Reviewed by Matthew Cordle "Your journey to heaven doesn't start when you die. No, it starts when you live. . . when you give your life to the King of Heaven." So says the back insert, describing in one sentence the concept of this CD from a children's ministry man based in Devon. The entire collection of songs is based around a journey on the train to Heaven, from the moment you get on the train to the future moment when it'll arrive, complete with train sound effects and announcements. It sounds as if Chris and family had a lot of fun putting this together, and one thing that infuses the entire project is humour. I can see this really helping the simple, profound truths of our faith to sink in to children's minds as they sing "Jesus said I am the way," "Fix your eyes upon Jesus," "Keep on asking, keep on seeking," and the play on words of "I'm a Jesus fan" with lines such as "He paid the penalty" and "We're united!" Apart from the title song, which wouldn't make much sense outside of the context of the CD, every song would be good to take to your kids groups and Chris helpfully provides lead sheets to download on his website. As with much kids music, there is a measure of slackness in timings that wouldn't cut it in adult-orientated music, and Chris' vocals are not always perfectly pitched, but somehow within this context it doesn't seem to matter too much. The final song looks towards the glory of Heaven and then just as you think it's ended, there's a surprise announcement stating that we're taking a detour as the train driver wants to pick up more passengers, a reminder that we're not done with the journey yet! If you appreciate the work of other children's ministry stalwarts like Colin Buchanan, Ishmael and John Hardwick, you'll definitely want to check this out.
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Using the theme of a train journey, Chris uses train announcements, sound effects, and whole box full of whacky sounds to create a musical heaven for all kids aged 0 to 200. This creative concept CD is full of quirky, catchy and Biblically based songs from the electrifying opening of "All Aboard..." to the powerful uplifting finale of "We look to that Day", making it a first class kids praise/family worship resource.
With song themes ranging from the rocky stadium stomp of "I'm a Jesus Fan" to the sea shanty of "Ahoy There" (with plenty of "Ahaaaaarrrrrrs") any child, or child at heart, is going to love this. Plus there's sufficient musical depth to warrant repeated listens with just about every instrument sound in existence and plenty of interesting percussion, from the samba rhythms of the John 3:16 inspired "For God loved the World so Much" to the crazy kitchen utensils of the gastronomic delight that is "Whenever you eat, munch, munch".
Wooooo-Hoooooo! |
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I'm children's church leader. Kids love this album. The songs are really catchy. It's full of the gospel message without religiousness.