Reviewed by Alastair McCollum

These albums 'O God O God', 'God Help Us' and 'dreadGod' make up a 38 track collection of songs recorded over the past five years by Lincoln-based worship leader and songwriter Birtill who is part of the New Life Church and the Ground Level Network. The description the package gives of itself is "raw" and "passionate" and certainly the music captured here comes across as both of those things. As many Christian music observers will tell you, Birtill is a "Marmite" kind of artist who you either love or hate and certainly his not-particularly-musical vocal style and decidedly left-of-centre approach to lyric writing make him a figure who doesn't easily fit into the standard musical stream. There are some quirky bits, the bagpipes at the end of "Unbelief (Fan The Flame)" that leads into "I Will Set My Face", the exuberant trumpet playing by the sublime Raul D'Oliveira on "They've Got A Trumpet" and the deft mandolin on "Glorious Revolution" add texture to the collection. But Birtill's slightly shouty stylings mean that the prophetic impact of some of his lyrics is occasionally lost. Highlights from this mostly self-penned selection are the CBC Praise and Worship song of the year "Just One Touch From The King" and "Outrageous Grace" - both on the 'O God O God' album. If you are a hardcore supporter of this worship prophet you will want to investigate this package of oldies if you haven't already purchased them individually.

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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