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Let me start with a blunt statement: this is a worship album. I realised I was looking at this album from an unfair angle, and so have decided to re-review it. Sadly we, including myself, have come to judge a worship album by how many tracks on the album are already being sung in churches, and which tracks have already been sung incessantly at festivals and we have taken home. I fell into this trap, and as this album hasn't yet got many tracks sung in all the churches over all the UK, I gave it a poor review. So...
Read More Let me start with a blunt statement: this is a worship album. I realised I was looking at this album from an unfair angle, and so have decided to re-review it. Sadly we, including myself, have come to judge a worship album by how many tracks on the album are already being sung in churches, and which tracks have already been sung incessantly at festivals and we have taken home. I fell into this trap, and as this album hasn't yet got many tracks sung in all the churches over all the UK, I gave it a poor review. So after this light bulb moment, I have decided to give it a fairer review.
Eoghan Heaslip is the current director of New Wine UK and leads worship at St Paul's in Ealing, London. This album has had a sterling crew working on it, including Tim Hughes and Matt Redman's producer, Nathan Nockles, and features songs co-written with Nick Herbert, Brenton Brown and Tim Hughes. Wonderful Story is an uplifting worship album with some very beautiful and refreshing sounds, the main example of this being the track "All To You". This song is all about God being glorified and giving all of your life to Him. It's nice to hear something different in this song in that it doesn't have the obvious choir building chorus that seems to be on every worship album that is released. It's also nice to not have a fast song and have a Hillsong-style lead guitar rift on every track.
This album has some beautiful moments of worship but sadly there are some poorer tracks which let it down slightly. The more well known song "Blessing & Honour" (previously released on various compilation albums) sounds like it was written in the mid 90's with its obvious over-used repeated church-vocabulary lyrics. It has very simple lyrics and a simple melody and to me is seems to be trying too hard to be a song that a church congregation could pick up and sing. Despite this however, Wonderful Story isn't a bad album, and it has its quiet moments and beautiful sounds. There's also a very Paul Oakley feel to it - which can be good or bad depending on your taste! Eoghan has produced a very good album, but nothing new or inventive. This doesn't mean these songs are bad or that the album is bad, or even that churches shouldn't or couldn't sing these songs in services. But sadly it feels like an album I could have heard 10 years ago.
Review by Jono Davies
Jono rating 3 out of 5 Stars
Stand-Out Tracks
All To You
Creator King
The King Has Come
