Reviewed by Gavin Drake

It's Garth, Jim, but not as we know him! People looking for traditional Garth *Hewitt will be hard pressed to find him on this latest offering from the wandering peacemaker. The unmistakable sound of Garth's harmonica features on only one track - a reworking of "Light A Candle In The Darkness". The title track, featuring Black Voices, is traditional Garth, but is one of only six out of 15 tracks on the album where Garth is given a writer's credit. Several songs by Iona's John Bell feature, including "He Became Poor" and "Carol of The Epiphany". 'The Greatest Gift' contains songs suitable for use in church worship. Because of this you won't find my nomination for the greatest Christmas song ever written - Peter Meadow's "Don't Blame God For Christmas (He Only Sent His Son)" which featured on Garth's 'Stronger Than The Storm' album in 1994. What you will find is instrumental versions of four of the tracks, which will make using the songs in a worship setting fairly easy. Carol sheets are available from the Bible Lands Society to accompany the album, together with the agency's popular sheets of traditional carols.

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