Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beautiful News, Indeed, January 2, 2007
It's been two long years since Matt Redman has released an album of new songs. I must say that Beautiful News was well worth the wait.
Matt's deep, scriptural lyricism and passionate vocals make this a moving and worshipful recording. And the CD as a whole boasts a wonderful new sound from Matt...edgier at times ("Beautiful News", "Take It To The Streets"), more atmospheric at others ("You Never Let Go" and the excellent "Shine"). The most moving songs on the CD--"Yes, and Amen", "When All Is Said and Done" and "If You Know"--are simple and passionate, with gorgeous strings and sensitive piano accompaniment.
I love the stories behind the songs, which you can read on Matt's website. He does not write for the radio or the sales charts, but rather for the Church and its worshippers. This CD is a treasure trove for the church and a wonderful collection for personal worship.
I must take exception to the previous reviewer's statement that half the songs on the album have been previously released. In reality, only three ("You Never Let Go", "Greater Song" and "All Over The World") appear on other CDs, and this is the first studio recording of "You Never Let Go" and "Greater Song".
This is a generous, passionate, and musically exciting collection of new music from a true pioneer in worship music.
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15 of 17 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
An overdue but worthwhile studio effort from the best praise songwriter today., January 2, 2007
I met Matt Redman at the JAMA of '06, and he doesn't seem like he could write some of the greatest praise songs ever written -- Heart of Worship, Blessed Be Your Name, Let My Words Be Few, Once Again, Undignified, and countless others. From the most humble of all praise leaders comes the most spiritually challenging praise songs, always straying from cliche and lyrically challenging.
If Tomlin is the safe worship leader and Crowder is the guy you can jump around to, then Matt Redman is definitely the deeper, more spiritual of the three. The latest album proves again that he straddles the sensitive line between catchy melodies, thoughtful lyrics, and above-average production.
The album opens strongly with "Beautiful News," which would be a good introduction song for any service; it has a catchy guitar riff to which Matt Redman usually never relegates (finally). "You Never Let Go," "Shine," and "A Greater Song," are all powerful anthemic songs, each with the expected rousing bridge. "All Over The World," made more famous by Tree63, is a nice pop addition to the album.
However, there's a slightly noticeable decline in his songwriting, and while he's not resting on his laurels like Chris Tomlin did with his last album, he's definitely not writing as memorable as he did in the past. I also think Matt Redman is much better in concert, and while the album is produced well, it could never match his live worship. Fans might also be too familiar with half the songs on this album because they have been released previously on compilations or by other artists.
Bottom line: Any fan of worship will enjoy this album on many different levels. Not as strong as previous efforts and he's always better live, but overall a solid worship album and worth buying outright.
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7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A Greater Song For Me, April 6, 2007
I heard of Matt Redman through a couple of guys at my church. I really hadn't listened to any Christian music except at church, and was really skeptical at going out and buying a CD and not knowing what I was getting into. I was glad that my senior pastor convinced me to give this one a try. Beautiful News is a great album. The whole thing shines with the glory of God, and you can tell that Matt really put some thought into his lyrics on this one. I would have to say that most of the songs are awesome, but there are three that in my mind stand out above the rest. The first would be "Yes and Amen". Just a song about praising the Lord for everything that he does, has done and will do for us. The second would be "Take it to the Streets". This song really proved to me that everyone should be aware of the word of our Lord and not be ashamed to be delighted with His glory and share it with others. My favorite though would be "A Greater Song". This one just shows how we have nothing that we can offer Him, and that we must keep coming up with something bigger and better to offer, even if it's only a song. Keep it up Mr. Redman.
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by Matt Redman 
