Reviewed by Ian Hayter

Well, this little number is put out by the mighty Benson Corporation so I hope that what follows will not terminally discourage some hard working and struggling artist who has pinned all his Christian integrity on a major work recorded under appalling conditions in his back bedroom. I don't know who Messrs Davis and Huesmann actually are, but on the strength of this cassette I would guess that they are the very young nephews of a Benson executive who were given a couple of Yamaha Portasounds and a hymnbook and told to see what they could do in a couple of hours. This stuff is dire! All the old favourites are here (though you might not recognise many of them) - "When I Survey", "O Sacred Head", "Blessed Assurance", the ubiquitous "Joyful, Joyful, We Adore Thee" -but it is often difficult to hear the melodies over the jangling accompaniment. The two artists who performed the whole album have chosen sounds which jar against the words and melodies of the hymns, or which mean that the melody and accompaniment grate horribly against one another. Rhythmically it is very difficult to follow - in some places it sounds like a four year old at the piano who is waiting on one note while he tries to find the next! Do yourself a favour and give this a very wide berth indeed.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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