In in Seventies, before Christian Rock became a homogenized cottage industry, there were two ‘Jesus-Rockers’ that stood above all the rest. One was Larry Norman, whom I’ve talked about in my other reviews; the other was Phil Keaggy. Keaggy was more of a Soft Rocker, and wasn’t quite at gutsy or authentic as Norman, but between his exquisite voice and his astounding guitar chops, he almost couldn’t help making great music. These days he mostly releases albums of acoustic New Age instrumentals, but in his Seventies heyday he favored more of a Soft Rock/Gospel sound, which seemed to be influenced heavily by Stephen Schwartz’s score for Godspell. This is his signature song, a gorgeous burst of religious ecstasy, and it ranks with Norman’s “I Wish We’d All Been Ready” and a couple of songs from Bob Dylan’s Christian albums as the pinnacle of what Christian Rock is capable of in the right hands.
Verdict: Good.