Healing Rain (CD - 2004)

Personnel: Michael W. Smith (guitar, piano, Fender Rhodes piano, Wurlitzer organ, keyboards, programming, background vocals); Michael W. Smith (vocals, Hammond b-3 organ); Glenn Pearce (guitar); Sam Ashworth (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, background vocals); Matt Slocum (acoustic guitar, electric guitar); Christi Black, David Davidson , David Angell (violin); Monisa Angell (viola); Mark Lekas (cello); Nashville Chamber Orchestra, Prague Philharmonic Orchestra (strings); Jeremy Bose (bass guitar, programming); Antoine Salley, James Gregory, Anthony Sallee (bass guitar); F. Reid Shippen, Taylor Harris (programming); Sheree Brown, Darwin Hobbs, LeAnne Palmore (background vocals); Paul Moak (guitar, electric guitar, E-bow, sitar, toy piano, Mellotron, Moog synthesizer, vibraphone, sound effects); Bruce Gaitsch (acoustic guitar); Raymond Boyd (drums, percussion); Lindsay Jamieson (drums).

Additional personnel: Wayne Kirkpatrick.

Audio Mixers: F. Reid Shippen; Rob Burrell; Shane D. Wilson.

Recording information: Art House; Blackbird Studio; Dark Horse Recording; Deer Valley Studio; Laser Fox Studios; Ocean Way Studios; Pentavarit; Skywalker Sound, Marion, CA; Studio M, San Antonio, TX; The Smokestack.

Photographer: Pamela Springsteen.

Unknown Contributor Role: Paul Moak.

Michael W. Smith was one of the first Christian rock/pop artists to achieve widespread success with a mainstream secular audience. HEALING RAIN is one of his most accessible offerings, combining the pure pop melodic flair of Vertical Horizon and Matchbox Twenty with the grandiose arena-rock production style favored by bands like Styx. Lyrically, Smith's declarations of faith and hope are broad and sweeping, often falling less into the praise & worship bag and more into a category that could be termed "positive outlook." Musically, the album uses the full range of modern sounds, from the sweeping strings and mechanized beats of "Live Forever" to the rich vocal harmonies and No Doubt-esque synth melodies of "Eagles Fly." A special treat is the singer's dramatic version of the Simon & Garfunkel classic "Bridge over Troubled Water," which proves that Smith can turn even secular songs into stirring expressions of faith. minimize