Reviewed by Lins Honeyman

Following a commission by the West Midlands mayor's office to contribute a song to a community Christmas singing event, the folks at Birmingham's Cedar Church have put new words to Elgar's "Land Of Hope And Glory" - thankfully removing AC Benson's sickeningly pompous and British Empire-exalting original lyrics - and turned it into an up tempo gospel number. Under the watchful eye of the church's senior pastor Andrew Kisumba, this is once again a slick affair with high production standards and this, along with the use of a familiar message set to the backdrop of an instantly recognisable melody, makes for a winning combination. The second song "Love Is Good (Horizon 2020)" looks ahead to the New Year with hope whilst old ground is covered with the inclusion of the lead track from the group's quality 2017 festive single "Love Is The Heart Of Christmas Time". Sing-a-long versions of the two Christmas songs are also included.

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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