ—A declaration of our need of Jesus for He is the only one who can complete us. You will surely love the part when the choir/ congregation sings as the guitar strums.
GLORIOUS, words & music Aaron by Lucas, Joel Ramsey & Collin Moore; It shouts the glory of our God who has conquered the grave because of his love. This song has an excellent guitar line; you are free to dance as you listen to it, what an energetic song indeed!
UNFAILING FATHER, words & music by Joel Ramsey & Collin Moore, an awesome song to end the album. Very congregational, it exalts our Unfailing God—the Alpha and Omega, the Beginning and the End, who was and is and is to come (Revelations 1:8 NIV). This song is prayer of the heart, giving and surrendering all authorities and dominion to our God, “Your kingdom come, your will be done… my forever King, Heaven’s royalty…”
I don’t know how to express my joy to listen and worship with this phenomenal album. It is an absolute declaration of worship to our Living, Powerful, All-Sufficient, Never Failing and Ever-Loving God. Every song in this album is beautifully written, spirit-breathed and so anointing! As soon as it reaches the music stands/ record bars in you place, I encourage you to get your own copy! It is very great resource indeed. Shalom! Emmanuel—God with us forevermore! J
Disclosure: A review copy of this album was provided by Citipointe LIVE. Special thanks to Ps. Mark & Leigh Ramsey and to Ms. Vanessa Johnson.
ABOUT CITIPOINTE LIVE:
Citipointe Live is worship team birthed from citpointe church Brisbane and Have a great passion for the local church. Devoted their church vision 'to unmistakably influence our world for good and for God', Citipointe Live travel internationally bringing changing worship and trainging to churches and conferences world wide
Citipointe Church (formerly Christian Outreach Centre Mansfield) is a Pentecostal Christian church founded in 1974. It is the founding church of the Christian Outreach Centremovement. The founding campus is located in the Brisbane suburb of Mansfield, in Australia. The church's senior pastors are Mark and Leigh Ramsey, who have held the position since September 2000.
Merry Christmas To You | Posted October-14-2013 Christmas is in the air! The most awaited season of the year has come! The happiest of days is finally here! As we enter the season with joy and excitement, Sidewalk Prophets greet us Merry Christmas to You, their latest Christmas worship album offering. Featuring 12 exciting songs, this album brings us back in time when Heaven was born into earth!
And there were in the same country shepherds abiding in the field, keeping watch over their flock by night. And, the angel of the Lord came upon them, and the glory of the Lord shone round about them; and they were sore afraid. And the angel said, fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people, for unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord—makes a very clever intro to the first song, What A Glorious Night. Its lyrical content is the perfect expression of the passages found in Luke 2:8-11; this song is so energetic, vocally and instrumentally brilliant. The hand-claps and bells at the background is so nice, a perfect song to open the album in great excitement& enthusiasm.White Christmas is sweet and jazzy, I love how the song started and France’s falsetto is beautifully done. Backing vocals is so clear& you can hear the bells that continue through the upbeat Give Me Christmas.You can picture out the joy brought by the season and the warm spirit of love. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas’ feeling and emotion is capturing; its musicianship is engaging. Piano-laced & lyrically amusing Hey Moon is so heartfelt, vocals are warm and expressive. Impressive is the shifting to a short verse of the anthem Silent Night.Its simple, honest and raw instrumentation is compelling; it creates an atmosphere of that silent night when Love came down.
Bells are here again to accompany the album title track Merry Christmas to You. It opens with acoustic guitar strums/hits; the song is jam-packed & well-accomplished. Bells are still here added with drumbeats inHolly Jolly Christmas, it resembles with other Christmas songs that has been the signature of its kind. The never fading atmosphere of the solemn What Child is This & Silent Night is very powerful and raw. Both have been Christmas favorites. The vocally distinctive & well-orchestrated The Spirit of Christmashas an awesome backing chorale to be commended, it sounds like a gospel song. My favorite track Hope Was Born That Night is a gorgeous song of praise and exaltation to our King. Everything in it is so perfect; the message of the song is simple & meaningful. It will leave you stunned with a grateful heart& feeling of excitement; while the lively Because It’s Christmas describes the Christmas atmosphere, I love how it ended with a Christmas tune. It reminds us to never forget the reason for the season—Jesus, our Savior. That is why He came to earth to bring peace, love, hope and salvation to all mankind; and those who will believe in Him will have an eternal life.
Closing thoughts:
This Christmas worship project has a very high level of musicianship, a no-ordinary album. People of all ages will surely love every song in this record. Everything in it is well made!
Rejoice in Christ the King! Merry Christmas to You!
ABOUT SIDEWALK PROPHETS
Their background may have made it look easy—after all, Sidewalk Prophets toured with Jeremy Camp and Audio Adrenaline on the strength of independent albums, then rode the popularity of their first Word Records release, These Simple Truths, to a Dove Award for Best New Artist and a nomination for Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year. "The Words I Would Say" hit #3, "You Can Have Me" went Top 20, a Christmas single, "Hope Was Born This Night," hit the Top 10, and "You Love Me Anyway" went all the way to #1 on the Billboard Christian Singles chart. The band has toured with the Rock and Worship Roadshow with MercyMe and Francesca Battistelli, among others, and landed another Dove nomination for Group of the Year in 2011.
LIVE AT TGC | Posted October-14-2013 Martin Luther said,” The gift of language combine with the gift of song was given to man that he should proclaim the Word of God through Music.” Inspired by these words, Keith & Kristyn Getty has a mission to develop a canon of new and theologically-rich hymns for the church worldwide. After the release of their four critically-acclaimed albums:In Christ Alone (2007),Awaken the Dawn(2009),Joy-An Irish Christmas(2011), andHymns for the Christian Life, here comes a new offering, and it’s the couples’ first live album, recorded live at The Gospel Coalition National Conference in Orlando.
This new record showcases 16 beautifully crafted song, one new, two traditional hymns and 13 songs they’ve written from the past years including: the energetic “Come People of the Risen King”, the stunning “In Christ Alone”, the prayerful “Speak, O Lord”, the uillean pipe-laced “O Church Arise” and the engaging “By Faith.”
Opening with the very energetic “Christ is Risen, He is Risen Indeed”, the enthusiastic uillean pipe that starts the song will motivate you to “Sing hallelujah!” Its rich instrumentation suits perfectly to Kristyn’s sweet and angelic voice. As you reach the chorus your heart will be stirred as you hear a collection of various voices, as if angels on high descended to join the chorus!
The newly arranged traditional hymn “All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name” is perfectly sang by Kristyn accompanied with hundreds of voice in a vibrant and rich musical hour. With their goal to produce theologically-rich hymns, they impose the spirit of unity based on Psalm 133 with “Oh How Good It is”, “Across The Lands”, and “O Church Arise”, Oh how good it is when the family of God dwells together in spirit, in faith and in unity!
Embracing their Irish roots, they offer the gorgeous “Lift High the Name of Jesus”, you can really feel the high participation of God’s people as they clap their hands with this new song from the Getty’s. The heartfelt reading of Isaiah 53:4-5 to intro the solemn “The Power of the Cross” will stir you up, continuing to the ethereal “When I Survey the Wondrous Cross” with an astounding communal singing. Perfectly made for quite time and moments of peace are the songs “Compassion Hymns”, “Kyrie Eleison”, “Holy Spirit Living Breath” and “Holy, Holy, Holy, Lord God Almighty”. Good to the spirit and relaxing to the soul. Returning with high level of energy, “In Christ Alone” exhorts the hope we found in Jesus, our Solid Rock, the outhor and perfector of our Faith; and as we run this race, it is awesome to be reminded by the anthem “By Faith”.
With all that was made and produced in this album, Getty’s mission is well reflected and manifested in this record. Not just “good” to listen, they bring us songs that are conformed to the scriptures. With their commitment to lead people to worship at the feet of our precious Jesus, their works are breaking denominational barriers, for God’s greater glory. Indeed, this album is another spirit-breathed and biblically sound, made to exalt Jesus’ name more than ever!
ABOUT THE ARTIST
Keith & Kristyn Getty Irish singer/songwriters and recording artists Keith & Kristyn Getty are among the preeminent modern hymn composers of this generation. Best known for “In Christ Alone” (penned by Keith Getty and Stuart Townend), the world-renowned hymn has been recorded by numerous artists over the past decade—including Owl City, Natalie Grant and Newsboys—and is a classic sung in churches around the globe.
Writers of an acclaimed repertoire of 21st century hymns revered both for their theologically astute lyrics and universally beloved melodies, the couple’s popular U.S. recordings include In Christ Alone, Awaken The Dawn and Joy – An Irish Christmas. Keith & Kristyn have shared their music at Franklin Graham crusades, the GMA Dove Awards, The Third Lausanne Conference on World Evangelization, as well as feature performances at London’s Royal Albert Hall and the legendary Grand Ole Opry, among many other noted platforms.
Rushing Waters | Posted October-14-2013 Any believer would agree that the most anticipated day of all Christians is the second coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. The day when all tears will be wiped away, every sorrow, pain, grieving and loss will be replaced with joy, love and pure peace; when everything will be made brand new, and everyone will just worship Him throughout eternity. Apostle John made a clear account and description of that coming day in the book of Revelation. On the 19thchapter, verse six, he declares: “Then I heard what sounded like a great multitude, like the roar of rushing waters and like loud peals of thunder, shouting: Hallelujah,for our Lord God Almighty reigns!” Inspired by these passages, the song Rushing Waters was born through the heart of Dustin Smith. Serving as the worship leader at World Revival Church in Kansas City, Missouri, this song has already made a very powerful impact across the world. The songs that are captured in this 14-cut latest live worship album from Smith are reflection of how will worship look like there in heaven.
Starting with the song Yahweh, its high level of musicianship gives an excitement to the entire song. It describes the power, greatness and the kingdom of God. The pre-chorus encourages us to open up the gates and prepare the way for our King (Psalm 24:7). Accompanied by electric guitar, the people’s participation is well manifested as they sing-out and clap, shouting out Yahweh! With more intensified energy, Let Justice Roll reflects the passages found in Amos 5:24, and as the song ends, Dustin prays in a loud voice a prayer for healing, hope and restoration.
Drum rolls that started the prayerful song Let Justice Roll are still present in Never Ending Flood. Dustin describes Jesus’ love, grace and mercy with the depth & waves of a never ending flood. Before the track ends, in an atmospheric moment, he loudly exhorted the Lordship of Jesus Christ in Philippians 2:10-11, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow and every tongue confess that Jesus is Lord to the glory of the Father—preparing for Jennifer Basler’s singing of the short & ethereal version of the classical hymn All Hail the Power of Jesus’ Name, a prelude to the overwhelming Lord of All. Both are exhortations of Christ’s Lordship.
Piano-laced To You Alone and Reign Over Me(co-written with Michael Farren) are perfect songs for devotional/ quiet moments, both are moving and heartwarming; a song of praise and exaltation, and a song of total surrender, respectively. Breathless declares the wonders of our perfect, matchless and indescribable God; it is well expressed by Basler’s strong and powerful voice. Co-written by Dustin and Dove Award winning songwriter Jennie Lee-Riddle, The One That Really Matters (Chaotic Love) is a worshipful ballad, the refrain is extremely powerful & soul-stirring.
With the atmospheric title track Rushing Waters and poetic Never Ending Flood, it’s noticeable in this album that there are some nature elements present to describe some songs. There’s the epic chorus Let ItRain composed & sung by Farren and Rain Down on Us, both are songs of thirst & hunger for God’s presence, perfect for soaking sessions. Fan the Flames is a prelude to You are the Fire which encourages us to ablaze for God—our consuming fire. Each of these songs is beautifully crafted and meaningful indeed.
I commend Dustin Smith’s passion for writing biblically-sound and theologically-rich songs. You can see his heart, not just to write “good”, “melodious” and “attractive”ones, but he wants to bring up pieces that will stir up people’s lives through their biblically founded meanings.Captured in this album is just a glimpse of what we’ll be doing for eternity. Empty your heart as you listen to this album and let God pour out His spirit likerushing waters! Shalom!
ABOUT DUSTIN SMITH
Dustin is an Integrity Music Artist, Song Writer and Worship leader, who has a desire to see the nations ignited with a passion for worship. With an unyielding love for God and His people, Dustin has been able to cross denominational lines with his music. He has an attitude that gives God all the glory, and that attitude transcends age, race, color and creed.
Dustin is a husband and father of three, who grew up in a Pastor’s home and has been in church his whole life. He has seen the joys and challenges of working and growing up in the church, but his dedication to seek the face of the God has caused him to rise as a voice to the nations that increases the value of God in other people’s eyes.
Integrity Music is a division of David C Cook, a leading nonprofit global resource provider serving the Church with life-transforming materials. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Integrity’s resources are distributed in more than 160 countries and sold worldwide. Originally founded as a direct-to-consumer music club in 1987, Integrity grew into one of Christian music’s biggest success stories and in the process helped ignite the widespread popularity of contemporary praise and worship music. Integrity Music’s roster includes: Lincoln Brewster, Paul Baloche, Rend Collective Experiment, All Sons & Daughters, Brothers McClurg, Daniel Bashta, Gateway Worship, New Life Worship, Christine D’Clario, ALM:uk, Planetshakers, Worship Central, Brian Doerksen and GRAMMY Award winners the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir and Israel Houghton.
Heart | Posted October-14-2013 Multiple-award winning Canadian Band The City Harmonic recently released their highly anticipated sophomore albumHeart. After the release of their debut albumI have a Dream (Feels Like Home), The City Harmonic became the subject of Christian forums, garnering numerous nominations including their recent fourGMA Canada Covenant Awards(happening Nov. 6 at Burlington, Ontario) as the Artist and Group of the Year, Praise and Worship Song of the Year and Music Video of the Year for their epic songHoly (Wedding Day).Reflecting life lived by the band members since their full-length debut, the new album shifts from the dream of what could and should be to the complexities ofhow to follow the true humanity of Christ’s example in the world.
HEART starts with an elegant piano orchestration Here & There. You can feel a heavy and very thick emotion, then in a sudden drop Elias Dummer entered in a soft voice. Its poetically-written lyrics will amuse you with its depth: “The heart is like Pandora’s box with just a crack it’s opened up to beat anew when all is lost to run, crawl, come home,” it describes a new life in Christ—who brought us into light, having a heart that is broken & contrite in repentance.There’s a grace for today so Praise the Lord; a song that reminds us to praise the Lord, rain or shine, whether you’re in darkness or light, in good times & bad—in every circumstances, because Jesus Christ is Lord. Its excellent packaging has been their signature along with their radio single City on a Hill; a clear exhortation of the Beatitudes/ Sermon on the Mount found in the book of Matthew chapter five. The piano-oriented Strong is birthed in the middle of Eric Fussilier’s battle with cancer he co-penned this anthem with Elias. The theme of God’s light shining in the darkness is one of the noticeable attributes of the songs throughout the album.
We all live in a fallen world; full of sorrow, pain and desperation, and no one is exempted to this. We can feel it all and sometimes we’re being discouraged and in doubt of God’s power. But Jesus said in John 16:33:”Take heart, for I have overcome the world!” it is the reminder of the song Take Heart, to re-affirm our trust and faith in Him. With the same message comes the upbeat Alive, Alive; an assurance in Him that though we walk through the valley (Psalm 23), He’ll never leave us for He’s alive that’s why we’re alive. Acoustic-based Love, Heal Me is a humble prayer for healing, honest and straight from the heart of the bassist Eric. Its instrumentation is somehow parallel to NeedToBreathe’s Lay ‘Em Down. The 28-second rhyme Songs of Longing, Joy and Peace is a prelude to Glory; an excellent expression of worship to Jesus the glory of God. The synths and lively beats will excite you
Love is highlighted with the songs Live Love& the rarely titled 1+1. Respectively, the one conveys the message of the extravagant love of Jesus, to make it the foundation of our lives, and the other one is about marital love. Long Walk Home is gorgeously presented in an acoustic plus maracas ensemble. It describes the journey of the prodigal son home to his father. Another acoustic-based song Brand New is a message of need of a Savior and Redeemer that He alone can make us brand new. To conclude the album, there’s their harmonious & ethereal cover of the classic hymn My Jesus I Love Thee; any listener would love to join the chorus together with the choir on proclaiming our love to Him our Savior.
Heart is simply honest and raw. This jam-packed 14-track album is a rousing journey of faith, hope, love, healing and grace found in Jesus. Breathed upon by God, all of the songs are straight from the heart. A wonderful reminder and help for us to imitate Jesus. No wonder why The City Harmonic garnered lots of nominations and awards from various giving bodies! Open you heart and listen to the beat of the Heart!
ABOUT THE CITY HARMONIC
2011 Breakout Artist of the Year The City Harmonic barreled its way from Hamilton, Ontario, Canada onto the music scene with Introducing The City Harmonic, an EP featuring “Manifesto,” which soared to No. 5 on iTunes and captivated over a million viewers on YouTube. Top that with becoming the best selling new artist on Billboard’s Top Current Digital Sales Chart (over 80K downloads), and it’s enough, among life’s crazy distractions, to get your attention.
But this band—vocalist/songwriter and pianist Elias Dummer,bassist Eric Fusilier, guitarist Aaron Powell and drummer Josh Vanderlaan— isn’t content to feed the machine or build a fan base so much as to build upon a dream. And not a dream as in a fairy tale. But THE Dream. These four guys grapple with the tension of this world, crafting it into anthems of longing, hope, and love—songs of light for ‘seeing through a glass darkly.’ The City Harmonic makes music that makes you reconsider what you really believe… about yourself, your world and your God.
Integrity Music is a division of David C Cook, a leading nonprofit global resource provider serving the Church with life-transforming materials. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Integrity’s resources are distributed in more than 160 countries and sold worldwide. Originally founded as a direct-to-consumer music club in 1987, Integrity grew into one of Christian music’s biggest success stories and in the process helped ignite the widespread popularity of contemporary praise and worship music. Integrity Music’s roster includes: Lincoln Brewster, Paul Baloche, Rend Collective Experiment, All Sons & Daughters, Brothers McClurg, Daniel Bashta, Gateway Worship, New Life Worship, Christine D’Clario, ALM:uk, Planetshakers, Worship Central, Brian Doerksen and GRAMMY Award winners the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir and Israel Houghton.
Strong God | Posted October-14-2013 New Life Worship is one of my favorite worship movements, and I am so happy and excited to review this newly released albumStrong God.They have become a big part of my journey as a lead worshipper and as a Christian. Our church used to sing their worship anthems includingHere in Your Presence, Counting on Godand their trademarkI Am Freewhich has been our local church’s favorite.
In our present time, it’s undeniable that the world is rapidly changing. There’s crime, violence, trafficking, corruption, and it seems that they’re getting worse every day. When you open the television—there’s bad news, surf the internet—it’s bad news, the radio—still bad news. Then you open the Bible, and there’s good news! In the Book of Psalm chapter 68 verse five to six, David declares: “A Father to the fatherless, and a judge of the widows, is God in His holy habitation. God setteth the solitary in families: He bringeth out those which are bound with chains: but the rebellious dwell in a dry land.” There’s a hope and strength in our God; and He is telling us right now; “The world may get insane but I, the Lord your God is your refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble, for my strength is made perfect for your weaknesses!”This is what clearly captured by the New Life Worship Team in their latest 12-cut album (10 tracks, two reprises) recorded LIVE at New Life Church in Colorado. Its purpose is to bring healing, comfort and restoration to those that suffered loss from the most destructive fire in Colorado’s History.
Unlike their previous albums, this is a collaboration of well-seasoned leaders and writers including Michael Farren, Jason Ingram, Cory Asbury, Meredith Andrews and Mia Fieldes, together with NLC’s very own worship pastors Brad Parsley and Jon Egan of Desperation Band. Jon opens the album with Jesus Reigns in an echoing sound of guitar. With its simple and easy to follow lyrics and arrangement, it’s awesome to hear various voices in proclaiming the Name that’s above all names! Another Jon Egan-led song is the title track Strong God, the ultimate worship song in the album. Jon passionately delivered every inch of the song with high conviction.
With their rich and diverse musical quality and instrumentation, Victorious God and Alive &Free stand out in energy and enthusiasm. Both led by Brad Parsley, he really has the same voice timbre with his brother Ross. I love the message of these worship anthems; rejoicing in the victory God has won and living out the freedom brought by our Victorious God.
Another song that stands out is Cory Asbury’s All To Him, its instrumentation is familiar with me; partly parallel to Citipointe Live and partly with Worship Central. People’s participation is highly manifested and its plonking piano adds an excitement throughout the song. Ascribe is another Cory-led, before listening to it, I am expecting to hear Cory’s 2009 song with the same title, and then suddenly I’m wrong. It’s a new anthem penned by Him. This folky, acoustic based song is perfectly captured in a solemn atmosphere. In a stunning worship duet, Abby Merkel and Nico Perez deliveredMore Than Enough. Inch by inch, the song increase on its intensity, then in silence they passionately sang the reprise.Jon Egan is here again with Unassailable,a Hillsong-like song but special on its own way. The reprise is very heart-pounding where Jon boldly proclaimed the Lordship of Jesus Christ and He encouraged the crowd to worship: “To the One who gave His life... to the One who gave it all, to the Unassailable, You cannot be defeated...” More worshipful moment come with Brad Parsley’s Who Compares. Nothing is greater than hearing people singing-out God’s praise in a nice orchestration. Another worship duet is Rachael Kiehne & Jonathan Moos’ very intimate Love Divine. It started very solemn then at the middle point it shifted to a spirit-moving grand instrumental part that will surely carry you along.
Strong God is another great and anointed album and I could see that many lives will be touched by the songs captured in this record, and I pray that people would see how great God is, that in Him we can find strength, hope and courage as we walk in this life with Him.
ABOUT NEW LIFE WORSHIP
One of the most important things we do at New Life Church is to come together every week and experience the power of God's presence. People from different backgrounds and generations join as one to engage in worship as a family. It is there that we are refreshed and realigned. From the place of corporate worship, we go into our homes, schools, and workplaces as carriers of the joy, hope, and life found in presence of God.
That's what worship is all about. And that’s why the heartbeat of New Life Worship is to help people experience the presence of God and develop a life of worship.
Every CD, every resource, every facet of our ministry is designed with that end in mind. So, as you browse this site, keep your heart open. God is near and He wants to engage you in an all-consuming, life-long conversation called worship.
Integrity Music is a division of David C Cook, a leading nonprofit global resource provider serving the Church with life-transforming materials. Headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colorado, Integrity’s resources are distributed in more than 160 countries and sold worldwide. Originally founded as a direct-to-consumer music club in 1987, Integrity grew into one of Christian music’s biggest success stories and in the process helped ignite the widespread popularity of contemporary praise and worship music. Integrity Music’s roster includes: Lincoln Brewster, Paul Baloche, Rend Collective Experiment, All Sons & Daughters, Brothers McClurg, Daniel Bashta, Gateway Worship, New Life Worship, Christine D’Clario, ALM:uk, Planetshakers, Worship Central, Brian Doerksen and GRAMMY Award winners the Brooklyn Tabernacle Choir and Israel Houghton.
Women of Homecoming V1 &V2 | Posted October-14-2013
ALBUM TITLE: Women of Homecoming (Vol.1 & 2)
ALBUM ARTIST: Gaither
FAVORITE TRACKS: You Brought Us Out, Oh Happy Day,
God Will Open Up The Windows, It is Well With My Soul
RATING: 7/7
Gaither Music occupies a very huge space in the world of Gospel and Christian music industry. Through the years they have resourced the worship community with amazing releases. Their very famous Homecoming Series has impacted and inspired many lives globally and has been the home for numerous gospel artists. To add to the long list of Homecoming discography, Bill and Gloria Gaither hosted a night full of joy, stories, testimonies and celebration which they called''Women of Homecoming.''
Gathering famous and finest female voices of Christian music, Women of Homecoming is a two-volume collection of 40 gospel songs and hymns recorded live in an intimate worship setting. It's awesome to see some of my favorite Christian artists gathered together to do an album including Sandi Patty, Natalie and Amy Grant, and the youngest of them all--Jamie Grace.
Each of these songs is wonderfully-crafted and soul-stirring. What's amazing with these women is that they sing not because they were assigned to sing a particular song, but because they have some stories to tell. Behind each songs are testimonies of faith, hope, love, pain and grief that these women bears. The DVD-Video feature these testimonies and it makes a good stuff to keep for the family.
Breaking generational barriers, the album also showcases new covers of the most-loved old and new gospel songs; out of which are the classic hymn It Is Well With My Soul where Natalie Grant mashed with her single Burn Bright. There's the newly interpreted trio song--Oh Happy Day Medley by the Sisters that will surely bring you chills; and the remake of Nothing But the Blood, Days of Elijah, plus covers of Amazing Grace (My Chains are Gone), Indescribable and Your Great Name.
If you are going through pain and grieving for a loss, Hurt by Hurt, In the in Between, Hear My Heart, In Good Hand, She's Better Now, Lord I'm Listening and Give Them All To Jesus will give you strength, peace, comfort and encouragement. These songs cuts through the heart and it will leave you comforted. I Know Who Holds Tomorrow is a modern re-write of Gaither's classic Because He lives, a perfect complimentary song to Getty's critically-acclaimed In Christ Alone that exhorts the hope found in Jesus, that he is worthy of our trust. Other songs on the album that are parallel in their messages are: Bread Upon the Water and God Will Open Up the Windows which speaks of the Blessings by Obedience. Another set is I Am Loved, I Will Go On and Standing in the Need of Prayer which talks of the forgiveness and love found in Jesus, and so we ought to let go of the hatred and bitterness within which cannot be blamed to others.
Everything Has Its Season is an exhortation of Ecclesiastes chapter three and it co-relates with Amy Grant's Our Time is Now. A reminder that time is an illusion, and so we ought to seize every second of our lives. To celebratewomanhood, The Women I Come From has been the anthemic theme song of the entire album. A mother's heart is wonderfully expressed with Kristyn Getty's A Mother's Prayer--filling the room with strong emotion and tears. You Brought Us Out is a picture of the Israelites' journey to the promise land, and also a depiction of a Christian's journey. Journeying through the wilderness and crooked ways to spread out the gospel is also the message of Jesus Saves.
Women of Homecomingis a no-ordinary album. It's just hard to express all of my emotions in this review, because all that I'm looking for an album is very well present: the powerful vocals, driving instrumental accompaniments, biblically-sound lyrics and of course the professional and well-talented artists. This album is simply perfect, and so I need to raise my standard of rating for this album.
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''Charm is deceitful and beauty is passing, but a woman who fears the Lord shall be praised.''
-Proverbs 31:30
ABOUT GAITHER HOMECOMING
Gaither Homecoming is the name applied to a series of videos, music recordings and concerts, which are organized, promoted and usually presented by Christian musicsongwriter and impresarioBill Gaither. To date, the Gaither Homecoming title is applied to more than 60 videos, dozens of music recordings, and an annual concert tour that drew more than half a million fans in 2004 (the most recent year for which statistics are available). On February 19, 1991, the Gaither Vocal Band had just wrapped up a recording session in aNashville, Tennessee, working on an album calledHomecoming, which featured many of the great voices of southern gospel music: The Speers, the Gatlins, Jake Hess, The Cathedrals, Howard & Vestal Goodman,Buck Rambo, Eva Mae Lefevre, James Blackwood, Hovie Lister, Jim Hill, and J.D. Sumner & The Stamps. After the session, the artists stayed around to chat, swap stories and sing old standards around the piano. The impromptu session was recorded on video and later published. The recording was so well received that Gaither began a series of professionally-produced videos with larger gatherings of gospel musicians.
The Hymns Sessions Vol.1 | Posted September-10-2013 Album Title: The Hymns Sessions Vol.1
Album Artist: Jimmy Needham
Best Tracks: Christos Anesti, Rock of Ages, Come Thou Fount, Great is thy Faithfulness, How Great Thou Art, It is Well, It is Finished
Rating: 4.8/5
The most awaited self-produced album from Jimmy Needham, The Hymns Sessions Vol.1 is coming out September 10. It will be available in CD and Digital Formats. The album features 10 songs (eight traditional hymns and two original tunes from Needham). The album showcases his unique voice and musical style. Surely, you'll enjoy the entirety of the album from the start going down to the last track. The richness -- vocally and instrumentally will amuse and move your spirit.
Now, let's get started!
Christos Anesti (Christ is Risen) is an engaging song that marks the start of the album. I am telling you this will give you chills! This is short in composition yet one of the most powerful song in the album. It resembles with some of the soundtracks used in Mel Gibson's Passion of the Christ and well blended with Jimmy's phenomenal voice. Atmospheric and capturing!
The Gospel comes after Christos Anesti which starts with drum beats and strums of guitar, this song was first released in his 2006 album Speak and was rewritten for this album. The acoustic guitar compliments Needham's voice very well. The rich tone of his voice puts real feeling into the lyrics.
Then, there's Rock of Ages--one of the best tracks in the album, outstanding! The hand-claps and percussion beats gave the edge. The song intro is clever and don't forget to commend the repetitions of a piano key. The creative instrumental accompaniment made it very memorable.
Following the remarkable song Rock of Ages, Come Thou Fount is the most creative and dynamic. The finger snaps and bass strums at the beginning is very nice, it emphasized Jimmy's appealing voice. While the sax and piano made it very relaxing. The drum beat is great, although I think it was overplayed in some parts. The performance quality is high throughout, both vocally and instrumentally.
Great is Thy Faithfulness follows Come Thou Fount with an awesome rendition, very strong and passionate. Jimmy's vocal tone is soulful, I can feel his heart as he sings. Kevin Jones' voice blends perfectly to Jimmy's which makes it vocally distinctive. The acoustic guitar suits to the mood of the song. There's nothing else to say than awesome!
At this point, we're on the sixth track which is my favorite track in the album, How Great Thou Art. I love how Jimmy and Trip Lee built this certain atmosphere that is special to this song. This hip-hop rendition is instrumentally rich and has a strong engaging rhythm that will carry you along. Trip Lee's voice is warm, and the lyrics he has written for the first and second verse are meaningful and thought-provoking.
Following Jimmy & trip Lee's incredible piece comes Holy, Holy, Holy, featuring Shane & Shane. A very passionate, heart-warming and solemn anthem. Needham's voice stands out very well with consistency. The acoustic guitar is so ethereal, so heavenly which is the perfect expression of the lyrical content. Surely, you'll gonna love Shane & Shane's extraordinary duo, it will carry you to the climax!
Here comes again the bass strums and the upbeat drum hits with Joyful, Joyful. It is full of excitement and appeal. Jimmy's stylish voice and the way he plays with it is fantastic-- so driving. I don't know, but I can feel the Christmas atmosphere in this song. Maybe the lyrical content is one thing, another is the way Jimmy delivers it.
By the time you hear someone saying: "Alright here we go," then that's the start of the the very soulful It is Well, the 9th track. You'll end up with soul stirred. This is perfect for devotionals/ quiet time and for communal singing. The consistency is high, the second voice is to be commended. The flow is in upward slope -- it has an increasing intensity.
It is Finished marks the end of the album. A piano-laced song with a beautiful violin instrumental part which adds a twist to the song. Surely, you'll be amazed by the blending of various voices in the chorus: ''It is done, He's alive...Tetelesti.'' The song ends with a line from the powerful anthem Solid Rock. This is a perfect piece for the Easter that declares the finished work of Christ Jesus -- written by Jimmy Needham and Kevin Jones.
The Hymns Session Vol. 1 is phenomenal, an ultimate resource to the Christian community. You'll surely love the musicality of the entire album. The message is our need of Jesus Christ, our Saviour, we need Him! Now if you can't wait for the release date to come, log on to www.JimmyNeedham.com and pre-order your copy today!
ABOUT JIMMY NEEDHAM
Jimmy Needham(born August 22, 1985 inDenver, Colorado) is an Americancontemporary Christian musiciansigned toInpop Records. His second Inpop studio album,Not Without Love, was released on August 19, 2008.Earlier in 2008, he was a guest on theRelentlesstour withNatalie Grant,and has previously toured withNewSong,Echoing AngelsandNate Salliein late 2007.
He is a graduate of Texas A&M University, where he studied history and philosophy, and also a graduate of Tomball High School.He is married to his wife Kelly, for whom he has written two songs.
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