Terri McFarland - Rock Of Ages

Thursday 1st February 2001
Terri McFarland - Rock Of Ages

STYLE: MOR / Soft Pop
RATING 6 6 6 6 6 6
OUR PRODUCT CODE: 2856-
LABEL: Independent
FORMAT: CD Album
ITEMS: 1

Reviewed by Steve Best

A slightly different take on some traditional hymns, containing some very helpful liner notes giving a detailed background to each selection. Terri has a distinctly jazz-tinged vocal style and a number of the arrangements, deftly put together by producer Ed Schief, reflect this. Opener "Come Thou Fount" and the excellent medley, comprising three well loved classics, would stand out as examples of Terri's strongest performances, as do "Our Lord's Prayer" with its lush strings and simple piano, and "Amazing Grace", which gets the full Gospel treatment complete with brass. Elsewhere, the bagpipe and piano combination on "Be Thou My Vision" (an ever-present these days, it seems, on hymn collections) works to striking effect, and the closing George Beverly Shea-penned "I'd Rather Have Jesus" is quite beautiful. My only reservation -and here I choose my words carefully - is that Terri's voice sometimes lacks the expression, emotion and grit needed to give these lovely pieces more body, seeming as it does, to stay on the same level throughout. Nonetheless, a pleasing listen.

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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