Walk into any book store, coffee shop, gift shop, drug store, or gas station around here, and an inviting display of CD's will entice you with the promise of pleasant, relaxing background music that doesn't ask much of you. Soft jazz, new age, atmospheric, safe. Pay attention to it, or let your mind go elsewhere. It would be easy to dismiss this stuff, except the prevalence of anything in the marketplace is a sure indicator of its popularity, and all popular forms of communication must be examined for their message.
Light Eternal is a welcome antidote to the mushy intellectual vagueness of contemporary easy listening, stumbling only when it strays into the unsure wilderness of contemporary lyrics, especially in direct comparison to the ageless treasures of "O Come, O Come, Emmanuel," "When I Survey the Wondrous Cross," and "Steal Away." But why should the mystics have all the good music? Brew some tea, kick off your shoes, gaze out the window at the rain and unwind.
3.5 tocks
Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Steven S. BaldwinWhen you think of the sounds of soft jazz saxophone, who first comes to mind? Go ahead, admit it, Kenny G, right? Well, the long-haired handsome one can move over, he has some competition. Virtuoso David Fitzgerald first came to prominence as a founding member of the Celtic Christian band, Iona. In this solo release he combines both reed and wind instruments in an atmospheric mix with exceptional…
