Rich Mullins

Item: The Jesus Record
Author: James Stewart

The Jesus Record

(1998)

Reviewed by James Stewart

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Label MyrrhThe Phantom Tollbooth1998

acoustic rock ccm folk rock worship

Often an artist sees one project as central to their whole body of work. Such was this album to Rich Mullins. Though he didn't live to record it properly, his determination to complete this work rubbed off on his Ragamuffin bandmates, and they resolved to complete it as a tribute to Mullins. Underneath the tasteful packaging lie two CDs--one containing a cleaned up version of nine demos Mullins recorded on a small cassette recorder for a group of record executives, and the other a polished set of studio recordings of those tracks and a couple from the pen of producer and Ragamuffin Rick Elias.

Everyone I've come across who received pre-releases of this double album faced a dilemma...which disc to listen to first? Along with most of them, I chose the demos disc first. While it was cleaned up in the studio, it is still extremely raw, of a quality that would never normally be released even as an indie. As the CD began to play, the quality did bother me, as the levels weren't quite right (too bass or treble heavy in places). As the CD continued I was able to move beyond that--an oftquoted rule in songwriting is that a great song will still sound good when stripped back to acoustic guitar or piano. These are great songs. Mullins's voice is passionate and clear; while the instruments are often a little distorted and there is the distinctive sounds of a home recording, there is a charm about this disc. I am not sure how often this will get listened to, but it is a good souvenir to remember Mullins by--his unassuming nature and determination to communicate the truth he had found. Lyrically, profundity and simplicity meet in a powerful way. Not every line sparkles, but the overall effect is a set of songs which show Jesus from many angles and build up a picture of the duality of man and God which Jesus embodied.

The other recording is quite different. Featuring the London Session Orchestra, Amy Grant, Michael W. Smith, Ashley Cleveland, and the Ragamuffin band, it is certainly an all-star recording. I must confess that I found the first track, 'My Deliverer,' to be slightly over-done with the powerful string section seeming to contrast a little too strongly with Mullins's original. From there on things get more relaxed, and my initial fears were relieved. Some of the rough edges to Mullins's arrangements are balanced out, and the rootsy sound matches most of the songs well. I sometimes find that producer Rick Elias has a tendency to overproduce drums, and I feel that has happened here--a rawer drum sound would have worked a little better. This is still a well thought-out and put-together package and is a strong testimony to Rich Mullins.

4.5 tocks