Producer: Carla Childress & Teresa Childress Lutz
Record Label: Independent
Website: www.childressfamily.com
The Childress Family are a family group who make Madisonville, Kentucky home. Consisting of matriarch, Marlene Childress, daughters Carla and Teresa, Teresa’s husband, Jamey and granddaughter Courtney, they are a wonderful family unit that has consistently released classy music that is definitely above par from the average group.
The recording starts off with an uptempo rendition of the classic hymn, “JESUS SAVES” and includes a bridge of the chorus from Connie Hopper’s penned tune by the same title before the tempo slows down for the ballad, “WORTH IT ALL”.
Starting off slow, the family kicks things into high gear with the Dottie Rambo classic, “THE CHURCH TRIUMPHANT” and it’s a highlight of the recording, as is their rendition of the Mosie Lister classic, “’TIL THE STORM PASSES BY”.
The tempo gets kicked back up for their cover of the Talley’s “TESTIFY” before things move on to the dramatic feel of the Tamela Mann hit, “TAKE ME TO THE KING” and the Teresa Childress-Lutz & Marlene Childress penned, “ONCE FOR ALL”, which was recorded by the Hoppers 20 years ago, and the Childress Family do a spectacular job on.
The tempo picks back up for another Teresa/Marlene penned tune, “LET FAITH HOLD YOU UP”, which the Talleys recorded back in 1984. With a bit of a dramatic flair, it definitely stands on its own merit and is definitely a bit different than the Talley’s rendition. Speaking of Marlene, she gives a very heartfelt performance on the retrospective, “JESUS IS FAITHFUL”, which was recorded back in 1995 by the Ruppes.
The recording closes out like it began, with a classic hymn. While not offering anything extraordinary in their arrangement, the group does a great job singing, “HOW GREAT THOU ART” and blending it with the popular P & W song, “HOW GREAT IS OUR GOD”.
As has typically been the case with most of their recordings, there are a lot of cover songs on this recording. It sounds like a lot of effort was spent on making these songs sound original and I really enjoyed their renditions of these songs. Vocally and musically, this is one of the most talented groups in our industry and they have put out a really great recording. If you’ve never discovered the talents of the Childress Family, do yourself a favor and enlighten yourself to the rare gem found in this delightful family! You’ll be glad you did!
Track Listing:
(stars denote personal favorites)
Jesus Saves**
Worth it All**
The Church Triumphant**
‘Til the Storm Passes By**
Testify
Take me to the King
Once for All**
Let Faith Hold You Up
Jesus is Faithful**
How Great Thou Art
