My Top 40 Albums - #21

#21
Steven Curtis Chapman- "Speechless"

Year: 1999
Label: Sparrow
Favorite songs: Dive, Speechless, I Do Believe, The Change, Whatever, What I Really Want to Say 
Lyric sample: "The long awaited rains have fallen hard upon the thirsty ground / And carved their way to where the wild and rushing river can be found / And like rains I have been carried here to where the river flows / My heart is racing and my knees are week as I walk to the edge / I know there is no turning back once my feet have left the ledge / And in the rush I hear a voice / That's telling me it's time to take a leap of faith / So here I go"

Steven Curtis Chapman ruled Christian music in the 90's. The span from 1990 (For the Sake of the Call) to 1999 (Speechless) encapsulates nearly all of his best work, the possible exception beings 1989's More To This Life. While artists like Michael W. Smith and Jars of Clay pulled something of a crossover act, Steven remained mostly in the CCM mainstream, primarily as a result of his undiluted lyrics. Of course, he has talent coming out of his ears and could easily have been successful in any pop, rock or even country outlet, as evidenced by the fact that he is the recipient of several Grammy Awards. His superior musical craftsmanship stood him head and shoulders above the average band or solo artist, and he quickly became something of a Christian music golden boy, winning more Dove Awards than any other artist in the GMA's history. Heaven in the Real World went Platinum; Signs of LIfe went Gold. On the heels of all this success came his last (and, in my opinion, last great) album, Speechless. And that's the way it left us.

Moving away from the folksy leanings of the last record and into more pop rock territory, Speechless featured prominent use of strings. They filled the spaces of the ballads of course, but also accented the punchy rock tracks. It's one of the more trademark sounds of the record, which is also seamlessly produced, allowing for a wonderful mix of the percussive acoustic guitars with the keys. distorted electrics and string arrangements. At the time, this was Steven's heaviest offering. "I Do Believe" surprised some listeners with a guitar riff reminiscent of Aerosmith. Jam out songs like "Whatever" and "The Change" were destined to become favorites. "Whatever" proved that even amongst all the production, Steven never lost the hands-on sound of a group performing, something he carried over from the recent Abbey Road recordings on his Greatest Hits record.

It was the rock songs that initially impressed me, predictably. However much of the beauty here is found in the quiet moments, and there are a lot of them. "Invitation," "Great Expectations," and "With Hope" are all fairly subdued meditations. In fact, the last four tracks are ballads all put together. Only a few people can get away with this, and SCC is one of them. These songs are low-key, but they deal tenderly with subjects that deserve to be approached in this manner. "With Hope," a song grieving over the death of a young child, and can you imagine a song called "Be Still and Know" as a noise rock tune?  Even as I defend his choices I will admit that this tests my patience much of the time. If there is a flaw in Speechless, that would be the one that prevents it from ranking in the top 20. Still it is a fantastic album, a standout production from a luminary. It's certainly a recording I would recommend to just about anyone.