Reviewed by James Lewis

Scholars of '60s rock may be thinking the name sounds familiar - Chris is actually the son of the 'S' in "CSN&Y", Stephen Stills! The reason this album appears in Cross Rhythms is purely by virtue of its lyrics - I have no idea what Chris Stills' personal beliefs are. However I am sure that he is somewhat interested in spirituality and religion. The lion's share of these songs contain Biblical language and imagery. I certainly am making no claims either way on his theology! "God Won't Make You A Man" seems to be somewhat self-contradictory. He claims "I've seen a thousand different ways to reach God" and "Holy faith I trust in only one/ That is the flesh and blood that makes up my own" before asking "Hear my call Kingdom come" and "Lord Jesus Christ give me the strength to stay alive". Make of these statements what you will! Musically the album is a mostly stripped-down, bluesy, acoustic sound (courtesy of Ethan Johns), but the guitars do get cranked up on occasion. Chris' country-inflected vocals work well on what is an atmospheric album.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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