Simple Things

Amy Grant | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (August 19, 2003)
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: A&M
• ASIN: B0000AVHCP
• Also Available in: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (132 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #103,502 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Happy

2. Eye To Eye

3. Simple Things

4. Beautiful

5. Out In The Open

6. I Don't Know Why

7. Looking For You

8. Touch

9. Innocence Lost

10. After The Fire

Editorial Reviews

AMY GRANT Simple Things (2003 US 10-track CD album)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Amy Sounds Better Than Ever. And Yet..., September 3, 2003

By 

MickeyG (San Antonio, TX USA) - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Simple Things (Audio CD)

It's not often an artist in the prime of her career takes six years to turn out an album. And if you've read anything at all about Grant's personal challenges during that period, the lapse is understandable.

After a half dozen years of anticipation, expectations are bound to be running very high. And when it comes to Amy's voice and performance on this album, her fans won't be disappointed. Grant sounds better than ever on this disc, which is a showcase of her ever-increasing vocal maturity and stylistic playfulness.

It has energy... emotion... and, of course, that girl-next-door charm that reminds us why, after 20 years, Amy is still reigning queen of the CCM music scene.

As with any artist of this magnitude, it goes without saying that the production values and arrangements on this album are top-notch. There's enough modern pop influence to keep the sound fresh, without losing sight of the fact that Amy is 42, not 21. Overall, there's not an unpleasant musical moment to be found on this album.

And yet...

As much as I wanted to like this record, the songs in this collection have, on first listen, left me a little flat. After the depth and melancholy of 1997's "Behind the Eyes" and the refreshing bluegrass/country flavor of "Legacy Hymns," I guess I was expecting something more profound... both lyricly and musically. I suppose the album's title should have been a warning to me: "Simple Things" is exactly what you get.

If you liked Amy's early-90s mega-hits like "Baby, Baby," "Every Heartbeat" and "That's what Love is For," this album is definitely for you. It's ripe with the latest pop sounds skillfully tailored to Grant's distinctive voice.

If you're a long-time fan like me, it's a must-have as well, simply because Amy sounds so good, and it's so nice to have her "back."

I just wish I liked it more.

19 of 22 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Expected Better from Amy . . . ., September 1, 2003

By 

Phyllis Diller "Phyllis" (Las Vegas, Nevada United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Simple Things (Audio CD)

It took me a little while, but learned to really enjoy Amy's last pop album "Behind the Eyes". Amy's new pop album "Simple Things" is written in that same vein - lots of guitar for a rock/pop sound. For me, however, the songs just aren't that good. I've now listened to it several times and it just doesn't do anything for me. One minor criticism is that it seems to be overproduced on a couple of songs - with special effects that you'd expect to hear on a Brittney album. I love Amy's voice and have liked her songwriting in the past, but found this cd to be a major dissapointment for me. I'll continue to listen and if I change my mind, I'll re-post and give it a higher rating.

34 of 42 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Milquetoast, October 10, 2003

By 

Book 'Em, Danno "mljdjl26" (Minneapolis, MN USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Simple Things (Audio CD)

First off, let me say that I've been a fan of Amy for many years, both before and after her "crossover" from Christian to mainstream pop. I've always found her voice to be strong, earnest and sweet. I saw the television promo ads for this newest album and I was terribly excited. They lauded it as a "comeback" (was she gone?) and stressed that the album was "three years in the making" (it took that long to write one long song?). Her last studio album, "Behind the Eyes," was a revelation to me, I thought she was really on the right road with her material. Unfortunately, while I don't view this release as a detour, it seems little more than a speed bump. It just doesn't go anywhere, it all sounds the same to me and it's way too A/C, MOR. In other words, bland and generic, at least to my ears. I haven't given up on Amy, though, I know she has a lot more to offer. Let's hope her next album is more, er, inspired.