In an attempt to expose the nearly 90 million Americans who, according to research, have never read the Bible, Tyndale Publishers have published a New Living Translation called The Book. A musical companion, Songs from The Book, compiles recordings by top name Christian artists such as Michael Card, Amy Grant, Anointed, Crystal Lewis, Point of Grace, Sixpence None the Richer, Jaci Velasquez, Steven Curtis Chapman, and The Ragamuffin Band. This album is designed to draw listeners to the Word of God using the universal language of music.
Eight easily recognizable mainstream Contemporary Christian Music hits taken directly from other albums are included here along with three remakes of previously released material, one song never before released on CD, and two new songs made specifically for this project. Among the new ones is the title track, "The Book," by Michael Card and produced by Phil Nash. It is another of Card's Celtic-sounding tunes and one of the album's finest both lyrically and musically. Another is Sixpence None the Richer's "Trust" produced by Steve Taylor, which is actually a remake of the first song Matt Slocum and Leigh Nash ever wrote and recorded together when he was 16 and she was only 13. This recording features Slocum on an acoustic guitar and verges on a country sound. Anointed, Bryan Duncan, and Crystal Lewis team up to record a brand new version of a more obscure song called, "One Voice."
Chris Harris produced three songs, including an upbeat one written for this project called "The Word," featuring Anointed's beautiful harmonies. The album's first single is an urbanized remake of "El Shaddai" by the third generation of the Winans family, Winans Phase 2. Amy Grant joins the group on vocals, and the song's creator, Michael Card, plays guitar. Finally, Rocketown Records recording artist Ginny Owens offers her version of "Thy Word." Owens' beautiful voice rings clearly on this rendition. Though it is similar vocally to Amy Grant's initial recording, the accompaniment is smoother.
Although the admirable thrust of this campaign is to point unbelievers to the Word of God, such a premise is a bit suspect. If you think some unsaved friend might actually like mainstream Contemporary Christian Music, this project will serve as a worthy introduction. Considering the unlikelihood of such an event, you might just want to buy your friend The Book and an album by a Christian artist that would better appeal to them.
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Other coverage for this album
The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by Cathy CourtwrightAccording to national research taken from Gallup and Barna polls, almost 90 million Americans are approaching the millennium having never read the Bible. Songs from The Book is just one small portion of the largest campaign ever to promote the Bible. Some of these songs were written specifically for this project, and some are re-cut classics. In a star-studded project such as this, it's difficult…The Phantom Tollbooth 1999Reviewed by James StewartAnother collaboration between a number of CCM artists, this time to promote a new translation of the Bible. Most of the included tracks have appeared elsewhere and are fairly middle-of-the-road. Sixpence None the Richer turn in a countrified version of "Trust" from their The Fatherless and the Widow album and the Ragamuffins offer "My Deliverer" from The Jesus Record. Apart from these two tracks…
