Customer Reviews

Heaven in the Real World

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I have to believe it's the fact that he has more control over his own sound, but Chapman sounds like he's really having fun making this album and that makes it another step up for him. For the first time, SCC joins with Phil Naish to produce and his voice sounds stronger and he takes more chances with it (and with the music for that matter, including his first genuine rock number).

HIGHLIGHTS:
The title tune kicks things off with its call for life change NOW...rather than in a future paradise. ("Where is the hope?/Where is the peace?/That will make this life complete/For every man, woman, boy and girl looking for/Heaven in the real world") Knowing Jesus personally, of course, offers that "real world" peace. A percussive track is the foundation for "King of the Jungle"..the jungle being the "rat race" of modern life. It's Chapman's reminder that "the Lord of the gentle breeze is Lord of the rough and tumble",too. "Dancing with the Dinosaur" celebrates the "old fogey" label placed on those of us who assert traditional morality. ("Right is right and wrong is wrong just like it has been all along....") "Treasure of You" is an electric guitar charged self-esteem boost. ("You are a treasure/Worth more than anything under the sun or the moon/God's greatest treasure/the treasure of you...") "Remember the Chains" urges believers to remember their sinful pasts in order to better appreciate their freedom in Christ. ("Remember your chains/Remember the prison that once held you/before the love of God broke through/Remember the place you were without grace/When you see where you are now, remember your chains and remember your chains are gone..") "Facts are Facts" isn't very deep lyrically (more or less God said it, I believe it, that settles it..) but it's a quality rock-edged rave-up.

LOWS:
"The Mountain" is tuneful and "nice" but not especially memorable. SCC sounds remarkably like Dan Hill on "Love and Learn"'s call for marital reconciliation. Again, it's pretty but not really on par with past "love songs" like "I Will be Here" or "Go There with You".

BOTTOM LINE:
While I think those saying this is his BEST record are being too generous, (ALL THINGS NEW, SIGNS OF LIFE and DECLARATION are decidedly superior on all levels) Chapman does advance his craft again here and turns in a very solid disc. A must for all Chapman fans and most CCM fans in general will probably enjoy it.

At last, Chapman has progressed to the stage where I feel that he has thrown off most of his inhibitions and is really starting to have fun with his music. This album has a higher percentage of upbeat songs than previous releases, with an all-out celebration in tracks like Facts Are Facts and Treasure of You.

Of course, it wouldn't be a Steven Curtis Chapman album without a couple of moving slow songs as well. Offerings like The Mountain, Love and Learn and Remember Your Chains are much more than filler. There are no ordinary songs here - fast or slow, joyful or contemplative, each track is lyrically and musically strong, a pleasure to listen to again and again.

Larry Hehn, author of Get the Prize: Nine Keys for a Life of Victory

SCC's creativity and love for God come through loud and clear on this album, (Like his others). It is very clear that SCC not only writes music for the sake of writing music, he definately writes it "For the Sake of the Call". His creative way of tackling life and the issues in the songs "Heaven in the Real World","Dancing with the Dinasour" and "King of the Jungle" while keeping Christ the center of it all, is great! I immediately fell in love with the songs,"Burn the Ships", "Rememer Your Chains", "Still Listening" and several others! "The Treasure of You" also seems to be one of Jay Bell's (the 2nd baseman for the AZ Diamondbacks) favorites, seeing that he played it as a theme song for one of his reviews at one of his home games! Though I wouldn't say SCC plays Christian country music, the song "The Mountain" does give you sort of a nice, warm, country feeling. I've got alot of CCM artists albums which I like. I also have alot of SCC's albums which I love! But if I had to choose my favorites, this one would have to be one of them!

Heaven in the real world is one of those albums that you can listen to in the good times or the bad times,when the sun is shining and when its pouring with rain.This is a really great all round album-from really upbeat in songs like Dancing with the Dinosaur and Heaven in the real world to the really intimate songs that you hear God speak so clearly through-SCC in fine form as always.This comes very highly recommened-I have had it for 4 and a half years and I am " Still listening".Get it if you can its BRILLIANT!!!!

I purchased this cd for someone. It was signed as stated. The person really enjoys the cd and was glad to have a signed copy. Great price and fast shipping.

I think it's the beginning of his best work musically, lyrically, messagecally... in it's message. It continues to challenge my faith walk. I really began playing "Message Music" after hearing this album.

SCC is a blessed writer/singer. Though several years old, still pertains to today. From King of the Jungle, Dancing with the Dinosaurs to Remember Your Chains to The Treasure of You. God is in control and He loves you. There's not a better message to share with the world.

Such a wonderful blend of music. Some songs are fun to listen to and others are very meaningful and thought-provoking. Steven is an amazing writer and God has blessed many people through the songs that he has written. This CD is no different. I can't say it will change lives, but even if it doesn't you've listened to some pretty good music.

For his sixth studio album, Steven Curtis Chapman had a tough act to follow. The Great Adventure (1992) and its tour (captured on The Live Adventure [1993]) had catapulted him to the very top of the contemporary Christian music (CCM) scene. How could Chapman at the least maintain his new top pop artist status and, preferably, expand his audience? The 31-year-old singer/songwriter answered that question by both continuing successful trends started on his last studio project and taking new risks. The result was Heaven in the Real World (1994), his most successful album for many years.

The album's theme, elucidated in the opening title track, was inspired by Chapman's service with Prison Fellowship Ministries. It calls on Christians to be active in their spheres of influence, bringing the hope and peace lacking in the world to individuals and communities. Chapman wrote to his audience in the lyric booklet, "Now is the time for those of us who embody this kingdom [of God] to defend the truth, overcome evil with good, and live lives that proclaim and display heaven in the real world."

Chapman weaves this theme throughout the remainder of the album. "The Mountain," a reflective country/pop ballad, reminds listeners that God gives times of renewal and strengthening not so that they can stay "way up high" with God, but to facilitate their ministry to others in "the valley." "Remember Your Chains," a beautiful, moving ballad in which Chapman compares Christians to prisoners who have been set free by Christ, most obviously reveals the Prison Fellowship connection. "Heartbeat of Heaven" emphasizes the need to reach out to others. The theme, though often implicit, can be discerned on every song in this collection.

The seriousness of this theme is counterbalanced, however, by a sense of fun that surpasses even that found on The Great Adventure. The second and third tracks bring this tendency to the forefront. "King of the Jungle," the album's second single (after the title track), tackles the issues of stress and busyness by humorously reminding listeners that God is in charge. "Dancing with the Dinosaur's" metaphor, meanwhile, springs from Chapman watching his children dancing with popular American `90s kids' superstar Barney. The song emphasizes the need to "liv[e] our lives with conscience and conviction" and served as the third single.

And when Chapman isn't using lighthearted analogies, he's often making his songs rock harder than he ever did in the past. "Treasure of You" and "Facts Are Facts" provide the best examples of anthems that lift the listener so high that the songs never come across as serious as their messages suggest. ("Treasure of You" deals with low self-esteem, while "Facts Are Facts" is an almost mini-creed in its confession of Christian truths.)

By the time of the Great Adventure tour, Chapman had found that family stories connected with audiences, so Heaven in the Real World gives us two of them. "Love and Learn" is another of Chapman's many songs to his wife Mary Beth. "Still Listening" is a song inspired by Steven's and Mary Beth's bedtime prayers with their children. Both are moving ballads.

On Heaven in the Real World, Chapman returned to the pop/rock field that he previously left behind after Real Life Conversations (1988). He never seemed entirely comfortable with the demands those genres placed on him when making his first two albums. Heaven in the Real World, however, finds him conquering this territory confidently and successfully. Evidently, he just needed to grow in this area. The pop/rock approach also undoubtedly contributed to the album's success, as staying with the country/pop approach of the previous three albums could only take him so far.

Most of the songs on this album are excellent both lyrically and musically, but there are a few good songs that do not measure up to the other ones. "Burn the Ships" calls on Christians to get rid of everything that hinders their Christian lives. With its sobering message and crunching guitars, it unfortunately comes across as too dark for this album. (It's also the first example of Chapman putting one hard rock song on each album, a trend that continued for many years.) Chapman evidently felt strongly enough about "Heartbeat of Heaven" to use it as a reprise that closes the album, but the bluesy song never takes off musically or lyrically when it should soar. "Miracle of Mercy" provides the customary personal, affecting song for this album, but it's too low-key to be memorable.

Heaven in the Real World would prove to be Chapman's last (to date) project with Phil Naish as either sole or primary producer. (Chapman himself co-produced some of the albums made under Naish, including this one.) While the singer would move on to greater artistic heights under producer Brown Bannister, Naish should be remembered as the one who brought Chapman to front-runner status in the CCM industry. The fact that he could help Chapman successfully navigate through three different genres (country, pop, and rock) is also impressive.

And Heaven in the Real World is a remarkable accomplishment. Of all of Chapman's studio projects, it is his most lighthearted one even while it addresses serious concerns. There's a fluidity present that carries along even the album's less successful songs. It lives on the border between four stars and five stars, only missing the higher rating because it is somewhat less impressive than other Steven Curtis Chapman albums that deserve that grade. Four-and-three-quarter stars.

this is the best album in christian music yet!all 13 songs on here are amazing!even the 56 second reprise at the end!i love the songs heaven in the real world,king of the jungle,dancing with the dinosaurs,treasure of you,and remember your chains!

YOU BETTER BUY THIS!!!!!!!!!!!!!