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's career has spanned three decades, with over seven-million-records sold and 25 number one singles, Smith has consistently been one of Christian music's most solid performers. On his latest release Healing Rain, Smith uplifts his beliefs to produce a disc worthy of praise. On the cuts like the title track and "Here I Am" Smith seems at ease with his direction and his performance. On tunes like "Fly to the Moon" Smith varies from a piano driven melody and opts for guitars to lead the way while the cut "We Can't Wait Any Longer" offers up looping drums and synths to deliver a poignant message. An enjoyable detour exists in the form of "Bridge Over Troubled Water." While many would consider a Simon & Garfunkel cover to be untouchable, Smith covers the tune with realism and passion. The cut is not only musically excellent but vocally the song is delivered with conviction. Healing Rain is a statement for Michael W. Smith. It's a testimony to an artist comfortable within a genre that he's owned for 20 years. ~ Steven Douglas Losey

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