Reviewed by Lins Honeyman

This instrumental release from Mississippi guitarist Steve Garrett sees the axe man delve into familiar hymnal territory to offer up new takes on a variety of church standards. A gritty take on "Amazing Grace" kicks things off to the set the scene for an album that sees Garrett reinterpret old chestnuts like "The Old Rugged Cross" and "Nothing But The Blood" with inventiveness and panache. Refreshingly, Garrett is a versatile player who is able to cover a lot of ground stylistically - even in one song - so you get the earthy, down home slide guitar of Ry Cooder on the likes of "Rock Of Ages", some Jeff Beck-style tremolo on "On Jordan's Stormy Banks I Stand" and a doffed cap to Chet Atkins on "He Keeps Me Singing" whilst some gentle finger-picking adorns a tender reading of "Tis So Sweet To Trust In Jesus". In other hands, an instrumental album of such songs would have been run of the mill. But, thanks to Garrett's virtuosity, this is an appealing demonstration of how classic hymns can be reinvented in a myriad of ways.

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