I've never been shy about proclaiming that I am a HUGE TaRanda Greene fan. My wife and I fell in love with her as a person the first time we met her at a little church here in Durham, North Carolina about 9 or 10 years ago. As time has progressed, TaRanda has proven herself to be in a class all by herself. There is no one who can interpret a song quite like TaRanda. It's amazing to me that very few people seem to realize what a true artist she really is, because whether it's a fast song, power ballad or a tender melody, TaRanda wraps her vocals around each lyric of a song and pulls you in and entices the listener to marvel at the masterpiece she had just created, and beyond that, marvel at the greatness of a Holy God. Talent like this truly only comes from the Master.
The title of the recording comes from the infectious opening tune, "SING" and the contagious feel continues into the classic, "HIGHWAY TO HEAVEN." The tempo slows down considerably for the soulful "I KNOW TOO MUCH ABOUT HIM". I will admit, it took awhile for me to really get into this song, but I will say it has grown on me.
The highlight of the recording is TaRanda's cover of the Avalon tune, "YOU WERE THERE". Those like myself, who love hearing TaRanda rip into those power ballads will really love this song, as well as TaRanda's cover of the Ruppes', "WE HAVE COME BY THE WAY OF THE CROSS".
The tempo kicks back into high gear with the gospel flavored, "WAIT ON THE LORD" and slows back down a bit for another gospel flavored tune, "I AM REDEEMED". Featuring Tony Greene on the second verse, the song naturally takes on a bit of a country feel as well, and is the first single from the recording. Another song that features a strong gospel feel is the uptempo, "GOT ME SOME JOY w/ I DIDN'T THINK IT COULD BE" (the latter tune was recently recorded by Three Bridges, prior to the departure of Mitchel Jon).
Another highlight of the recoding is TaRanda's memorizing performance of the song, "HOSANNA". The song has made its way through the P & W circles, and now the CCM group Selah has also recorded the tune, but I think TaRanda's rendition has them all beat.
The tender "COME TO ME" (which features a guest appearance by TaRanda's daughter, Isabella) and the bonus song, "O HOLY NIGHT" complete the recording and closes things out with the listener begging for more.
The interesting thing I have discovered is that each of her solo recordings has distinct personalities of their very own. Each one has shown a different side of TaRanda.
The first one showed a risky side, as she tried varying styles with each song. The second recording was more laid back and I think showed more of who TaRanda is musically. This third solo release showcased TaRanda with a more High Church, Pentecostal sound with a good bit of soul thrown in. I don’t think there is anything she cannot sing, and sing it well.
There is no denying the rich talent that TaRanda possesses and I dare say that TaRanda is the Vestal Goodman of this generation. Like Vestal, TaRanda has the God given ability to captivate an audience either in concert or via recording. She causes the listener to become enthralled with the message she is delivering and allows the listener to rejoice in the blessings of God. TaRanda possesses a rare gift, and this recording definitely displays it exceptionally well.
Author: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Written: 09/02/2009
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Category: CD Reviews
Comments: 2
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Im honored to be a personal friend of TaRandas, and I know alot of who she is and who she is not. Who she is musically is this latest recording "In the Santuary", that is where her true self and artist comes out. Shes not only my friend, but my favorite female singer. Rock it T!
Where do you buy it?
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