My wife, noted KPop writer Caths Deen, recently gave me for an anniversary present the latest album of Contemporary Christian singer-songwriter Matthew West. The Story of Your Life CD/DVD package is one of the best CCM albums I’ve ever heard for a variety of reasons, and the criminal absence of a #1 Billboard hit from this offering, Matthew’s first since his indie label debut, Sellout, does not undermine the fact that this is a...
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One of my best friends, Jay Tan, died three years ago – his fourth death anniversary comes in less than two months – and I remember Deborah Gibson’s Anytime (I Am There) as one of the songs that consoled me in that deep moment of loss. As a song for funerals and wakes, Anytime (I Am there), taken off William Finn’s Elegies, is an appropriate and heartrending funeral song, sung from the perspective of a parent looking to...
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One of the things I like most about Matt Maher is that what you see is what you get. The Catholic singer-songwriter has produced some of Contemporary Christian music’s more palatable tracks of late, including the now-classic Your Grace is Enough. With his folksy take on Hark the Herald Angels Sing, Maher has created yet another version easily doable in churches the world over, and once again, Canada has produced another great reason for me...
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Contemporary Christian singer-songwriter JJ Heller offers a lovely stripped down Christmas track, Star of Wonder, that’s just so pretty. Heller’s pristine delivery highlights her pure, clean voice above a haunting piano and a simple acoustic guitar. It’s such a relaxing, lovely song that would be great for your Christmas services. STAR OF WONDER Lyrics JJ Heller There were kings of the orient Bringing gifts to the...
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At some point in 2011, my Top 10 kinda went offline because my laptop crashed and took the Top 10 with it. After that, it was pretty much to my iTunes to determine what songs should go to #1. Having said all that, this is my personal Top 10 for the year 2011, divided into Christian and Secular (Top 40). Just sharing. (^^,) CHRISTIAN TOP 10 1. Stronger. Mandisa 2. Good Morning. Mandisa 3. Suitcases. Dara MacLean 4. Make a Move. Royal Tailor 5....
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