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Over a year in the making and Glad's first band "offering" in six
years, "Pure and Holy Passion" contains ten God-exalting, contemporary
songs of worship--PLUS, a SPECIAL BONUS CUT--as heard live in
concert--Glad's "A Cappella History" featuring "Leaning on the
Everlasting Arms" performed in barbershop, classical, doo-wop, and
swing jazz styles.
Includes Matt Redman's "Let Everything That
Has Breath," Bob Kauflin's musical revitalization of "How Firm a
Foundation," and a fresh new version of Michael Kelly Blanchard's
classic, "Be Ye Glad."
As with "A Cappella Worship I & II", the key source of songs for the recording has been the worship music of PDI, a movement headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland, comprising some 50 churches in the U.S. and abroad.
Sounds like … the
classic Christian band and a cappella group have plugged their
instruments in once again — in other words, this album contains
adult-contemporary-pop arrangements of worship songs with their superb
vocal blend on top.
At a Glance … it
may be yet another worship album, but Glad draws from original material
and lesser-known worship songs, and the performances are pleasant and
engaging.
Glad's so highly regarded as an a cappella
group that many people still are unaware that all the members play
instruments, and even fewer people know that Glad started out as a
progressive pop/rock band in the '70s. It wasn't until 1988 that the
band experimented with an a cappella album and opened themselves up to
a whole new audience. Ironically, because of their success as an a
cappella group, many have pigeonholed Glad as merely a vocal group,
completely unaware of their band sound, which falls somewhere in
between John Elefante-era Kansas and Phillips, Craig, & Dean. With or without instruments, they are indeed the same band, and though
the sound may vary from album to album, their faith and ministry does
not. Pure and Holy Passion is their first band album in more
than six years. Focusing on worship music old and new, the album has
been available for sale on Glad's Web site since late 2001, but now is
widely available thanks to distribution through Spirit-Led Records.
It's remarkable enough that these guys sound so good
together when singing a cappella, so it's all the more impressive that
they sing that well while playing instruments with nearly the same
proficiency. Chris Davis' fine electric guitar solos are especially
impressive. Over the years, Glad's sound has become less progressive as
the band has opted for more of an adult-contemporary sound perfectly
suited to the worshipful pop of this album. Their cover of Matt Redman's "Let Everything That Has Breath" is true to the original, as most
versions of the song are. It's much like the recent Phillips, Craig,
& Dean cover of the song, though there's an impressive part near
the end where Glad shifts into a half-time breakdown with a hypnotic,
Beatle-esque background vocal part. You won't be able to miss it when
you hear it. Other highlights include a new band arrangement of
founding-member Bob Kauflin's a cappella arrangement of the hymn "How
Firm a Foundation," as well as an enjoyable new rendition of "Be Ye
Glad." There's also an exciting revitalization of the Isaac Watts hymn
"Join All the Glorious Names" which adds a praise chorus to create an
uptempo worship song that blends old and new sounds.
The remainder of the album's ten worship tracks
aren't particularly memorable ("Everlasting," in fact, has nearly the
same feel as "Let Everything That Has Breath"), but that's not to say
they aren't pleasant and enjoyable to listen to. Glad's music can sound
a little dated at times, especially the synthesizer used on "Be Ye
Glad," and I wouldn't call this album original or unique by any means.
But the quality of the performances (vocal and instrumental) is enough
to warrant a recommendation for fans of contemporary worship and
inspirational pop. Additionally, Glad has included a live bonus track
of their live favorite, "A Cappella History." In the ten-minute track,
Glad begins with a simple four-part rendition of the hymn "Leaning on
the Everlasting Arms," and gradually evolves the style from classical
and barbershop to doo-wop and jazz. It's very funny and clever,
displaying their understanding of music history and their incredible
vocal skills.
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