Stuart Townend - Courage

Published Saturday 23rd March 2019
Stuart Townend - Courage
Stuart Townend - Courage

STYLE: MOR / Soft Pop
RATING 8 8 8 8 8 8 8 8
OUR PRODUCT CODE: 173017-27373
LABEL: Integrity Music 0000768718223
FORMAT: CD Album
ITEMS: 1
RELEASE DATE: 2018-09-14
RRP: £12.99

Reviewed by Stella Redburn

As we all know, Stuart has written some of the most popular of our modern worship songs and hymns ("In Christ Alone") and new material from him has been eagerly awaited. The theme of his new album is "courage to face my own pain, to share my pain and to sit with the pain of others" and the standout track for me is "Keep You Here". It's a beautiful acoustic number and is particularly moving as when it was being recorded with Stuart's family, his brother Phil was dying of cancer. A song of affirmation in a dark place. The title track is Stuart's response to death with powerfully honest, original lyrics and with Celtic touches, courtesy of Keith and Kirsten Getty, who collaborated with the veteran on several of the tracks here. "I Am Here For You" was co-written with daughter Emma and has some heartfelt and beautiful words about living with depression and anxiety. It is sung without affectation by Emma. These intensely personal testimonies are the core of the album and other, more praise-based songs I personally didn't find as strong, although "Lead On, Lead On" is a brave attempt to re-work John Henry Newman's "Lead, Kindly Light" hymn.

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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Product Description
This is Stuart’s first album for four years, and contains some of his most powerful work to date. Containing a whole host of great new congregational songs, at the same time it explores some deep issues – pain, loss, mental health – and includes the moving song “Keep you here” from the video about his brother Phil’s journey with cancer. This is Stuart’s first album for four years, and contains some of his most powerful work to date. 'So why is it called Courage? Recent events & situations (including the death of my brother) have had a big impact on me personally, and on my writing. And the word that has kept coming back to me is COURAGE: courage to face my own pain, to share my pain, and to sit with the pain of others.'
Did you see Stuart at the Keswick Convention when he shared 'I Am Here For You' for the first time?

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