"The Greater Cause" - John's New CD

[pmal]

Mine was cracked also, but I have extras laying around so it is not an issue.

Same here

[sue d.]

Gees, that many cracks? They were in bubble-envelopes. Guess the USPS doesn't take too much care, do they?

[Preacherman777]

One of my cases were cracked but the other was fine.

[Jan]

GREAT review from The Phantom Tollbooth!

Schlitt, John - The Greater Cause
Created on Thursday, 17 May 2012 Written by Bert Saraco
Yes, Petra means 'rock' but John Schlitt out-rocks the CCM icons on his new album...
The Greater Cause

John Schlitt
http://www.johnwschlitt.com
Label: 4K Records
Time: 11 tracks / 42:19 minutes

John Schlitt's distinctively soulful, gritty, powerful rasp is one of the most iconic and identifiable vocal instruments in the history of Christian rock. With performing roots in the secular market (with Head East), Schlitt lent a good dose of credibility to the legendary arena rock band Petra - infusing new life into the franchise and carrying on with them to even higher heights. So much for the history lesson. The question is – does he still have what it takes to be relevant and not just another aging rocker propped up by a small army of studio musicians trying to replicate the past?
Is the Pope German?
Are bananas yellow?
Does Bob Hartman wear a hairpiece?
In other words – oh, yeah. John Schlitt's still got it.

The Greater Cause stars out as explosively as the opening of WWE's Monday Night Raw and ends with a powerful Beatle-esque anthem with nine powerful songs sandwiched in between. Make no mistake – The Greater Cause is a fine classic rock album - with edge, power and hooks to spare. Schlitt co-wrote seven of the eleven songs here and there's not a measure of filler material in the bunch. Backed by first-rate musicians, Schlitt and his friends (among them such dependable players as Chris Rodriguez, Jerry McPherson, Peter King and Dan Needham) perform an impressively memorable set of tunes that bristle with energy and shine with fine production. Funded by a kickstarter program, The Greater Cause sounds every bit as good as any project financed by a major label, but with the added bonus of the artist being free to do exactly what he wants to do.

For many people, the appeal of The Greater Cause will rest on whether or not you like the sound of John Schlitt's voice - a pretty much subjective issue. If you dig Bob Dylan's vocals you'll love Dylan's work. On the other hand, if you feel like Bob's voice needs a laying-on-of-hands, anointing oil, and a deliverance ministry intervention, you simply will not be able to get past that to enjoy his work. The same is true of Joe Cocker, Rod Stewart and, yes – John Schlitt. Schlitt's voice might be an acquired taste, but one well-worth acquiring!

Even though Schlitt's voice is a spectacularly raucous rock instrument, he's equally effective on ballads, delivering undeniably romantic lyrics in a Rod Stewart-like intimate rasp on "The Gift" (a love song to his wife), and turning in a powerfully emotional, stirring performance on "The Cross Remains," as impressive a closing track as any I've heard in recent years. Like other well-known 'raspy rockers,' the rough edges on his vocal delivery add an extra dose of emotion on the slower songs as well as extra punch on the straight-out rock numbers.

Packed with edgy rock, and funkier than Petra ever got,The Greater Cause is a reminder of what great classic rock albums are supposed to sound like, with a smartly-assembled track-order, strong, clean production, crisp, tight instrumental performances (featuring tasty guitar solos and solid drumming) and of course, power-packed vocals: this is what fine classic rock is all about. If one insists on classifying projects according to a musical period instead of the intrinsic quality of the work itself, I'd have to say that The Greater Cause would hold its own against the best of the classic rock period. Personally, I say you should just forget about how retro this album is or isn't – it's just a really good rock album. End of story.

These well-written songs do exactly what they're supposed to do – they entertain while you're listening and linger in your mind long after the CD's stopped spinning. Lyrically, the project is from a distinctly Christian world-view, often featuring the tensions of being a believer in an frequently-hostile environment but also focusing on personal relationship issues, like on "Where I Wanna' Be," where we hear John sing, "If love could set the world on fire, What would it burn away / What would remain? Would it build a bridge between us? If love would rain for forty days, Would it wash away the pain Of bitter days and all the lies that came between us? And conquer all the fears in me? That's where I wanna be."

The Greater Cause isn't a ground-breaking project but it certainly gets the job done as a meat-and-potatoes rock album absent of shoe-gazing indie pretentiousness – a real good listen by any standard, with the bonus of delivering a positive and often inspiring message. Recommended.

- Bert Saraco

http://www.phantomtollbooth.org/index.p ... ater-cause

[executioner]

Great Review!! I've been looking around for reviews but haven't found any different from what has been posted.

[executioner]

Gees, that many cracks? They were in bubble-envelopes. Guess the USPS doesn't take too much care, do they?

Since alot of us have gotten cracks I would think the problem lies within the post office where John actually dropped them off. The post office personel have never really been known to be happy set of people.

[sue d.]

Did you see the list here? http://www.johnwschlitt.com/fans/solotgcreviews.htm

Not real many, but what has been written is fantastic!

[LivingRock]

Hey, my CD's arrived this morning! I can honestly say, that was the fastest that I've ever received something from the States or elsewhere!
They're in great shape, one had a tiny crack in the corner but it's barely noticeable! Haven't had a listen yet, but on my way to work tonight I will. Only wish we were allowed to listen to music while we work!

[p-freak]

I got them yesterday.

[loengard]

Gees, that many cracks? They were in bubble-envelopes. Guess the USPS doesn't take too much care, do they?

No cracks on mine. Both looked great.

[sue d.]

John's single, "Hope That Saves the World" (you can hear it here: http://schlittshop.com/) has hit the Billboard Christian Rock Top 30 Chart - he's at #29! This is the first time he's had a charting single since "Show Me the Way" from SHAKE in 1995.

http://myemail.constantcontact.com/John ... CJ_Wqj4C5I

[Preacherman777]

This is great news. I was surprised no one else had been talking about it. It's a good thing that some of us pushed the idea of using this song as one of the singles to be pushed, because if I remember right, originally it wasn't going to be. I don't think any other song on the album could have done as well.

[executioner]

Well its not over yet, it is still on the way up. I think there are other songs that can do as well, but I felt like "Live It Loud" would be a mistake. "Take Me Home", "These Days", and "Run" are very strong. I've been surveying with the church youth and these are the 3 songs that they seem to really like and talk about. The weird thing is that most(even the guys) really like "The Gift". Quite a few DL have been sold via our church.

[sue d.]

Guess who is at #1 Amazon's Hot New Releases in Christian Rock & Alternative!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/new-releases/m ... 3_16269881

[executioner]

Guess who is at #1 Amazon's Hot New Releases in Christian Rock & Alternative!

http://www.amazon.com/gp/new-releases/m ... 3_16269881

HMMM!! I don't know tell me