I have been horrible about writing in my blog consistently. It figures that it would take a new Amy Grant CD to get me to write.
Her new CD Somewhere Down the Road is amazing. I've been a fan since high school, maybe even earlier. Her albums Lead Me on and Behind the Eyes are among my favorite albums ever. But I have to admit I get nervous when I hear there is a new CD coming from Amy. Though she can be brilliant she can just as easily put out something that falls flat (Simple Things). She also has a way of putting out way too many Christmas albums. They are always enjoyable listens but I've always been hoping for something that reaches the artistic heights of Behind the Eyes.
Somewhere Down the Road does that. It makes sense that it includes two songs from Behind the Eyes (Somewhere Down the Road and Every Road). But fear not, this is not just a repackaging of her past music. It has four brand new songs along with some previously unreleased tracks. All the music blends together like it was created just for this CD.
The lead off track, Better than a Hallelujah, stops me in my tracks. I can listen to this song over and over again.
We pour out our miseries
God just hears a melody
Beautiful, the mess we are
The honest cries of breaking hearts
Are better than a Hallelujah
The song was written by Sarah Hart and Chapin Hartford. I'm not familiar with Chapin but Sarah is a wonderful songwriter worth checking out.
Amy also has a chance to sing with her daughter Sarah on the song Overnight. Their voices blend together beautifully in this wonderful duet. She said she has been looking for just the right song to do with her daughter and she found it with this one.
It is always interesting to see who Amy is collaborating with on her songwriting. Usual suspects like Wayne Kirkpatrick and Chris Eaton are on this album. She also took time to write with Mindy Smith and Ian Fitchuk and Justin Loucks. Ian and Justin produced Mindy's latest CD and the three of them were excellent choices for Amy to work with. I read that she also cowrote some music with Jon Foreman, though none of that made this CD. Hopefully it will be on another one soon.
One of the centerpieces of this CD is the rerecording of her song Arms of Love which she slows down for this take. The new version makes it beautifully reflective.
In a fairly daring move Amy included Come Into My World which features just her and a guitar. That's not something you typically see from most pop singers but the song fits beautifully with the overall theme of the album.
It is has been seven years since her last album of new songs (Simple Things). Behind the Eyes was six years prior to that. Hopefully this album will rekindle a passion for recording new music. I personally don't want to wait another six or seven years for new music from Amy.
I noticed that she is coming to the Detroit area this summer for a concert with Michael W. Smith. Until I heard this new music I was probably going to miss it. Now I have to get off my butt and look into tickets. I can't wait.
