Customer Reviews

Way to My Heart

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

 

 

I dont care how old this cd may be, these girls know how to deliver a very strong (not too hard) rock sound. Vocals are great, fast songs are great, and the slow songs really tug at your heart, the way the popular love ballads always do. It is so great to have this is a christian mix! Rock on

This is the first album from the first all-female Christian rock band. I bought this album after hearing and falling in love with what I believe was their first single, I Will Stand By You. I remember listening to that song over and over again! I am not a big fan of several of the tracks...namely David's Dance (The Shim-Sham), Papa Can You Hear Me, and Something of You. The rest of the tracks are great. My favorite is still I Will Stand By You, a beautiful ballad showcasing the voice of lead singer Cheryl Jewell. I also really like There Ain't Enough Love (upbeat, toe-tapping song) and another pretty ballad, In The River. Probably the most well-known song on this album is their rendition of Kansas' Carry On Wayward Son. The band's vocal harmonies are complex and sound like Point of Grace. This is a great album, but not as well-rounded as their second and final album. Unfortunately, Rachel Rachel's members have long since gone their separate ways. The bass player, Jennifer York, left the band after this album to do TV/helicopter reporting and also started an instrumental jazz group called The York Quartet. Brynn Beltran (keyboards, vocals) married Whiteheart's Mark Gersmehl. I'm not sure what happened to the other members.

I purchased my first copy of this CD right off the bookstore shelf in 1991. It has never been far from my CD player since. These girls rock. The have terrific voices, and great instrumental skills. Stirring harmonies and excellent music make a perfect light rock album for anyone, but especially Christians who like upbeat tempos in their music. You can't help tapping a toe or nodding or even dancing to the beats. Of course my favorite, and most people's, is "Carry On", an excellent cover of Kansas' "Wayward Son". It features Kerry Livgren, who left Kansas and formed the Christian band AD, on the guitar solo, so it sounds just as sharp as the original. I also have a copy of the video featuring him playing with the girls on stage. The best part of this CD was introducing it to my son, now 12, who recognized "Carry On" from playing "Wayward Son" on Guitar Hero 2...and he can't put it down now.

This was great first start for the all-female christian rock band Rachel Rachel. When I saw the album cover I thought it was going to be another nashville pop style album until I saw "Carry On Wayward Son" on the song list.

It has an eclectic mix of sounds and styles. Some songs come off a little like White Heart (obvious as White Heart front man Billy Smiley produced it), some of them come off with a Bangles sound (Shim Sham) and some sound like Heart with the female vocals and the use of guitar riffs that sound like Heart guitarist Howard Leese. If you like the rock and power ballads of the late eighties, you will like this.

Due to Kerry Livgren's guest appearance in the music video for the "Carry On' cover, many were of the belief that he actually played on the album, which is not true. The guitar solo was actually played by Grammy winner, producer, and former front man for Giant and guitarist for White Heart, Dann Huff.

This album required the use of studio artists as some (not all) of the band members, while great people individually, struggled at playing some of the more complex parts.

The second album, better defined their sound and formula mix of ballads, rockers and the Bangles/Go Go's like song. (Somebody To Love Me).

Unfortunately, time took its toll as members began to depart after #2. Touring is very difficult for any band member with a family and these girls were no exception.

They were unique in their genre, first of their kind and opened doors that very few have followed since.