Search - Tim Hughes :: Holding Nothing Back

Tim Hughes - not at his best, but still a gem

Trevor R. Raichura | Ginowan, Okinawa, Japan | 05/15/2007

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This is Tim Hughes' third major release, and probably the most highly anticipated one to date. He has become known for such church favourites as Here I Am to Worship, Beautiful One, and more. Would this CD live up to the success of his previous efforts? The answer, in a word, is yes. But in several other words, here are my feelings about this release.



I have always loved Tim Hughes' lyrics more than anything. He finds ways to bring the praise, but also to dialogue with God. He expresses his own weakness and humanness, and also his inability to follow God's commands without His own help. I love it!



This release is no different, in that his lyrics come through strong, especially in songs like God of Justice, Clinging to the Cross, and Take the World. Musically, it is obvious that he has been influenced by Hillsong (he even admits that he wrote several songs while down in Australia with the Hillsong crew). I'm not terribly fond of that aspect of the new CD, but I am willing to overlook it. This CD "rocks out" a little more than his other releases, and I like it.



Standout songs include Happy Day, Clinging to the Cross (beautiful duet), and God of Justice. One last minor critique of the CD: he tends to use a similar pattern in many songs, of repeating one line over and over towards the end of the song, starting softly, but steadily intensifying with each repetition. It sounds great, but just happens too often for my liking.



Overall this is a solid release, and will get a lot of playing time along with the first two releases. If you have never heard of Tim Hughes, you need to listen to the song samples here (especially songs 1, 5, and 7) and then purchase it!"