
Producer: Gerald Wolfe/Kyle Underwood
Label: Gerald Wolfe Productions
The upper part of South Carolina brings us the Phillips Family. They have a good, down home family sound similar to that of maybe the Wilburns, and the like. One thing that impresses me with unknown talent is when someone in the group has the ability to write their own songs, and they are well written. All of the songs on this recording are written by Stephen Phillips, and for the most part, are extremely well written and adequately performed by the family.
Though there are several good songs on this recording, there are only a few standout cuts. ”THE GROUND IS LEVEL“ starts the recording out with a majestic sound that grabs your attention and says, “Listen to me!” Excellent song and very well performed. The title cut, ”MORE GRACE“, is equally well written and performed. With its country inflection, ”I HAVE NO DOUBT“ is probably my favorite on the recording. The inclusion of the Goodman classic “I Believe He’s Coming Back” as a bridge, takes the song to a new level.
The recording features varying tempos from the upbeat ”I’M GONNA LIVE LIKE HE’S ALIVE“ and ”I’VE HEARD AND SEEN TOO MUCH“, to the medium tempos of ”WHEN THE SMOKE CLEARS“ and ”I GO ON FAITH“ to the slower tunes like ”I KNOW THE TRUTH“, ”HE ROSE TO THE OCCASION“ and ”BECAUSE OF THE LAMB“.
One thing I do notice about their arrangements is they are generally keyed pretty high. I think if they brought the key down a half step or two on a couple of the songs it would really bring about a positive change. All in all though, this is a good recording with a tinge of country in their sound and they have excellent songs, adequate music tracks and they sing well. If you like giving new groups a listen, this is a good start.
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