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In the Name of Love, Christian artists cover U2
Posted on Saturday, April 10 @ 10:53:09 CEST by Macphisto
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(The Crusader) -- You hear about the tragedy in Africa related to HIV and AIDS but you think, 'how can little ol' me make a difference?' The virus has become a pandemic, affecting most of Africa, killing countless people every day. World Vision, an international relief organization, and Sparrow Records have taken an initiative with the January release of In the Name of Love: Artists United for Africa.
Thirteen prominent Christian artists including Pillar, Sanctus Real, Audio Adrenaline, Sixpence None the Richer, Jars of Clay, Tobymac, and more cover thirteen songs by perhaps the greatest humanitarian and Christian rock band ever: U2. Artists add their particular style to each track while still maintaining the essence of the original, changing little or none of the lyrics and music.
The album dives into the familiar 11-year-old drum solo of "Sunday Bloody Sunday" covered by always-powerful Pillar. Helping the cause, Pillar has added their cover to their current concert set list. Sanctus Real tags along on Pillar's energy adding a thumping account of "Beautiful Day," the album's first single.
Perhaps the most surprising cover is "Love is Blindness" by Sixpence None the Richer. The track contradicts every notion of the general population's image of Sixpence. The band is known for their pop singles "Kiss Me" and "There She Goes" but lead singer, Leigh Nash, turns a new leaf in the deep, melodic, slow-moving rendition of this U2 song from 1991. Since Sixpence's break-up, announced in the last issue of CCM, their cover of "Love is Blindness" could be one of their last contributions to the world of music.
One of very few elements of this album that could actually be disputed as unnecessary or substandard is Grits' (featuring Jadyn Maria) cover of "With or Without You." It should actually be published as 'Jadyn Maria featuring Grits' because while she beautifully sings the entire song, "Coffee" and "Bonafide" of Grits simply rap the chorus and utter other echoing phrases throughout the track. While the song is composed in a refreshing and interesting way, it disrupts the flow of the album between "One" by Tait and Todd Agnew's throaty, country interpretation of "When Love Comes to Town."
The rest of the album is comprised of "40" by Starfield, "Gloria" by Audio Adrenaline, "Grace" by Nicole Nordeman, "All I Want Is You" by Jars of Clay, and concludes with Chris Tomlin's "Where the Streets Have No Name."
A portion of the proceeds from each album goes to the adoption and support of the Mwakankomba village in Zambia, which has been devastated in recent years by HIV and AIDS. For more information about In the Name of Love or how you can help with World Vision's ministry opportunities visit www.inthenameoflovecd.com or www.worldvision.org.
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