::ALBUM REVIEW::

The Lord’s Prayer, a title given by generations of devout Christians to the proclaimed passage of scripture found in Matthew 6:9-13 and Luke 11:1-4, has been praised and honored for being the perfect model of prayer given by Jesus to his disciples. And while it is pretty strange that the authentic “Lord’s Prayer” was delivered in John 17. and that what we observe as the “Lord’s Prayer” should really be labeled the “Disciples’ Prayer” due to Jesus’ choice of words before the prayer (“Then this, is how you should pray”), the church has forever associated the moniker to these powerful words and with that have also canonized its poetic, powerful words into one of the important models of Christian prayer. Loris Holland (Thomas Whitfield, Vanessa Bell-Armstrong) uses his creative powers to transform the Lord’s Prayer into a musical cantata that not only showcases the depth of each verse but to highlight the textures of Gospel music by assembling a Who’s Who list of gospel and mainstream artists to interpret the prayer in song. The concept is pretty unique to a degree. The last time the gospel industry experienced this kind of achievement using the “multiple artists-multiple song-one musical work” idea may be with Mervyn Warren’s “Handel’s Messiah: A Soulful Celebration” (Reprise) back in the early 1990s. But, to my knowledge, there has not been a project that highlights the glory that surrounds the Lord’s Prayer. Holland achieves that feat by slicing down each portion of the prayer into separate selections with different styles and attributes; impressing even the toughest critics with the gathering of artists ranging from Tonex’ to Howard Hewett, from Vanessa Bell Armstrong to Deniece Williams.

Things open with Howard Hewett’s silky-smooth vocals on “Our Father (Which Art In Heaven)”; a tender pop ballad that flows lyrically from the beginning of the popular prayer to the closing “amen” with both a gorgeous sensitivity and sweetness. Then the mesmeric “Hallowed Be Thy Name”, penned and interpreted by Tonex’, flows with graceful intent as it uses its neo-soulful posture and serene instrumentation. The only cut solely produced by an outside artist, this cut continues to reveal the inner strengths and possibilities of the underground legend. It’s simple in organization, but Tonex’s supplied melismas and background vocals are enriched with depth and fluidity. Possibly the strongest cut represented.

Loris Holland doesn’t bring the best of compositions to the table - possibly because he writes or contributes towards nine of the twelve cuts and has to stretch the words of the Lord’s Prayer across the entire album - a very hard and difficult task indeed. But he does permit good melodies to creep in and allow a number of strong, artistic vocalists to help bring aid and additional texture to the song’s definition. Their contributions alone help save the album from being just another concept album on the shelf. An upbeat “Deliver Us From Evil” is graced with a strong performance from vocal veteran Vanessa Bell Armstrong. And it may seem like dejavu’ since Holland was responsible for creating and producing the success found on Armstrong’s Jive self-titled debut that featured “You Bring Out The Best In Me” and “Pressing On”. The quality of the production of Holland’s work resembles the prototype of late eighties and early 90s contemporary R&B and is highly proven on “Deliver Us From Evil”. “Thine Is The Kingdom”, featuring gorgeous and sensitive vocals from R&B/gospel star Deniece Williams, dwindles on a worship chorus and allows Williams room to shine using her upper range qualities and sweet vocal acrobatics that totally resembles the late Minnie Riperton and Patti LaBelle. The strong and swift Latin arrangements heard on “Give Us This Day Our Daily Bread” will rival most jazzy uptempo grooves from Santana and Ricky Martin and is heavy with Latin percussion using congas and timbales from Shelia E and Holland’s added drum programming. Tata Vega delivers the lead vocals while the occasional live horns from Isrea Butler, Ray Vega, John Walsh, Randy Gilmore and Chris Washburn add a great spice to the studio cut. Ann Nesby, along with the background work of Robert Lowe’s Generations, also breaths life into “The Power And The Glory”. On what seems like a B-side track, Nesby’s soaring and gospel-infused vocals deliver mighty prominence to the cut and instantly compares to her legendary work with Sounds of Blackness. The conviction in her punchy vocal charisma, resembling a modern Marion Williams, still reigns over the majority of gospel singers today.

Virtually unknown to listeners, Bernard Lawson also adds a refreshing, and sometimes sexy at times, vocal to “As It Is In Heaven”. The song glows on the strong drum programming from Jimmy Miller and its soft funk. Extra background support from R&B crooner James Ingram and Howard Hewett heightens the worth of the track even more. One listen to their contributions and you immediately can recognize their soulful vocal trademarks.

This is an legitimate, full-length album and with the number of interludes and occasional dramatic fill-ins, the album stretches unashamedly over seventy minutes. So the worries of being unsatisfied in the end may not be as strong on the surface. It’s packed with tracks and an impressive list of stellar gospel and R&B artists and their performances are equal to their former masterpieces. What may be questioned is the unbalance of the big names with mediocre or standard cuts. There are a few memorable melodies featured and there’s some good instrumentation, but in places outdated production and unconvincing chemistry of the music and lyrics tend to overshadow the possibilities of a great album. All in all, The Lord’s Prayer provides easy-listening and captures wonderful talent doing great things in what seems to be just-average situations.