Reviewed by Tom Lennie

A special platinum edition - whatever that means - and an intriguing mixture; certainly there are some real worship classics - Doerksen with "Come Now Is The Time To Worship", Zschech with "Shout To The Lord", Baloche with "God Of Wonders", Mark with "Days Of Elijah", etc. Along with these are numerous other worthies; Lamont Herbert on "Sing For Joy", three oldies from Lincoln Brewster and even Joseph Garlington singing "All I Once Held Dear". Then, mixed in among all these, indeed comprising around a third of this double volume, is a collection of worship tunes sung by The Maranatha Singers and Integrity Worship Singers. Some of these are well known, others less so. All in all it's an unusual, though sonically pleasing mixture. The bonus CD, however, is in a different league. Far from being a throwaway bonus sampler, this is an eight-track, 46-minute showcase of some of today's most promising worship names from around the world. Those here displayed are mostly American and several have well-established ministries/recordings in their own right - eg, Michael Neale, Jared Anderson, Joel Auge. These well produced tracks consist mainly of rock worship - pungent gems with a fresh feel and sung with grit and conviction. Thankfully several are allowed to build into full effect, and most continue for at least six minutes. Auge's roof-blasting worship anthem is followed by Andersen's fast-paced pop/rock "Promises". New Zealander (but now resident in the UK) Shaun Griffiths delivers the only acoustic-based number on offer - and a real heartfelt beauty it is. The catchiest song here comes from Baton Rouge worship leader Jonathan Stockstill - his "Open Up The Sky" is a steady-paced passionate heartcry which cannot fail to engage any true worshipper/intercessor. Overall, it's a pity we're not given any info whatsoever about these musicians or their songs, or that song lyrics are only provided for the main two discs, for the bonus is a terrific slice of fresh worship music and turns out to be the undoubted highlight of this three-disc recording.

This track data is supplied by the Cross Rhythms CD/DVD review library. Please note that CD tracks may vary according to release region or product version. You should not assume that products purchased through Cross Rhythms Direct will necessarily have identical track listings to those shown.