Description
In Love Beyond Our Lives is an album by the American singer and songwriter Noel Paul Stookey (credited as Noel Paul Stookey & Bodyworks) of Peter, Paul & Mary fame, released on Gold Castle in 1990. Featuring Noel Paul Stookey on acoustic guitar and lead vocals, Denny Bouchard on keyboards, Jimmy Nalls on guitar, Kent Palmer on bass, and Alan Diaz on drums, with additional vocals by Karla Thibodeau, Buddy Greene, and Michael Card.
Here’s a quick primer for readers unfamiliar with Stookey’s name; thirty years performing as “Paul” of Peter, Paul & Mary, twelve Top 40 hits, including the #1 «Leaving on a Jet Plane»; entering his third decade as a solo artist, and author of the classic «Wedding Song» (also a Top 40 smash and performed at a zillion weddings). Stookey’s been seen most lately nursing his rejuvenated career with P, P & M. This project returns him to the spotlight for the first time in several years, with his long-time associates, the Bodyworks band.
Stookey has a knack for tackling heavy themes with compassion and insight, and the material which he’s not directly responsible for composing is carefully chosen to compliment his originals. «All My Life» tackles the abortion issue and makes a point in an artful manner without condemning; «Danny’s Downs» examines the diffiuclt choices the parents of a Down’s Syndrome child face; «Healing in the Feeling» is perhaps as beautiful a song as has ever been written to describe the feeling of being filled with the Holy Spirit. Stookey’s «Cookie Jar» focuses on no less a weighty topic than original sin, and injects the tune with a dose of his patented sense of humor, without detracting from the seriousness of the song.
Fans of artists such as Michael Card, Ray Boltz, and Scott Wesley Brown will probably relate well to the gentle folk-rock of Stookey and Bodyworks. But there’s only one Noel, and it’s great to hear him recording again. [Bruce A. Brown, CCM, August 1990]
> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/in-love-beyond-our-lives/206729329)
CD tracklist:
01. Hungry Eyes – 5:31
02. All My Life – 4:12
03. Love Beyond Our Lives – 3:40
04. El Salvador – 3:58
05. Wild Places – 5:05
06. Why Do We Hunger For Beauty – 2:55
07. Danny’s Downs – 4:44
08. Healing In The Feeling – 4:26
09. Cookie Jar – 3:25
10. Father’s House – 3:53
Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and CD by Neworld Media.
Reviews
There are no reviews yet.