Customer Reviews

Ana Laura

5 star:		(10)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

A couple months ago I read the album review for Ana Laura's self-titled album in a Christian music magazine where they gave her an "A". After reading that I decided I wanted to know more about her and her music. So, I went to a website that carries her music and listened to the clips. Even though I only heard 30 seconds of each song I knew it was going to be a great CD! So, of course, I decided to purchase it. Obviously, I was not disappointed. This young lady sings with so much passion and has such a powerful voice to convey these ever-so powerful songs.

I believe this young lady has a very long and successful music career ahead of her. And, I am looking forward to each and every project ahead of her. I am so grateful that she uses her voice talents to glorify the Lord.

I was in my Christian book store the other day and saw this CD on sale and loved the cover, so I went over to the listening station and the moment I heard the first note ministered on this CD, it was drawn in! She is very anointed and the sweetness of the anointing is present in every word that is sung. She is also powerful and you can hear the soulfulness of her Hispanic heritage - very rich just like Jaci, Rachael, and Christina!!! Here is a rundown of the tracks and why I love them (I love when people do this for me especially with new artists)
1. Sometimes. 5/5 This is upbeat with a good driving pace. It talkes about the mercy and restoring power of our GOd that when we fall, lose our way, He is there to make us new again, so we keep on stepping out in faith

2. No More 5/5 This is another uptempo song. I love the message of this one. It talks about how when we met God we came in not knowing Him or what He wanted from us, or even what we were willing to give to Him. This song declares with passion and power that I will not be a victim or held down or afraid anymore, because of who God is.

3 & 4 If You Ever Fall - 5/5 GORGEOUS! Ballad. "If you ever fall, just fall into My arms. I will never hurt you. If you're ever going to trust My heart, I will be here, to catch you when you fall" Oh, how precious the Fathers love for us to catch us when life hurts us or we fail!

5. Water 5/5 CIndy Morgan is part of the writing team on this, so it is really supurb lyrically - upbeat. God really is like water to our souls. Oh how we need him

6. Safe in You 4/5 really good. only giving 4 because I am not listening to it right now and cant remember much about it, but I do remember that I never skip tracks on this CD, so I know that I like it

7. Completely 10/5 LOL. Yes, it is THAT good. Ballad. "The secret of life is letting go. The secret of love is letting it show in all that I do, in all that I say, right here in this moment. The power of prayer is in a humble cry. The power of faith is in giving my life and laying it down, down at your feet...Take my heart, take my soul, I surrender everything to Your control. And let all that is within me lift up to You and say, I am Yours and Yours alone Completely!" Enough said

8. Dont Run Away 4/5 again. dont remember specifics, but not a skipper

9. Giver of Life 5/5 Beautiful Ballad. God the Creator of the Universe loves us and gives us everything we need!

10. Because You Loved Me 3.5/5. Nice. But Celine Dion does this much, much better. She does a great job though. Maybe the arrangement isnt as good as the original. I dont know, but still very nice.

11. Abide in Me - 7/5. My second Fav song on the album. Ballad. "Abide in me. Jesus live here in this place I save just for you. Abide in me. Jesus draw near as I wait for You." There is also a line about healer of broken hearts - and HE is, HE really really really is!

If you buy this album, you will be so blessed. She is anointed and her love for Jesus is present in every single note she sings. I have had 3,4,7,9,11 on constant rotation for the last 3 weeks and will for a while longer!

WOW!!! Great CD, great artist. While watching the movie, "Facing the Giants", I was soooo impressed with a song which is played during one of the films's most moving scenes. I knew that I HAD to find out who this incredible singer was that was singing this beautiful and powerful song. I searched the end credits and found that is was the song "Completely", sung by Ana Laura. I was not familiar with this artist, but believe me I am now. I have now listened to the entire CD and I am so impressed. I could not believe that Ana is so young because she has a very mature sounding voice and she sings with a style and artistry that is way beyond her years. Also, "Completely" is an absolutley beautiful song musically and the lyrics are very powerful and full of truth. I mean, isn't this what the Christian life is really all about....total and complete surrender to God, giving ourselves completely to Him? Ana has truely been given a gift from God, and if she will stay humble and focused on Him, she will have a wonderful future ahead of her in Cont. Christian music....and I know I will always be a big fan. Please check out this CD if you haven't....you will absolutely love it!!

Why Ana Laura? Certainly she comes across as a genuinely nice and normal person. But from the first listen, you know that there is more to her than just an image. What sets Ana apart from thousands of other Christian artists who have well-produced music is that she has an exceptionally GREAT singing voice, a quality lost in much of today's music.

This album starts out with the best track of the CD, Sometimes. If you like pop with a good melody, hook and guitar riffs, you will love this song! Ana has amazing voice control for her age. She's a natural, born to sing, and varies between gentle, expressive, getting down, and rocking. She can even match Mariah Carey's high ad lib ditties. No More is very "now" sounding and tailor-made for the younger listeners. It's the only Ana co-written song on the album. Most artists write some of their own music and I am sure Laura does as well, but she is on a label and they call the shots. In Ana's case, it worked out well using other songwriters, but I'd like to hear more of Ana's songs on her next project.

If You Ever Fall has strings bringing in a gorgeous song which is broken up into tracks 3 (a prelude) and track 4, the song. This is so it can be used as a radio song without too much intro. The female audience surely loves this song, but no matter what gender you are you can't help but be moved by this wonderful arrangement. Water is the third of four radio tracks, very today and unique. It has a different sound compared to the other songs on this debut album, and sets it apart on this album and on the radio as well. Completely sounds just like a young Amy Grant and you'd swear it was Amy (at first) if you heard it played alone and not on a CD. By the end of the song she is Mariah, but a worshipful one (thank God!) It is an 80's throwback track, but it worked then and it does still. The opening guitar riff on Don't Run Away sounds similar to the Clarkson smash, "Since U Been Gone". It's another pop delight with good drive and excellent instrumentation.

Giver of Life is a love song to our Savior, just an emotional gem. It's a songwriter's dream to have such a gifted singer and producer to bring this song to life. If this album wasn't so great already I'd pick this as the best track. As it is, it's a precious stone among a cache of jewels. Ana takes the familiar Diane Warren song, Because You Loved Me, and turns it into deep praise to the One. Because showcases Laura's vocals again, and you almost forget there is instrumentation behind her. Abide In Me ends the album the way you'd expect it to, quietly and beautifully. It's very worshipful, and draws to a close a wonderfully executed CD.

I'd like to shake the hand of whoever brought Ana to the forefront. She is the Kelly Clarkson of Christian music.

Ana Laura has a wonderful voice and sound and she uses them for Christ.What a role model for young girls today and such a positive influence,too.

I first heard her single "Because You Loved Me" on the Christian radio station K-LOVE, before the release of this debut CD. It immediately lifted my spirits and put a smile on my face, and highly recommend you give Ana a listen. I have listened to only a few Christian music artists, mostly CD samplers, & enjoy them for the artistic beauty & spirituality they lend, similar to new age music. Until Ana's CD release, I was a blues, classic-rock and classical music audiophile listener. There's really only one voice that I could compare Ana Laura Chavez to - Linda Ronstadt that I saw in concert, in her prime at the Tulsa Civic Center in '76, not long after her departure from the Eagles. Ana's voice, song writing, orchestral arrangements, multi-genre music, Mexican/American heritage, and Christian roots is sure to have a similarly long career, not only as Christian music's newest rising star, but as a voice with heartfelt universal appeal. Yes, and I'll be in the front row too Ana if you get up to Colorado. Please come!

I have very eclectic tastes musically but am extremely picky about what I buy much of the time in the arena of CCM. I am a songwriter and a seminary student, and I owe much of my faith development to contemporary Christian music. As a result, I tend to hold CCM to fairly high standards. I was not at all disappointed with this purchase!

This is the most theologically sound, bold, passionate testimony I have heard in many years.

Ana's combination of varied musical styles representing her South Texas and Mexican-American heritage and her study of classical music bring a rich expressiveness to her music that allows her to back up her words with an amazingly appropriate musical mood and motif. It is clear that she has studied professionally and can handle a gentle, soothing melody such as "Abide in Me" with clear, sweet vocals.

At the same time, she is no stranger to belting out--even wailing--in a powerful song like "Sometimes," crying, "I need a Saviour!" after laying out with brutal honesty the fact that she sometimes falls (accompanied by a long-lasting, disappointed-sounding minor chord) ... but "that's not where I'll stay" (with a rejoicing progression of major chords). The chord structure of this song is absolutely fascinating! As Ana sings that she sometimes makes mistakes, the music deviates from the expected key and chord structure, playing out the shock that acquaintances and onlookers feel when leaders fall. As she sings, "I will fall ..." and moves on to sing about falling into grace, the music returns to the original key, representing the stability of Christ's presence and redemption.

"No more" expresses the depth of her commitment and the kind of realization that brings about a transformed life in Christ, and the upbeat tempo is representative of the joy that accompanies such a transformational experience. The fact that she participated in the writing process is significant for this particular song for me.

"Water..." When does this girl breathe??? It sounds like she desperately NEEDS a drink of water by the end of the song! What a stunning expression--musically, vocally, and lyrically--of dependence on Christ's "living water!"

I could write for hours about this project. My next purchase will be her Spanish CDs--for myself and for my Spanish-speaking friends! I hope that she has a very very long career and a very blessed ministry--and I hope she comes to Indiana. I'll be in the front row!

I enjoyed Ana Laura's premiere project more than some other recent Christian female vocalists, though there are others I like better (Sarah Kelly, Kristy Starling, Ginny Owens, Kara Williamson are all examples).

My favorite songs were "Sometimes", "Water", "Completely", "Don't Run Away", and "Abide In Me" (a new song, not the tradional hymn). I loved the ending at the end of "Abide In Me".

Very rarely do I find a CD where I like ALL the songs... This is one of them.

Most things that can be said about this album have been said by other reviewers, but I wanted to contribute one piece of information that I felt hadn't been clearly noted. Many of you will find this CD because you are searching for the song "Completely" off of the movie "Facing the Giants". Well, you can stop searching... the version of this song that is on this album is the exact same one as the one on the movie. She has sung other versions of this song, and there are other versions on Amazon.com, but if you want the same one as the movie, get this one.