Russ Lee

Item: Hear Those Bells
Author: Burton Wray

Hear Those Bells

(2004)

Reviewed by Burton Wray

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Label Vertical Vibe RecordsThe Phantom Tollbooth2004

adult contemporary ccm gospel

For some reason, the trend in recent years is that male vocalists who leave popular groups drop off the face of the universe. This happened to Geoff Moore, who was not nearly as popular after disbanding Geoff Moore and the Distance as he was with the group. This also happened to quite a few former members of the group Newsong including Charles Billingsley, Leonard Ahlstrom, and even Russ Lee, although Lee has released three albums since leaving the group including this new Christmas CD.

Hear Those Bells is one of those rare Christmas CDs that is not overproduced with too many instruments to overpower the vocalist. This CD keeps a good balance between the instruments and Lee's vocals allowing them to shine through better than is the case with most Christmas CDs. Something that adds spice to this CD are four brand new songs, which differentiate it from all the other Christmas CDs that are out there. Its unique arrangements of classic Christmas songs also help differentiate this CD from all the others. "Do You Hear What I Hear" has an African tribal feel. The arrangement of "O Come All Ye Faithful" gives it more of a modern pop feel. Several of the other songs have a gospel feel to them, which is enhanced by the inclusion of gospel choirs backing up Lee.

While this CD isn't as overproduced as many other Christmas CDs and does a better job of featuring its star's voice, it doesn't do as good a job as it could. Lee has one of the strongest voices in Christian music today, but it could do a better job of letting his voice shine. The arrangements and even the backup Gospel choirs take the focus off Lee's voice. The more modern arrangements on some of the songs also become distracting at times. Some fans of Russ Lee will be hoping for a project with traditional arrangements that focus on the beauty of the song and the great voice of Russ Lee but the only time this CD does that is on the final track, "Silent Night." This track is just Lee singing the traditional arrangement backed up by a piano.

Some fans will enjoy the unique arrangements on this CD, but others will wish that it had been more of a traditional project.

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