Band: Jadon Lavik
Title: Roots Run Deep
Label: BEC Recordings
Review By: JoshIVM
Tracklisting:
01. Come Thou Fount
02. Blessed Assurance
03. Tis So Sweet
04. My Father’s World
05. I Surrender All
06. Wondrous Love
07. Turn Your Eyes
08. I Need Thee
09. Take My Life
10. What a Friend
11. Amazing Grace
I love hymns. To me, there is no way I’d rather worship than to sing those timeless songs. I realize the praise & worship movement is all the rage now but they will never have the same impact on me. Those were my feelings upon attempting to listen to Jadon Lavik’s new release “Roots Run Deep”. I am no longer terribly familiar with every CCM release as I was when I worked at a Christian bookstore but I still keep up with what’s out there. Most of the newer hymn albums turned me away because their focus was on modernizing the songs. Thankfully, Jadon avoids this and in turn receives my support. He makes these 11 tracks his own while not straying too far from the originals. You will notice many of the titles here such as “Blessed Assurance”, “Come Thou Fount”, and “I Surrender All”, however Jadon has come up with new arrangements for these beloved favorites. The popular CCM artist Fernando Ortega joins him on “Tis So Sweet” and that turns out to be one of the best tracks on the disc. As is the style on the rest of the album, the music here is simple only utilizing an acoustic guitar, piano, and some light percussion. “Amazing Grace” is one of the songs that did stand out because of the arrangement. Jadon went for a more blues/jazz approach and it suprisingly worked with me.
Overall Rating: An excellent project which I honestly did not expect to like! Roots Run Deep might just be my surprise album of the year with its refreshing take on many classics. I think those looking for an natural, intimate worship experience will greatly enjoy this album and I definitely recommend checking it out.(8.5/10)
Standout Tracks: “Come Thou Fount”, “Amazing Grace”
Website
Myspace
BEC Recordings
Buy: MusiChristian