Already with seventeen albums to her name(!), it is surprising that her eighteenth represents my introduction to Nashville-based Sandra McCracken’s music. And what a great album this is, with Sandra’s ‘backwoods Americana’ vocals well to the fore and supported by a cracking band delivering superbly delivered and sympathetically arranged piano-led accompaniments. As I listened to her clearly sung and well written scripture-based lyrics I was reminded of Iris DeMent’s pure and clear voice and accent – she is the sort of singer whose personality seems to become apparent as you listen. Despite Sandra’s delivery style, this is not an Americana album – the ten songs here combine gospel, folk, country, and even contemporary cool jazz. With instrumental breaks allowing individual musicians to shine, sound quality is excellent and has a ‘recorded live in the studio’ feel. Things kick off with the almost seven minute bluesy/jazzy ‘Send Out Your Light’, with piano, bass, drums and brass and an extended improvised instrumental piano break towards the end. ‘I will sing’ is mid-paced pop ccm, then ‘Trinity Song’ (“bind us together in holy love”) features a slow, simple melody and lyrics. ‘Thy Mercy, My God’ (“Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart”) comes next, with a top notch solo piano accompaniment. Then comes ‘We will feast in the house of Zion’ (“we will sing, our hearts restored”) which features effective harmony bvs. The upbeat and bouncy ‘Hold to God’s unchanging hand’ brings strummed acoustic guitar to the mix, whilst an electric guitar is heard in the gospelly ‘Call upon Him’ (“there is power in the Name”). The slow and reflective ‘Have mercy’ (“oh Lord, have mercy”) follows, and then comes my standout track ‘Christ is the life of the world’, featuring a particularly creative accompaniment and superb acoustic bass playing that takes a lead towards the end. The lovely slow ballad closer ‘Until He comes again’ is a ‘holy communion’ song with an emphasis on Christ’s return, and features support from Andrew Osenga. On the strength of this excellent release I am about to check out Sandra’s considerable back catalogue. Comfortably worth a full 10/10. Dave Deeks
Never for Nothing 