Description
Beyond a Dream is an album by the American singer and songwriter Twila Paris, released on StarSong Records in 1993. The album was recorded by Jeff Balding at The Castle Recording Studios in Franklin, Tennessee; and was produced by Brown Bannister and Paul Mills for RBI Productions.
If you heard «Destiny» last year, one of the two new songs recorded by Twila Paris for her anthology, ‘A Heart That Knows You’, you may be prepared to hear her all-new collection of songs, ‘Beyond a Dream’. Maybe. Long time fans that might have missed that pivotal track will be in for a few surprises this year.
‘Beyond a Dream’ reunites Paris with Brown Bannister, who produced ‘Cry for the Desert‘ for her in 1990; and with Paul Mills, who crafted «Destiny» last year, and co-produces with Bannister here. Like ‘Cry for the Desert’ (which spun a few heads upon its release), ‘…Dream’ continues to reveal Paris as a consummate recording artist; fully capable of musical growth and innovation that could delight or frustrate her fans (depending on their level of sentimentality), not unlike the plight of another masterful singer/songwriter, Amy Grant.
Unlike Grant of course, Paris continues to write lyrics squarely in the devotional vein – but few write them better, to the extent that a few of her songs have ended up in modern hymnals (and there are a couple of candidates for the pew rack amongst this collection as well).
It’s the music that will do the stretching here, some of which is decidedly unconventional for the inspirational camp. But that’s okay – she’s doing this for a while now (’91’s ‘Sancturay’ is a classic example), but perhaps never better than here.
«God is in Control» opens with the pounding of Paul Leim’s drums and a very contemporary track, as she reminds ’90s believers of God’s sovereignty, singing with a personal fire that exceeds that of «Destiny». It almost sounds as if she’s struggling to control that which is bursting forth from her vocally. Equally exciting on this track and throughout ‘…Dreams’ are the background vocals, which play more of a key role than is typically utilized, stating key phrases and unison lines emphatically, and placed significantly higher in the mix.
On «All About You», Paris sings honestly about frustrations in the difficult moments in life, as the chorus wisely considers “No matter what it’s all about/ It’s all about You,” owning up to God’s larger plan in her life. «Seventy Years Ago» is a marvelous (and true) telling of what Rich Mullins calls his ‘legacy,’ and idea he first employed on his song «First Family».
The Psalmist’s cry of “How long, O Lord” is effectively given the album’s most stunning musical expression in «Rescue the Prisoner», a downtempo rocker with soulful singing by Twila that will doubtless surprise some, and a brilliantly crafted bridge that dramatically reminds us of our call “…to be light/ That even blinded eyes can see/ To break the chains/ To bind the wounds/ And to proclaim the captive free.”
Even amidst songs as musically stirring as «…Prisoner», the album’s most powerful moment for me came in the understated «What Am I», one of those potential Paris hymns that contains the lyric that titles the album, and simply repeats the key phrase, “What am I without You,” in the song’s outro, until it really starts to sink in, giving way to an elequent guitar solo that closes the piece.
Whether this song or another is the one that strikes your heart is no matter. The blessing for us is the gift of Twila Paris herself, expressed so beautifully through her songs, and made available in such an appealing musical package as this. [Thom Granger, CCM, January 1994]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/beyond-a-dream/724933173)
CD tracklist:
01. God Is In Control – 5:46
02. Watch And Pray – 5:29
03. Neither Will I – 5:16
04. All About You – 5:49
05. Visitor From Heaven – 4:57
06. Seventy Years Ago – 5:25
07. I Will Worship – 3:31
08. All My Heart – 4:41
09. Rescue The Prisoner – 4:20
10. What Am I Without You – 5:23
11. The Light Is Shining – 3:04
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by StarSong Records.
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