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Today, I bring you a review of the new project from Andrew Peterson called “Counting Stars”. Our good friend Janet Bozeman from Bozeman Media sent me an early copy so I could share the music with all of you. It’s available to everyone today in our amazon.com store below this review!
First, a little bit about Andrew…
Andrew began his career in 1996 and signed with his first label, Watershed/Essential records in 1999. His first project “Carried Along” made CCM magazine’s list of Top Ten albums of 2000. In 2004, Andrew received his first Dove nomination for “Family Man” for Country Recorded Song of the Year. Andrew’s first project for Centricity Music in 2008, “Resurrection Letters, Volume II”, became the highest Billboard charting album of his career. Since 2004, Andrew has toured with several Nashville musicians and artists on his annual Christmas tour, “Behold the Lamb of God: The True Tall Tale of the Coming of Christ” that will launch this year on December 2nd. Andrew has also authored three children’s books, “The Ballad of Matthew’s Begats”, “On the Edge of the Sea of Darkness” and the 2010 Christy Award winner for “Young Adult Fiction, North! Or Be Eaten”.
The bulk of material for “Counting Stars” was recorded within eight days in Washington State during January 2010, as Peterson camped in a recording studio with Shive, Gullahorn, Gabe Scott and engineer, Todd Robbins . They loaded up their guitars, hammered dulcimer, accordion, dobro and banjo, flew from Nashville to the Northwest and started collaborating. The twelve new songs were written over a two-year period by Andrew, he goes on to explain the heart behind the title of this new project….
The title Counting Stars ties the themes of relationship and hope together in the hope of God’s promise to Abraham. We’re a part of the cloud of witnesses, passing the promises of God to our children and their children, building this Kingdom that has no end.
There are a couple of songs that speak to me and I will be sharing my thoughts with you.
Many Roads – This is my favorite song on the album. It’s all about the connections we make in this life and the roads we take to get where we are today. I have witnessed the impact of connections in my own life and look back and know that god was in them.
World Traveler – As a child I had a good imagination. I could just look outside and dream about what was out there and how I would go places. This song is talking about how we grow up and how the world around us changes us and how we can go different places with the people in our life.
The theme I get from the music and lyrics on this album is there is hope and love. It’s about relationships you have in your life and how you can find wonder in everyday things. I hope you find encouragement in the music today.
Track Listing:
01. Many Roads
02. Dancing In The Minefields
03. Planting Trees
04. The Magic Hour
05. World Traveler
06. Isle Of Skye
07. God Of My Father
08. Fool With A Fancy Guitar
09. In The Night
10. You Came So Close
11. The Last Frontier
12. The Reckoning
Thanks for reading and letting me share my thoughts on this music with you. Now check out his first single “Dancing in the Minefields” and be sure to share your review of it with us in the comment box below.
“Dancing In Minefields” is a fantastic song. I am very cynical about christian art, especially christian music, because most of it is over produced and just indistinct, uninspiring pop…it’s a shame how music that is supposed to glorify God is so lacking in real excellence. But dancing in minefields moved me. It felt like it was a song that expressed my heart…especially since my wife and I, of four years, have felt just like this song says…and the music is just absolutely beautiful. This song is the real deal. I wish there were more “real deals” in christian music. Christian music needs more Andrew Peterson’s, people who write music that is meaningful and inspiring.