Reviewed by Jonathan Evans

As the saying goes, "You have to kiss a lot of frogs before you meet the handsome prince." I listen to a lot of music, and much of it is not worth a second listen, but this CD will be sitting on our rack between the Kinks and the Lighthouse Family. Those of you who know your American CCM scene will know that Russ is the ex-lead singer of popular American group NewSong. The thing that makes Russ' solo debut worth listening to over again is the quality of the songs. Most of the songs come from various songwriting partnerships that involve Russ Lee, except for the closing track of the album, which is a cover of the Mike Rutherford/B A Robertson track "The Living Years". In the main it's going to appeal to what I would call a "Radio 2 audience" (which is not an insult by the way). Space doesn't allow me to go into much detail, but the songs lie in the middle of the road rock genre with pop and soul overtones. The standout track for me is "Tell Me" which has a simple, haunting melody and moving lyrics about someone who's dying and asks the question "Tell me Jesus loves me." Russ Lee's voice is easily able to carry the songs and deliver them confidently and with passion. Recommended!

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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