Wayne Watson was born on October 5, 1954 in Wisner,
Louisiana. His first album was 1980’s
WORKIN’ IN THE FINAL HOUR. Among his
Dove Award wins was one for ‘Male Vocalist of the Year’ in 1989. He’s twice been nominated for a Grammy
Award. Some of his best known songs are:
‘Friend of a Wounded Heart’, ‘When God’s People Pray’, ‘Watercolour Ponies’,
and ‘Another Time, Another Place’. The
latter is a duet he sang with Sandi Patty on ‘The Tonight Show’ in the
1990’s. In 2000 Watson released a
self-titled album via Word/Epic. It was
produced by Michael Omartian and Jerry McPherson. In the liner notes, Wayne writes: “I think
this is a better project because we let life get in the way of the
songwriting. My prayer is that it will
be timely for all who hear”.
‘More than a little Unusual’ is an upbeat pop song featuring
Michael Omartian on piano and Phil Madeira on the Hammond B-3. It starts with these words of encouragement:
“Everybody’s picking on you, you’re not like everybody else/Even when the big
bad world backs off just a little/You’re still pretty hard on yourself/Feel
like you just don’t fit in/But your faith, your conviction is strong/And just
because you march to the beat of a different drummer/Hey, that doesn’t mean
that you’re wrong”. ‘Merciful Heaven’ is
an adult contemporary ballad requesting forgiveness: “Merciful Heaven, have
mercy on me/Seven times seven, I’ve always believed/You’ve got the power and I
have the need/Merciful Heaven, have mercy on me”. Chris Rodriguez, Gene Miller, and Michael
Mellett provide backing vocals on the optimistic pop song ‘Finest Hour’ which
includes these words: “What a moment this is/It is good to be alive/There is
still time for changing the world/I believe it can happen/God has given us
life/He has given us breath/And the sun is not set/We are not finished yet/And
I tell you there must be a reason.../This could be your finest hour/This could
be your place in time/This could be your defining moment/Get ready to shine
(2X)”.
‘Trust in You’ has refreshingly vulnerable lyrics: “I don’t
trust my eyes anymore/They’re easily deceived/Too often led astray by things
that cannot be believed/Smoke and mirrors, slight of hand/Make a mockery of the
truth/I don’t trust my eyes anymore/But God, I still trust You”. ‘The Blood of Jesus’ is a beautiful worship
anthem: “It was the blood of Jesus/The blood of Jesus/That opened heaven’s door
to let me in/It was the blood of Jesus, the blood of Jesus/That washed away the
guilt/That washed away the guilt of all my sin”. One of the backing vocalists is Melinda
Doolittle. She finished third on Season
6 of ‘American Idol’.
Bernie Herms plays the Wurlitzer and Michael Omartian the
accordion on ‘One of these Days’. This
song speaks of the emotional toll of living on this fallen planet: “One of
these days I’m gonna break down and cry/For the world full of sorrow and
sin/One of these days I’m gonna break down and cry/But for now I’m gonna hold
it in.../Don’t let my heart grow so cold/So hard against the plot of my
enemy/That I can’t feel the suffering/And I can’t see the pain of hearts that
ache/For Jesus’ sake”. ‘Everything Can
Change So Fast’ is a nice light pop song that uses horns. It talks of spiritual transformation: “Jesus
said it just takes a simple faith/To wash a lifetime of guilt and sin away/And
a heart that is weeping will be dancing for joy/Yeah, the minute you trust
Him/The minute you pray/I tell you/Everything can change so fast (2X)/In the
blink of an eye/Your sin’s a thing of the past/Everything can change so fast”.
‘The Ones Left Standing’ is an inspirational number about
grief: “The peace of God will abide in the season of our sorrow/In the valley
of a pain we can’t describe/In the palm of His hand is a shelter from the
madness/We can never really understand/Cause the ones left standing have to cry
all the tears/And replay all the memories/The good and the bad from the
years.../And in eternity when all the mysteries are gone/It will be clear that
it was our God keeping us strong”. An
upbeat gospel number called ‘Pray’ celebrates a spiritual discipline: “This is
not some last resort, some act of desperation/A string to pull when your hope
has just faded away/I believe that the humble, righteous prayer/It can heal a
broken nation/I believe a faithful God will hear us and provide a way/Yeah,
bring Him all of your worry, all your despair/All your tears, anytime,
anywhere/You can pray!”
Scott Dente from Out of the Grey plays acoustic guitar on
‘The Wrong Stuff’. It deals with
spiritual warfare: “How did you get so far from holiness?/How did you get so
far from true?/This road will lead you to destruction/You’re not dreaming up something
new.../The soul’s at war with principalities, the evil and the good, oh/And the
one that tends to get the victory/The stronger part of you and me/Will be the
side you give attention to/The nature that you feed, oh”. Sam Levine plays penny whistle on the very
personal ballad ‘Turning into Dad’.
These are some of the words: “I cannot explain it, but I just knew it in
my heart/That my hero had breathed his last and said goodbye/We are flesh and
we are spirit/It’s appointed to us once to really live and once to die.../Of
all the things that I could still become/I could do a whole lot worse/Than
turning into Dad”.
WAYNE WATSON is a light Christian pop album with a heavy
influence of adult contemporary music.
The slow, worshipful, and reflective songs far outweigh the faster paced
ones. There is not really one central
unifying theme on the album besides God and His involvement in our lives. Some of the topics addressed are:
forgiveness, prayer, reaching the lost, worldliness, and trusting God. Wayne’s maturity really comes through in his
lyrics and vocals. Fans of the more laid
back material of Michael W. Smith, Morgan Cryar, and Steve Camp should acquire
this album. These are songs born out of
a long personal relationship with God.
I’m rating WAYNE WATSON 92%. For
more info visit: www.waynewatson.com.