Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Singer/songwriter Barry Reeves is a Methodist local preacher working in the Harrow circuit. In his letter accompanying this CD he explained the thinking behind this album: "My songs are not worship songs, they are written for the many who are Christians of a liberal persuasion who are ignored by worship songwriters today." There are indeed a wide range of themes examined here - thanking God for the everyday things ("Lord Jesus Protect Us"), a man broken by the ravages of war ("Remembrance Sunday") and even a modern Christmas carol. Strengths are Barry's telling way with a lyric, for instance his withering denouncement of an arms trader ("It is not me that pulls the trigger/My conscience is clear and my pocket is bigger"). The weakness is that these simple recordings, mostly featuring solely Barry's gentle acoustic guitar, show up the deficiencies of the songwriter's voice. If you can ignore the weak vocals you might want to investigate a gifted folky songwriter. But I suspect others will be put off.

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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