Reviewed by Dave Brassington

  Back in the mists of time, or so it seems, there was a one-hit pop wonder who hit the top of the British pop charts with a rather morbid tale, called “Tell Laura I Love Her”, of a chap who dies in a stock car race.  Just as quickly as he soared to the top of the charts, then this sweet voiced pop singer disappeared from view.  Eventually he began to resurface doing the rounds of the British country music club scene.  His voice was still good, even though he never made huge waves he began to be accepted as ‘part of the British country music scene’.  Now Ricky reappears in Christian circles with one of the very finest albums he has actually made in years as a Christian country artist.  The album opens with the classic Kris Kristofferson/Marijohn Wilkin track “One Day At A Time”.  Producer Paul Field supplies half the writing credits to the very tasty “All The Time”.  Ricky’s version of Daniel O’Donnell’s “Footsteps” is good but suffers by comparison with the Irish superstar.  Obviously influenced by Daniel Ricky then does “I Cried A Tear” which Daniel also included on his inspirational album.  Personally I thought it was the weakest track on that album, so it seems strange to repeat it here.  To sum up, the album is easy on the ear, tastefully produced by Paul Field who is not normally associated with country music, although I think it a pity some more newer country gospel material was not actively sought out.

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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