CD Reviews

May

2007

Mark Bishop - Abundant Sunshine

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RATING:

Producer: Jeff Collins/Mark Bishop
Label: Sonlite
Website: http://www.markbishopmusic.com

Mark Bishop remains the fundamental storyteller for Southern Gospel Music, as there is no one in our genre who can weave a story in song quite like Mark Bishop. It's definitely a God-given talent and such a remarkable gift, and that gift shines through on this latest release. It always amazes me how deep some of his songs can go, while still keeping it on the level of the average fan; and the ideas whereby his songs are birthed by continue to astound me.

The title song, "ABUNDANT SUNSHINE" starts the recording off with a light and airy feel and features a nicely done acoustic track. Mark then shifts into "story mode" with the second song, "THIS IS WHERE NEEDED THINGS ARE FOUND" and things quickly move into high gear for the energetic tune, "I CAN THINK OF ONE". This is one tune you will not be able to get out of your head; it'll stick with you all day long. "PUT WINGS UPON YOUR PROBLEMS" is Mark's first single release from the recording and it showcases his soulful side and it should do very well for him.

As alluded to earlier, Mark's repertoire has always included those story songs that he is famous for, and this newest release has several, including the aforementioned song, "THIS IS WHERE NEEDED THINGS ARE FOUND", as well as "THOMAS, WHY DO YOU DOUBT?", "THE PATIENCE OF THE ANGELS" (an excellent thought provoking tune about the crucifixion from a different perspective) and the beautiful love themed, "WRITTEN ON A TREE".

Mark's recordings has always included songs that help boost our faith and offer us hope in the things that are eternal. Two excellent examples of this are the songs, "YOU GET BACK EACH SINGLE MINUTE" and "GOD'S GOT A WHOLE LOT OF LOVE". At first glance, "MEAN, MEAN PEOPLE" may appear to be a just another novelty tune, but it offers some solid advice for what we should do with mean people."love could be the remedy, Jesus is the cure."

Closing much like it began, "ABUNDANT SUNHINE" (Part 2) rounds things out. But wait.just when you think the song is over, you're whisked back to a lively Sunday morning church service with some "throw down gospel", as Mark shifts gears and closes the recording with lots of soul and a big choir sound.

My biggest gripe with the recording is the artwork on the front cover. It looks cheesy to me (though not near as cheesy as the 1st place holder for a cheesy cover - The Greenes original "Fields of Greene" cover from the early 90s.); I expected more creativity with the cover, given the title (Like an outdoor shot of Mark standing in a field basking in sunshine, or some other variation); but I suppose all the creative energy was exhausted with the music contained therein. Mark did his usual great job, and provided us with some excellent songs with a strong lyrical content and the tracks and overall quality of the recording are superb in every way; to be honest, I really don't think Mark knows how to do a bad recording.

Song List:
1 - Abundant Sunshine (Part 1)
2 - This is Where Needed Things Are Found
3 - I Can Think of One
4 - Put Wings Upon Your Problems
5 - Thomas, Why do you Doubt?
6 - You Get Back Each Single Minute
7 - God's Got a Whole Lot of Love
8 - The Patience of the Angels
9 - Mean, Mean People
10 - Written on a Tree
11 - Abundant Sunshine (Part 2)

Reader Comments

This is indeed a wonderful album. Mark describes it as having a central theme that builds from song to song. Mark has always been one of my favorite song writers and this may be his best work to date.

PS...what the cover artwork lacks (and I think it could have been better...) is more than made up for by putting pictures of the musicians on the back cover and inside pages. It's nice to see who is making all of the good music coming out of Crossroads these days.

Commented by Tim-He's Alive ** On 05/21/2007

If this cd is really as good as the review then the graphic design needs to be changed immediately! It looks a lot worse than most local/independent artists.

Commented by On 06/05/2007

Another great Mark Bishop project. I don't care much for the cover either but when you are restricted with doing it indoors, you don't have a lot of choices. Love the music, though, & that's the most important thing.

God is good all the time & all the time God is good.

Elaine Harcourt

Commented by ** On 06/10/2007

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