One of my favorites goes solo again
Several years ago, I took a group of kids to Six Flags over Atlanta for something called "Atlanta-fest". It was, in my opinion, one of the best Christian Music festivals ever. For one price, attendees got four-day passes to the park and the ability to take in about 40-50 different Christian groups.
One of the guys that I heard for the very first time at Atlanta-fest was a guy named Michael O'Brien. He had a great voice and sang this great song called If Ever I Forget. Immediately, I had to see about getting his CD and when I got it, I was not disappointed. The album was full of great music, songs that not only sounded great, but had incredible messages of faith. (Okay, it is official, call me "Thesaurus Man" ... after re-reading that paragraph, I noted the continuous use of the word great ... talking to self: "Hey bonehead, how about mixing in a n occasional wonderful, terrific, good or even groovy if you have to; just quit sayng 'great!'")
I anticipated eagerly his next two releases as well, went to a couple of concerts, and in general ... listed him as my favorite Christian artist. After a couple of albums, Michael joined the group Newsong. This was bittersweet as Newsong was a favorite of mine as well, but it meant that Michael might not be writing as much. Many of his songs were so personal, it was hard to imagine them being group-type songs. However, I have enjoyed his involvement with Newsong as well.
Recently, word came that he was no longer traveling with Newsong, but was returning to his solo career. I was excited as I look forward to hearing from him again and, out of the blue, I saw that he had a spot on MySpace, including demos of four songs that will be on his upcoming album. They are great ... apparently, the focus of the album will be on the strength and commitment to Christian marriage.
While I am not married, I do see enough pain and heartbreak in marriages to know that godliness, purity and devotion are not mere sentiments, but things which must not only be committed to, but also expressed through actions and emotions. I believe that will be the focus of his album. You can read more about it and listen to the demo song at Michael's MySpace account. Here is the link. My personal favorite is Love Isn't Love.
Anyway, I am excited about Michael's return to solo status. If you have never heard his music, be sure to check it out.
One of the guys that I heard for the very first time at Atlanta-fest was a guy named Michael O'Brien. He had a great voice and sang this great song called If Ever I Forget. Immediately, I had to see about getting his CD and when I got it, I was not disappointed. The album was full of great music, songs that not only sounded great, but had incredible messages of faith. (Okay, it is official, call me "Thesaurus Man" ... after re-reading that paragraph, I noted the continuous use of the word great ... talking to self: "Hey bonehead, how about mixing in a n occasional wonderful, terrific, good or even groovy if you have to; just quit sayng 'great!'")I anticipated eagerly his next two releases as well, went to a couple of concerts, and in general ... listed him as my favorite Christian artist. After a couple of albums, Michael joined the group Newsong. This was bittersweet as Newsong was a favorite of mine as well, but it meant that Michael might not be writing as much. Many of his songs were so personal, it was hard to imagine them being group-type songs. However, I have enjoyed his involvement with Newsong as well.
Recently, word came that he was no longer traveling with Newsong, but was returning to his solo career. I was excited as I look forward to hearing from him again and, out of the blue, I saw that he had a spot on MySpace, including demos of four songs that will be on his upcoming album. They are great ... apparently, the focus of the album will be on the strength and commitment to Christian marriage.
While I am not married, I do see enough pain and heartbreak in marriages to know that godliness, purity and devotion are not mere sentiments, but things which must not only be committed to, but also expressed through actions and emotions. I believe that will be the focus of his album. You can read more about it and listen to the demo song at Michael's MySpace account. Here is the link. My personal favorite is Love Isn't Love.
Anyway, I am excited about Michael's return to solo status. If you have never heard his music, be sure to check it out.
Man, I really enjoyed those songs. Sorry, but I like that better than I liked Newsong. Let me know when that album comes out! Good stuff.
Posted by
Gregory Fish |
10:07 PM
I agree ... as much as I liked Newsong, I always loved Michael's solo stuff so I am looking forward to it.
Posted by
Dave Smith |
6:21 AM
I love that song newsong did (it was written by Jared Anderson) Rescue. That´s a great worship song!
Posted by
Gregory Fish |
8:34 AM
Sorry to comment again, but your michaelo link is bad. You put .org.com.
By the way, he told me through myspace that he'd keep some of the new songs just piano and vocal. I'll be anxious to see if he does.
Posted by
Gregory Fish |
2:24 PM
Thanks for the update, it has been repaired.
By the way, I heard him sing at a small church in Frisco, Texas without a band and he did a lot of stuff with just the piano. He is terrific in that setting. Of course, prior to being called to use his talents for God, he played and sang in a lot of piano bars.
At the concert in Frisco, he even did a spoof of Billy Joel's Piano Man, using volunteers from the audience as the characters in the musical story about a Christian singer who comes to sing at a little church ... it was very funny.
Anyway, he is a tremendous piano player and in fact, on all his solo albums, he does the piano work on them.
See you cuz!
Posted by
Dave Smith |
3:44 PM
Hi Dave...see you Sunday.
Harry
Posted by
Anonymous |
3:43 PM
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