ONE

This was my first experience with Neal Morse solo material. I was very wary of hearing a Christian prog album in general, and though Snow (his last Beard album) was a somewhat ambiguous spiritual album, I had been put off by the lyrics in the second half of it's second CD. But I kept seeing reviews saying this was better than the new Beard (more proggy, anyway) and along the lines of his Transatlantic work. So, I picked it up.

My first impression was a good one, as the first epic track is fantastic. The lyrics are not blatant and in your face "praise God" type of lyrics (though the meaning is pretty obvious knowing Morse's religious nature these days) and the music is classic Morse epic prog. Portnoy is great as always, and the song is one of those perfect Morse prog by numbers pieces. I realize that "prog by numbers" is usually used as a negative comment, but in this case I use it in a positive way. It is certainly not some new and groundbreaking style, but it works extremely well. The Man's Gone is a pleasant short song, with nice vocals. Nothing special, but it is quite short and makes its point and then ends. Author Of Confusion is another great song, with Portnoy going all out and really driving the song. The Gentle Giant style vocals have been pretty overdone by Morse, but they work well here. The song is better in the first half than the second, but still works great as a whole. The second epic is not quite as good, I don't think, seeming more disjointed and not flowing as well as the first one. Not bad though, with some good playing by all.

Cradle to the Grave I actually kind of like. It is something different for Morse, and has an earnestness and feeling to it that I think gives it a certain charm. And it's nice to hear a different vocalist (who is pretty good........though his guitar solo on the first track is his best contribution). Still, by this point in the album, the praise God lyrics are becoming more and more obvious, and as a result not nearly as good (not just because of the subject, but because they become more obvious and less interesting......I prefer when lyrics are more universal and open to interpretation, as opposed to these which leave no room for any other meaning). Help Me/The Spirit and the Flesh has a nice Spock's like flamenco style beginning part and a heavily dramatic Jesus loves me second part. Not a bad song, but again the Christian elements are dominating the second half a bit too much for my liking. Father of Forgiveness is a fairly bland and boring ballad like track, lacking the intimacy and earnestness of Cradle. Finally, Reunion, rounds the album out with an uplifting bombastic ending in typical Morse prog style. The lyrics again are all Jesus loves me, God is great type of stuff but generally don't get too annoying.

As far as Christian music goes, I have to hand it to Neal for creating a Christian music album that I can stand. And in this case, even enjoy a lot of it. For that alone it gets at least 3 stars. But on the whole, it is nothing really new or exciting, and the lyrics can get pretty sappy for us prog fans who are not die hard Christians. But even then, I was impressed that for at least half the album (and it is a loooong album) the lyrics are not in your face Christian bible thumping type stuff, but are actually pretty interesting and ambiguous. So overall, I'm going with 3 stars, as this isn't new or innovative, might turn off some non-Christians, but is a solid well performed and will written prog album.