Customer Reviews

Music Through Heartsongs

5 star:		(80)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(3)
1 star:		(7)

 

 

For starters, this was a daring endeavor. I think they did okay with the challenge of placing music to a 10 year olds poems. Far from being a "filler" while Billy's voice changed, I think it was probably a challenge for him and his producers. As for Billy's vocal changes, evident for the first time on this album. . . I think he sounds WONDERFUL. I loved the new tone of his voice, it was extremely compelling. The best vocal performance on the cd is It Happened Anyway, when he holds that note "it happened anywaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay" that whole song was sung with strength and incredible control, and RANGE which had not been seen much from Billy before. For Our World is another good vocal performance, as is Shades Of Life. As for the songs themselves - nothing too catchy, you have to take them for what they are - not catchy sing alongs but inspirations and appeals to lost innocence. Such as the lost innocence of adults who will inevitably criticize this album as cliche and uninteresting. Tsk Tsk for you have exactly missed the lesson in this collection of songs. Its not a masterpiece, but Billy's voice remains strong (in fact strongER) and flawless, with a whole new tone.

Mattie Stepanek passed away on June 22, 2004. He was a best-selling poet and advocate for victims of muscular dystrophy. Dysautonomic mitochondrial myopathy, or muscular dystrophy, is a genetic disease that impairs the heart rate, breathing, blood pressure, and digestion as well as causing muscle weakness.

I purchased this CD years ago when it first came out because I liked Billy Gilman's voice--he is very, very talented. I then learned later that Billy Gilman was a friend of Mattie, and through that friendship and support, this album was created. It is one of my favorite CDs, because the music is beautiful, the vocals wonderful, and the message positive, sweet and life affirming.

That Mattie has just passed away has broken my heart. I now listen to this album with a new appreciation for Mattie's life--and for his unearthly wisdom for his young years. He taught love, forgiveness, hope and peace. Simple really, but hard to apply in this world. Please, please listen to this CD. Buy it! Share in Mattie's message. Spread his message. Make his life count! He had a beautiful soul. And Billy Gilman's voice and talent are so wonderful to the task of spreading Mattie's message of love and peace. Buy this CD. It's good for you. But today I weep for Mattie. I also celebrate his life and message. - GC

This album is a grand collection of poetry from Mattie, thats only enhanced by the absolutely grand talents of Billy Gilman.

Wow. I can't believe Billy Gilman and Mattie J.T. Stepanek joined together to create one amazing cd! My youngest daughter was inspired by Stepanek's words and my eldest granddaughter was inspired by Gilman's singing talent. So imagine mother's inspiration and daughter's idol combining together to create Music Through Heartsongs. They just love this album! They bond together thanks to this album. They're favorite songs are: For Our World and It Happened Anyway. For Our World reminded them of 9/11 and It Happened Anyway reminded them of someone close to them. My daughter thinks it reminds her of my granddaughter's father. My granddaughter agrees with her mother, although her father died when she was a baby. Anyway, Billy Gilman, once again, you gave us another amazing album to listen to. We will never forget Mattie J.T. Stepanek. We pay tribute to him. Mattie, we'll miss you and your unbelievable words. Great job, boys!

I have been a fan of Billy Gilman since July 2001, and I thought it would be hard for him to top his 2x platinum debut, One Voice, his Gold Christmas album, Classic Christmas, and his Gold sophomore effort, Dare to Dream, but my expectations were gone beyond from the moment I listened to the first track. In his fourth album, the 14-year-old teams up with Mattie Stepanek, a young poet with muscular dystrophy, who has about 5 books of poems to date. Billy and several veteran Nashville songcrafters (including his producer, David Mally) team up for what is most definitely the highlight of 2003's music scene.

The genres on the album, though mostly bereft of Billy's original country roots, are as widely varied as the Hawaiian-themed "Songs of the Wind" to the R&B/Pop soon-to-be-standared "The Gift Of Color", which thanks God for color. The subjects are varied also while keeping with Mattie's theme of peace (both in the world and of the mind); on album opener "For Our World", Billy belts out a poignant plea for peace, while on "It Happened Anyway", he beautifully delivers Mattie's masterpiece on the loss of his brother, who also had MD. Mattie proves to be an able songwriter/poet and Billy proves to be one of the most talented teens on the music scene with such lyrics as "I am black, I am white, I am all skins in between/I am young, I am old, I am each age that has been" on the beautiful first single, I Am/Shades Of Life. While Nashville has been collectively holding its breath, seeing what will come out of the vocal box of this mezzo soprano turned alto because of the voice change, it will be greatly satisfied by this wonderful effort.

OK, I have to say that I was one of those people that never cared much for country music...that is until I heard the Billy Gilman song "Oklahoma" from his first album "One Voice". (And boy, did that video bring me to tears!) After that I still didn't care much for country, but I bacame a big Billy Gilman fan. Something about his voice and the earnestness I found there spoke to me. His new album "Music Through Heartsongs" is every bit as good as his previous three albums. As happens with kids, he grew up some and his voice has matured and has found new ranges and opened up a whole new world in the area of music! I was a bit skeptical about the songs being converted from the poems of Mattie Stepanek, but their message really fits with Billy's voice and who he is as well. There are some very good songs on this album. "It Happened Anyway" deals with death from a child's perspective and Billy really brings that emotion out. "I Could If They Would" is a song of hope and acceptance, and I must say that Billy really nails the emotions here too. "About Watches" is a nice little ditty on which Billy is a cowriter for the music (he also helped write the music on "About Memories") Probably the strongest song on the album is "I Am/Shades of Life" as someone who works with kids, the lyric "The color of hope is rainbows and purple, the color of peace is people together" really spoke to me. Many kids do see things in the abstract and this really brings that point home. I applaud Billy for taking on this project. Thank you Billy for putting together another truley wonderful and remarkable album. Please, do the world a favor and keep making music.

This album is sung by the teen phenomenon Billy Gilman and the words by Mattie J.T. Stepanek, unfortunately, who was born with a rare form of muscular dystrophy that runs in the family. This album is filled with inspirational lyrics that will touch your heart and fill your eyes with tears. Billy's angelic voice made this album even more worth it of your money and time listening to this best-ever album!

1) For Our World - This is one of my favourite track in this album. This song is about peace and the unique individuality of each and everyone

2) About the Things That Matter - This song reminds mee to cherish everything that I have presently and to share and to be kind to everyone in our life

3) Morning Gift - This song made me wake up early in the morning, and for the first time, I truly tasted the beautiful and peaceful morning!

4) I Am/Shades of Life - This songis his first single out of this album, and I love it! This song shows the differences of everyone and it made me open up my eyes and notice the stunning colours around me that I seldom notice

5) It Happened Anyway - This song is one of my favourite too. This song is about Mattie's brother's death *3 of his brother died of the same disease*. This powerful and emotional song brought tears in my eyes as Billy's powerful vocals made this song alive!!

6) Possession - This lighgt-hearted tempo is great to listen to! This song is about Mattie's feelings bout the disease and his hope of getting cured

7) Songs of the Wind - Listening to this album has made me notice the nature more than I could imagine. This Hawaiin-beat song made me treasure the wind and made me listen to the "music" the wind made! And it's beautiful!

8) Making Real Sense of the Senses - This song is another of my fav! This songs is about appreciating our senses that God gave us and how to treaure them and put them in good use! Great!

9) The Gift of Colour - This song made me love and treasure the colours around me even more!!

10) I Could... If They Would - Another of my top fav! This song is about Mattie's hope and dreams if the world will find a cure! Very very touching!! It will make you cry!

11) About Memories - One of the two songs that Billy composed! This song made me recalled of my previous memories and realised how important memories are!

12) About Watches - The second song that Billy composed! This upbeat song is about Mattie's wish that he will not have too die ("With all these watches on me, It's like having all the time in the world, and never having to think about the end of time or about dying")

The cons bout this album is that it has TOO LITTLE songs!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

GO GET IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! You wont regret it, seriously!!!!!!!!!!!!

I really enjoy this CD. I have listened to it probably 30 times in the last 2 months, since a friend recommended it. Mattie has some very inspiring words and Billy Gilman has a beautiful voice. The musicians do a wonderful job. It's also a lot of fun and lifts me up.

Since buying this cd, I've been absolutly loving every song. I hope Billy chooses to do another cd based on Mattie's poetry. Well-thought/meaningful lyrics are rarely found in today's music scene.

With Mattie gone this CD takes on a whole different meaning and power - in hearing his voice and his words that he recorded forever. They are the words of two children working together to share a message with the world, a message that anything can be accomplished including peace and celebration of life and conquering a relentless foe with pure determination. His poems range from heartbreaking to childhood innocence begging the world to return to that time where everything was appreciated and celebrated, where monsters were only shadows on the wall and set to music they take flight in a whole new way. An incredible legacy Mattie provides in his life, his writing, his poems, and the songs that are on this CD that are Heartsongs freely sung.