Customer Reviews

Christmas: A Time for Joy [VHS]

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4 star:		(2)
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The styles are varied in this wonderful show, but the quality always high, with renditions of familiar classics along with a few original songs, with some numbers that are truly thrilling, among them the opening song, a bluegrass flavored "It's a Time for Joy" with Karen Peck and New River, the Gaither Vocal Band with David Phelps doing an exquisite tenor solo on "The Christmas Song" (and Mark Lowry doing Johnny Mathis !), "Children Go Where I Send Thee" with The Bishops giving us harmonies from heaven, the country rockin' sound of "Go Tell" with The Martins, and best of all, "Mary, Did You Know ?" (music and lyrics by Mark Lowry and Buddy Green), sung by the Gaither Vocal Band featuring an emotionally stirring solo by Mark Lowry. The words, melody, and interpretation of this song fills my eyes with tears when I hear it...the disc is worth it for this number alone.

The music is so inspired, I probably would have preferred less humor...one segment in particular isn't that funny and has a "secular entertainment" feel to it, but that is a minor quibble when compared to the overwhelming spirit of this disc, which I'll enjoy any time of the year, with the musicians and singers giving 100% of their talent, and moving one to praise and worship the Lord, in the true spirit of Christmas.
The show was filmed in the Alabama Theater, a lovely ornate theater in Birmingham, Alabama, in 2001, and total running time is 90 minutes.
The DVD extras include an interesting piece titled "Project Spotlight" with people like Joni Eareckson Tada, and subtitles are also available.
Track Listing:
1: Program Opening
2:"It's a Time For Joy", Karen Peck and New River
3: Comedy featuring Mark Lowry and Bill Gaither
4: "Listen to the Angels Sing", The Martins
5: "Angels We Have Heard on High", The Hayes Family
6: "Good News", The Hoppers
7: "White Christmas", Jake Hess
8: "The Friendly Beasts" (just one verse) Jeff and Sheri Easter, Charlotte Ritchie
9: "Sweet Baby Jesus", Jeff and Sheri Easter, Charlotte Ritchie
10: "The Christmas Song", Gaither Vocal Band
11: Comedy with Aaron Wilburn
12: "Children Go Where I Send Thee", The Bishops
13: "Winter Wonderland", Sam Levine on Saxophone
14: "Hope of the Ages", Tanya Goodman Sykes
15: "Merry Christmas, My Love", Allison Durham Speer
16: "Go Tell", The Martins
17: "I'll be Home for Christmas", The Florida Boys
18: "Glory to God", The Talley Trio
19: "Piper's Night Before Christmas" story by Mark Lowry
20: "Holy is Thy Name", Legacy Five
21: Narrative by Zig Ziglar
22: "Five Little Fingers", Stephen Hill
23: Narrative by Gloria Gaither
24: "Ordinary Baby", Amy Rouse
25: "Mary, Did You Know ?", Mark Lowry and the Gaither Vocal Band
26: "The King is Coming", Gaither Vocal Band

We don't usually listen to Christmas music in July; however, we are in the process of building a library of the Gaither Gospel series of Homecoming Concerts. "Christmas - A Time for Joy" arrived in today's mail. Once we looked over the songs included and the featured artists we decided to view the program this evening.

From the very first strains of "It's A Time For Joy" featuring Karen Peck and New River we knew we were in for a memorable evening. The whole concert is packed with great music, lots of laughs, and words of inspiration. Impressive Christmas sets and family centered action shots add another dimension to the celebratory feeling to this seasonal concert.

The program features several popular groups including: The Martins, The Talley Trio, The Hoppers, The Easters, The Florida Boys, and the Bishops. My favorite group numbers were The Legacy Five singing "Holy Is the Name" and The Hayes Family singing "Angels We Have Heard on High." A careful balance of Christian favorites and familiar secular seasonal songs insure this concert will be a family favorite for years to come.

I especially enjoyed "Mary Did You Know" featuring Mark Lowry, Steven Hill's arrangement of "Five Little Fingers" for the younger children, and The Vocal Band's singing "The King is Coming" in tribute to the passing of Rex Nelon. "Ordinary Baby" sung by Amy Rouse was touching as well as watching and listening to Allison Duran Speer featured in a song she wrote as she directed the words to her husband in the first row of the audience.

I'm sure "Christmas is a Time for Joy" will be incorporated into our family tradion.

This DvD is a good one. There is some nice comedy (in song) and the singing is the same wonderful quality we have become accustomed to hearing. No wonder Bill is a bazillionaire lol

We think this is the best of the Gaither Christmas DVDs. It is a mixture of secular Christmas songs and traditional carols with a few newer songs included. The whole DVD is a joy to watch. A few years old now but still one of the better DVDs in this series.