Reviewed by Peter Bate

  “This recording is not about Rich Mullins: it’s about his songs.  I don’t want to worship or idolise him or pretend he didn’t have defects.  I just want to hear his music because I love it so much and that’s all there is now,” reads his producer Reed Arvin’s sober introduction to this fitting tribute.  Rich Mullins was a unique artist who had the rare gift of keeping an eye fixed on the mundane beauty of life while gazing at the glory of God.  And the 11 artists featured on this collection, who all knew Rich in one form or another, approach their subject matter with the dignity and creativity it demands – aware a sentimental drawl through his career wouldn’t have been among the songwriter’s last wishes.  Big names don’t matter here, as you’d suspect Rich would’ve wanted.  So Amy Grant, Jars Of Clay, Michael W Smith and DC Talk’s Kevin Max, whose moody trip-hop version of “Save Me” is superb, nestle alongside the lesser-known Chris Rice, pitching in a sublime “Calling Out Your Name”, and Billy Sprague.  Gutsy offerings from Ashley Cleveland and Carolyn Arends only add to this excellent, worthy memoriam.

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