 |
|
|
Fall 2007:
Ceili Rain,
John Angotti, Alma
DeRojas, Kristin Fisher |
|
Summer 2007: Popple, Chris Padgett, Kitty
Cleveland, Last Day |
|
Spring 2007: Popple, Chris Padgett, Kitty
Cleveland, Last Day |
Winter
2006: Catholic Music 2007, Amanda
Vernon, Marie Bellet, Mair Rathburn,
Bethany Music Ministry, Celeste Zepponi |
|
October 2006: Nick Alexander, Gretchen Harris, Steve
Angrisano |
|
Aug/ Sept 2006: Matt Maher, John Paul II
Tribute, Chris Padgett, John Michael Talbot, Fr. Stan
Fortuna |
|
|
|
|
|
|
July 2004
One of the
most beautiful aspects of the movie “The Passion
Of The Christ” is the portrayal of Mary accompanying
Christ during his suffering. Mary was the anchor as He gazed at her
through the scourging. His mother was his stronghold, as
she ran beside Him when He walked the Stations of the
Cross. I was touched when a beaten and suffering Christ
performed the gentle act of giving His mother, Mary, to
the whole world through John the Apostle.
You can live those moments again through the Rosary.
Award-winning singer, Mark Mallett has recorded a new
CD that takes you throught the mysteries of the Rosary in
a beautifully musical way.
 Titled Through Her Eyes: A Journey to Jesus
this CD uses a powerful
and original score that lies beneath each decade. The
decades are prayed by Mallet and Fr. Ray Guimond. Mallett has also recorded contemporary versions of
common prayers that are used in the Rosary. The
Apostle’s Creed, Our Father, Glory Be and Hail Holy
Queen are breathtaking and uplifting to hear. Mix this
with the new scores for each of the four mysteries of
the Rosary and you have an awe-inspiring CD.
It’s a thrill to hear the Joyful, Sorrowful, Glorious
and Luminous mysteries in this new way.
But
it doesn't stop there.
What makes it different is that this CD
is also an EP of new Mark Mallett material. Mallett has
produced five new songs that could stand on their own or
be in a new CD apart from this Rosary collection, but
together they honor and become a gift to the Blessed
Mother. The song “Queen Of Heaven,” follows the last
Joyful mystery and magnifies Mary as not only Blessed
Among Women, but also as the Heavenly Queen. The music almost
has a U2 sound with a taste of country. Mallett
has a beautiful rendition of Hail Mary prayer with the tune “Ode To Mary”. The song
honors Our Lady as the Queen of our life. I could not
stop thinking about Michaelangelo's Pieta when
listening to, “Let Mercy Flow.” In this song we hear
Mary’s words as she holds Jesus’ lifeless body. Her plea
to let mercy flow from His wounds knowing that He will
rise again is the message. The instrumental song,
“The Woman,” is in a way part of a soundtrack of the
life and love of Our Lady. The violin playing by Darren
Walters will speak words to you that can’t be spoken.
The music awakens the Holy Spirit in you.
The one song
that we can’t stop listening to at
CatholicMusicNetwork.com
is “Family Beads.” Everyone we have played it
for agrees it will reach right out and grab your
heartstrings. The song is about a family rosary. Mallett’s grandmother prayed with it through her
troubled times and his mother after that. He finds the
beads in his mother’s drawer and now he thumbs the
family rosary beads for his family. The song tells not
only of the family tradition, but of the prayer that has
kept the family strong.
Keep a tradition in your family
by praying the Rosary. Mark Mallett makes it easy with
Through Her Eyes: A Journey to Jesus.
|
Devine –
 Not Ordinary
by guest reviewer - Susan
Wood, singer/songwriter
Ordinary? Not hardly. The
title song of Devine's latest CD,
Not Ordinary,
is the third track and will stay with you long
after the CD has been played. With an
unforgettable hook and driving rock sound, it
gets the message across in a fun, friendly, and
forceful fashion. Nobody's paying me to say
this, but this is one piece of plastic you've
just gotta have! These guys are extraordinarily
talented and holy men who've let the love of
Christ infuse their lives, their souls and their
music.
After a recent guest appearance on EWTN's
Life on the Rock, I had the pleasure of
meeting Fr. Tim Devine and his older brother,
Matt Devine. I would never have known that Fr.
Tim is blind had no one told me. It's easy to
forget it, too. He looks you right in the eye
and holds your gaze, and what he sees, only God
and Fr. Tim knows. What I see is a beautiful
soul, full of agape love, and not at all
ordinary. His brother, Matt, is equally
inspiring, talented and precious to watch as he
looks out for his kid brother. Formerly of the
group, Critical
Mass, which performed at World
Youth Day 2002, Fr. Tim and Matt have been
making music together since they were kids.
Of all the songs on the CD, my favorite was
"Symphony," which speaks of the uniqueness and
beauty of each soul and person in God's eyes. "A
lot of attention was given to the song because
its message is so important," said Fr. Tim. "We
need to remember that we are children of God
Himself; created in His image and likeness,
created in love." Matt and Fr. Tim show us proof
of the symphony in themselves in this song.
Following with a close 2nd place is
"Queen of Peace", the final track. "I
remember showing Tim the chords for this song
and getting chills when he played it on the
piano," said Matt, adding, "Jesus gave us a
great gift in His mother, if we stay close to
her, we are close to Jesus." Fr. Tim agreed, "I
love singing to Our Lady. When I feel dense and
closed-hearted toward Jesus, I give Mary the keys
to the door of my heart and ask her to open it
for me so that Jesus can come in. This prayer
always works, and that's what this song is all
about."
Be lifted in the CD's first track,
"Psalm 67,
Let the Peoples Praise You", as Devine lifts
praise to God. Next, be transported to a love
that knows no limits and has no time. Awesome
and magnificent are not enough to describe
"All That I Am," "Autumn Sky,"
"Running With Eyes
Closed," "Clothed in Majesty," and
"Only Say
the Word." You will know with one listen who
truly wrote all these songs. Glory be to God
Almighty!
"Make Us One" reminds us of our home in Heaven
and who is King over all, and our small
differences must be overcome or overlooked so we
can be salt for the earth and light for the
world.
In short, my two cents worth: this CD Rocks!
Oh, yes, did I say you should buy this CD? No?
Buy this CD. You won't be sorry. I can't tell
you how many times I've played it and I'm not
tired of it yet. No even one song. Kudos to Fr.
Tim and Matt, AKA Devine! This is another light
for the Lord! May God Bless them richly!
--- susan@singandbehappy.com
|
 Joe
Hand's new CD is called
Everything and Nothing. The
theme comes from scripture and is most comforting in
these troubling times. Joe Hand has been making CDs for
years and is known as a praise and worship or
contemporary Christian artist. With the new CD, Hand has
stretched out from that “Life On The Rock” mode and
developed a newer and more powerful one that is sure to
be pleasing to God and to all listeners no matter what
age or style they enjoy. Long time fans will not be
disappointed and new ones will emerge. “Everything and
Nothing” starts in an impressive way with the rockin'
song, “I Desire Mercy.” This is a song that Hand has
been performing in concerts for some time. It reminds us of a phase that Jesus
uses in
two different places in scripture. He ate with the
sinners and unclean, and yet, are we ever seen with anyone outside
of the "in" crowd? Scott Goudeau is awesome with the
guitar here and his playing is heard throughout the CD.
He is a great plus for the recording. Another favorite is
“Prince Of Broken Pieces.” Hand gives us a new title
for Jesus and begs Him to make us whole and mend our
broken lives. In “He Must Increase,” Hand gives us a
glimpse of into the mind of the man who was touched by
Jesus while they were both in the womb, John the
Baptist. The title track, “Everything and Nothing,” is
a bitter reminder of those who lost their lives on
9/11. Hand tells us that we are made of dust (Nothing) and yet
God knows every hair on our head (Everything). It is
interesting that this sentiment is echoed in “Empty,” a
song about how God uses our lowest point to fill us with
His Spirit if we let Him. There is still plenty of p&w
songs here with “I Want To Worship,” “Be My Vision,’ and
“Rise Again.” After a four-year break from the
studio, let's
hope Joe Hand doesn't wait so long again!
 Speaking of praise and worship songs, Catholic singer/songwriter Lynn Cooper has a new collection of them in
her new CD aptly titled
The Praise Goes On. Lynn has
been a busy woman recently as a speaker at Women
of Grace conferences (she wrote the theme song for the
event) and as a guest on the “Living His Life
Abundantly” program. Cooper has taken some of the best
contemporary Christian songs of praise and made them
her own in this new album. From the current
crossover hit from Mercy Me, “I Can Only Imagine,” to the
song from Points of Grace called “Every Move I Make,”
Cooper’s beautiful vocals shine in each song. Other well
known songs include “Shout To The Lord,” “Days Of
Elijah,” “Everyday,” “We Bow Down,” and so much more.
If you love upbeat praise music then “The Praise Goes
On” is for you.
 |
|
|