Carman - Mission 3:16

Monday 1st June 1998
Carman - Mission 3:16
Carman - Mission 3:16

STYLE: Pop
RATING 7 7 7 7 7 7 7
OUR PRODUCT CODE: 3853-585
LABEL: Sparrow SPD1640
FORMAT: CD Album
ITEMS: 1
RRP: £12.99

Reviewed by Mike Rimmer

The long awaited new Carman release focuses on the need for the Church to reach out and win souls. From the title cut which is a cross between Mission Impossible and a Bond theme, this is compelling listening injected with humour, straight ahead lyrics and pretty strong music. As usual, Carman dabbles and paddles around in different styles (rock, cajun, do-wop, dance, inspirational ballad, jazz, opera(!) and even a '60s surfer version of the main theme!) and if there's a weakness it's that he doesn't always sound convincing in each style. However, as he's trying to reach a broad audience with his message, this deliberate ploy will appeal to everyone except the music snobs. "People Of God" revisits similar territory to "God's Got An Army" and this time employs a rowdy Russ Taff to add some vocal punch to the groovy rock dance rhythm. He makes a welcome return to the story song retreading similar territory to "The Champion" in "The Courtroom" with its Perry Masonesque theme. Let's face it, nobody tells a story like Carman and I can already picture mime troupes worldwide acting this one out! From a promising start, the second half of the album takes a bit of a plunge. The Cajun kids song "Do I Do" and his calypso version of "The Lord's Prayer" both score high on the cheesometer! And someone ought to take Carman into a quiet room and persuade him never to record another ballad, definitely not his strength! Every Carman album I've ever heard has been killed off by his ballads! "Slam" has a funky little dancy groove and a strong spiritual message to encourage believers and pick things up again but it's quickly ruined by another terrible ballad. Aaargh! Overall, a step in the right direction from his previous release.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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Sample Track Listing:
1. Mission 3:16 [Listen]

This track data is supplied by the Cross Rhythms CD/DVD review library. Please note that CD tracks may vary according to release region or product version.

Reader Comments

Posted by Clare in Big ole' Sion house! @ 21:57 on Mar 9 2006

This is an amazing song! Cheesy and somewhat amusing, yes, it's true, but after discovering it, it fast became a favourite of myself and my fellow missionaries (that is, the ones I work with, not all missionaries in general, because I haven't asked them!)

The jazz verse is great, but other than that, this song should just get you going and definitly deserves a listen!



The opinions expressed in the Reader Comments are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms.

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