STYLE: MOR / Soft Pop RATING OUR PRODUCT CODE: 22433- LABEL: Spirit Of Praise 2060 FORMAT: CD Album ITEMS: 1 RRP: £14.99
Reviewed by Keith Hammond
Live praise recorded at this year's Stoneleigh Bible week. Having been encouraged by a considered and stylish sleeve design (and not a dove in sight) expectation of a possible new approach to praise and worship was in the air, well in my room anyway! However, from the first song onwards it was obvious that this album would not be breaking any new ground but would be an excellently played and produced version of a now standard format, and I was right. Complaints could really only be along the grounds of song and tempo choice and of course the feeling that you must have heard this somewhere before. All that aside the music and vocals on this worship album are very tasteful, especially from one of the female singers who unfortunately isn't pinpointed on the sleeve. The congregation are amazingly in tune. In fact, even the clapping is in time. At times the clapping is louder than the singing and the music which highlights the difficulty in juggling with music, vocal leading, clapping, and singing within this format. One thing I found strange was the lack of continuity brought about by the decision to leave out any introductions and fade in each song. 'I'm Justified' would be well worth buying if you enjoyed Stoneleigh or like the songs they've chosen.
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The female singers that year (and 1993) were Ruth Alley, Rachel Gillard and Vicky Gambleton. It was probably Vicky you refer to.
I played keyboard.