Passage by John Featherstone

Reviewed by Ewan Jones

John is a British-born, France-based singer/songwriter who slowly but surely down the years has built up a considerable following in his adopted homeland. 'Passage' was written as a show conceived for piano, guitar and a vocal quartet. It's also sung in French. At its heart of this concept album is a desire to encourage debate; to hear the valid claims and questions of the sceptic and to provide answers directly from Scripture. In the liner notes Featherstone quotes Spurgeon's claim "Scripture is like a lion. Who ever heard of defending a lion? Just turn it loose; it will defend itself". Using passages from Genesis to Romans to Revelation via the words of Jesus in the Gospels, this is a clearly thought out and professionally presented piece of work. At 70 minutes 'Passage' stretches the patience and some production choices are made that do not lead to a comfortable listening experience. Featherstone's seven string guitar playing is fantastic and beautifully captured, and the same goes for Dave Leaonard's piano. But other elements sound stilted and, dare I say it, cheesy. For the average listener who will never have seen 'Passage' performed live (surely the medium which might see the work truly brought to life) this album is likely to remain a mere curio.