Main Review
Like the Gaither Vocal Band in southern Gospel music, Newsong is one of the longest standing acts in all of CCM music
– with a career spanning over 30 years. 2011 promises to be a good year for the band with their recent Winter Jam Tour
Spectacular setting first quarter records for concert tours. According to Pollstar the tour “was the #1 tour in the world for
the first quarter of the year… outpaced attendance for all other tours in the first quarter, including Bon Jovi, U2, X Factor
Live, Lady Gaga, Brad Paisley and Justin Bieber”. Quite an accomplishment being as though WJ was a Christian tour!
2011 also marks the release of Newsong’s newest project, One True God. The band debuted a few of the songs during
Winter Jam including “One True God” and “Love Is The Medicine”. In a constant changing market of music, one might
wonder how Newsong has managed to stay relevant all these years. After all, most of the younger audience in
attendance during the Winter Jam tours have no idea who they are, after all, they are there to see bands like the
Newsboys and Francesca Battistelli. But you can’t deny the fact that the group is obviously doing something right,
because the release of One True God marks their 17th release.
The CD boasts quite a bit of vocal power, but doesn’t seem to feature one particular vocalist over the course of its ten
tracks. The highlights of the album would have to be the aforementioned tracks “One True God”, a song that declares the
oneness and uniqueness of the true Jehovah God; “Love Is The Medicine” a worshipful answer to all woes of the sin of
the world, “Love is the medicine / There’s hurting world in need / And Jesus is the remedy”. In addition, “The Way You
Smile” features a duet Russ Lee and 2 time Dove-Award winning Female Vocalist of the Year, Francesca Battistelli which
proves to be one of the more memorable love songs of recent memory.
Other notables are the call-to-action songs “This World Is Ours To Love” and “Strong City”, which is a reminder that we’re
to come together as the body of Christ to be able to show the world the love of God and to be able overcome life’s aches,
pains and hardships.
Perhaps one of my favorite tracks on the album is “Between the Cross and Crown”. Such a great message, to remind us
that we’re to keep the faith, stay the course in the world we live in between the cross (the crucifixion of Christ) and the
crown (when we’re with Him again in Glory). “Hallelujah, hallelujah / Give us strength here and now / In the days between
the cross and crown”
Closing Thoughts
Overall, One True God is a pretty decent album. While it’s not my favorite record the band has put out, I think longtime
fans wills find something to appreciate about it. The Michael O’Brien-Rescue:Live Worship era of the group still remains
my favorite, but One True God ranks up there near the top.
Review Written By: Jay Heilman [jay.heilman@christianmusicreview.org] on 4/29/2011
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