Customer Reviews

Age to Age

5 star:		(34)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Amy has come under fire for the direction her music has taken. Even here in the reviews, I see some of the "judgement". The Lord has used Amy to impact so many peoples lives and to know Him in a much deeper way. Amy followed the direction she felt she was being lead. "Age to Age" was the first Christian album I ever purchased back in 1983. It changed my life forever! "Raining on the inside" touched me so deeply, it caused me to sit and listen to this album over and over for 3 hours, just sobbing. What and incredibly moving experience this album was and continues to be. If you like Amy, you will love this one! A must have CD! Another "must have" from Amy Grant is "Lead Me On". That is by far one of the best albums ever made.

I never used to listen to Christian music. In fact, I always thought it was pretentious and insincere because of all the fake acts I saw on TV. I was a kid--easily influenced by popular opinion but also very guarded about my own sense of spirituality.

I never even knew Amy had a Chrisitan pop career before "Heart in Motion." I fell in love with that album in the early 1990's when it came out. I was in high school, enjoyed those Top 40 pop tunes. I bought the CD's that followed, still not realizing that there was a whole repetoire preceding "Heart in Motion."

I started to attend a non-Catholic church and heard all songs I had never heard of before. Soloists came forth to share their favorite songs. I heard "El Shaddai" and "Fat Baby" sung. It took me 2 years to follow up on those songs and discovered that Amy Grant had recorded those in her early career.

I went on a search for the album that contained those songs. I never knew there were Christian bookstores, except for Catholic gift shops. I was at a regular record store and saw that they had "Age to Age" in their racks but it was not on sale and at a pretty steep price. I waited another 2 years to purchase that CD because I had received a gift certificate for Christmas.

When I got home, I put the CD in my stereo. From the very first notes (literally, 5 seconds into the CD!) of the first track, "Sing Your Praise to the Lord", I said (I'm telling the truth) to myself: "I LOVE THIS ALBUM!" And as every track played on, I knew I had found my newest favorite artist!

This album with its simplicity yet strong message touched my heart, who had never known Christian music before, aside from hymns sung at church. I started to buy Amy's other albums and just fell more in love with her sound and the messages in those songs have truly blessed me.

When she was going through her time of personal trial, my sensibilities were smacked down to the ground. Unlike the many other reviewers who became bitter by her "human moment" (just as they ALL are human), I was humbled because I realized that celebrity changes how we see other people when they are people just like you and me. I learned to appreciate her music more because now I felt like we were on the same level. I also learned never to place anyone on a higher plane except for Jesus Christ and I started to see that in her music, too.

"Age to Age" was the album that started it all for me and from what I've read, for most fans of Amy. It is clearly one of the best but not the last! I recommend this album to be the introduction to Christian music for all potential Contemporary Christian Music listeners!

AGE TO AGE is definitely a Christian music masterpiece, and should be treated that way. It's songs offer what contemporary Christian music fans wanted to hear in 1982. It has great praise-rockers ("Sing Your Praise To The Lord", "I Have Decided"), humorous songs ("Fat Baby"), songs that really touch your heart ("El Shaddai", "In A Little While", "Raining On The Inside", "Arms Of Love"), and songs that you can listen to anytime ("I Love A Lonely Day", "Don't Run Away", "Got To Let It Go"). Amy Grant really gave her absolute best on this album. Of course, nothing can beat LEAD ME ON, but AGE TO AGE is a masterpiece in its own right as well. If you want to travel to the beginnings of CCM, want some cheering up, or just can't find a CD to listen to, then get AGE TO AGE.

This is one of favorite CD's of all time. I first bought "Age to Age" when it came out in a cassette tape and loved it then as well. Of course, I couldn't help but buy the CD as well. I have many of Amy Grant's CD's, but this is still my favorite. As a Christian, these songs are very meaningful for me and evoke many spiritual feelings. I highly recommend this CD for anyone.

Amy Grant hit the Christian music scene in the 1977 with AMY GRANT, and MY FATHER'S EYES was a very successful follow-up. But AGE TO AGE set a totally new standard and after its release things would never be the same.

The cover is one of the all-time classic ccm covers; beautiful in its soft simplicity. There are two of THE great historical songs here: "El Shaddai" and "Sing Your Praise To the Lord." Two more, "In A Little While" and "I Have Decided" remain just below that level of recognition, though the entire project is stellar. In particular, the songwriter line-up here, from today's perspective, is remarkable: Amy, Gary, Brown Bannister, Michael W. Smith, Rich Mullins, Michael Card, Kathy Troccoli, etc.

Amy was one of the top young names in CCM before AGE TO AGE. After its release she was "Amy Grant," and the power of the songs recorded here propelled her career to a whole new level that really has yet to be reached by another Christian artist over a long period of time. AGE TO AGE is also the high watermark of Amy's first/early guitar-oriented sound, which is recognized by mostly simple arrangements which she could perform solo with hew acoustic guitar. After her UNGUARDED project that would change.

In the end, AGE TO AGE set new standards in mainstream christian music and brought the world some of our most treasured classic songs. It is a must-own for any christian music fan who desires to own all of the golden projects of the genre. Its sound ideally recaptures the more simple and innocent years of what is now a sprawling multi-style genre. Other than LEAD ME ON, it is Amy at her best. FIVE STARS

Like many of the other reviewers, I first listened to this CD about 15 years ago. At the time I was traveling with my youth group to visit Grace College in Winona Lake, Indiana. Prior to this trip I was not very familiar with Christian music and thought the very idea of it boring. Then a friend began to play Amy Grant's "Age to Age." I remember being spellbound as I listened to this music describe how I felt as a Christian for the first time. Much like one's first love, I will always hold this CD and Amy Grant very dear to my heart. God allowed her to speak to so many people through her music and it made a tremendous impact on my life. I am now in my early 30s and "Age to Age" still touches me like no other Christian music can. It's nostalgic, deep and moving. That trip to Winona Lake took over 14 hours from Richmond, Va., and I remember never tiring of "Age to Age." As I look back now, those long hours and this special music seemed to last but a brief moment.....

All pop music lovers should own "Age To Age."

This album has "skins on the wall." It was the first CCM album in history to go platinum. CCM Magazine, using two different sets of criteria and reviewers, ranked it once as the #3 CCM album of all time and then again as the fifth best LP/CD in history. The supporting artists involved with the album became practically a Who's Who of CCM.

But ultimately it's not about the accolades, it's about the music. "Age To Age" is sometimes reverent ("El Shaddai"), somtimes rejoicing ("Sing Your Praise To The Lord"), and sometimes just plain fun ("Fat Baby"). But every track, whatever it's personality, contains perfectly crafted pop music.

If you're a Christian, this album will speak to you in a special way. If you're not, just think of this as an album of love songs (which it is). If you like 80's Adult Contemporary music, you will love "Age To Age."

From the day I bought this record (yes, that far back), it ruled my music until Amy's next album, Straight Ahead, came out. I fell in love with Rich Mullins, Gary Chapman, Michael W. Smith, Kathy Troccoli, DeGarmo & Key, Billy Sprague, Michael Card and the whole Nashville Christian Music scene because of the tender, energetic, hopeful work on this album and in Amy's work to that point. From the classical notes beginning "Sing Your Praise to the Lord" (track 6, which begins side 2 in the tape or record, but is the best of the album) to the hope on "Arms of Love", it was my spiritual life and love. The honesty, the faith, the determination to live for Christ in "I have decided", the encouragement in "Don't Run Away", Michael Card's wonderful praise and work on "El Shaddai", the failure and hope in "In a Little While"- every track is a keeper for the disciple of Jesus. While not current, it is timeless in its message and unique in the history of Contemporary Christian music.

To paraphrase another reviewer... "WOW!"

In the 1970's I hung out in Christian coffee houses, listened to to Phil Keaggy and the Glass harp, and enjoyed such unknown artists as Amy Grant.

A few years ago I heard Amy Grant on a secular Pop radio station and thought "there's a name from my past" and merely thought that another christian musician/artist has left the fold.

Not so.

When the local radio stations in the greater Cleveland area played "musical Chairs" with their frequencies, and a new contemporary christian station (95.5 FM "The Fish" WFHM, Cleveland) replaced the dry, snobby classical station (95.5 FM- now 104.9 FM,WCLV, Cleveland) that I had been forced to listen to while my prefered public radio classical (89.7 FM, WKSU, Kent)did 4 hours of NPR news in the mornings and afternoons, I was amazed and pleased to be listening to vintage and new Amy Grant tracks alongside other artists I recognized and many new ones I am just discovering.

Well, it didn't take long to search Amazon.com and find all of the titles I was looking for. Among the other CDs I ordered, I especially wanted this one, "AGE TO AGE" because of one tune I had heard many years ago.

That track was "El ShaddaiP>This whole CD is what Christianity is supposed to be about, a way of life, an emotion that lifts your spirit up and makes you so happy that you have to share it with everyone that will listen!

No, Amy Grant hasn't sold out or abandoned her Christian music roots. She is just as bright, inspired and motivating as she was when she played the Christian coffee house circuit! I would even venture to say that she has risen above the "Neil Diamondesque" production values of "Sing your Praise to..." and recaptured the true spirit of uplifting Christian music with that wonderful voice and inspired arrangements backed by sound production techniques.

Yes, I enjoy this CD. I enjoy Amy Grant. I hope you will too.

"Make a joyful noise unto the Lord..."

I'll be honest. I've never really listened to Christian music. I became a fan when she released "Heart in Motion" and the other two albums that succeeded that (which were basically mostly secular songs). I didn't even know that she had other bodies of work because I was not a listener of Christian music. I had my eye on the "Age to Age" album since 1998 (it's 3/00 now). I finally bought it about 6 months ago. I fell in love from the very first song. If this CD were a person, I'd call it congenial. The lyrics are beautiful. It's simplicity makes it accessible to all who listen. My favorites are "In a Little While", "Fat Baby" (great song - listen to the words!), "El Shaddai" and "Sing Your Praises". I love the whole album, in fact! If you are new to Christian music or have never been into it and your taste in music is pretty much soft rock/Adult Contemporary/Top 40, this is the album for you! This album has inspired me to buy her other CD's and I'm still seeking more (and I have been satisfied with them all too)! It brings me to a higher spiritual plane when I listen to these songs. She has truly been blessed by God. All the glory goes to Him! Alleluia!