Paul Lester Overstreet was born on March 17, 1955 in Vancleave, Mississippi. He released his self-titled solo debut in 1982. His second solo album, SOWIN' LOVE, birthed five straight Top 10 hits on the country charts, including 'Love Helps Those', and 'Seein' My Father In Me'. Paul had a #1 hit with 'Daddy's Come Around' from 1991's HEROES. Fast forward to 1992 and Overstreet put out his fourth studio album LOVE IS STRONG (RCA Nashville). It peaked at #28 on the Billboard Christian Albums chart. The album was produced by Brown Bannister and Overstreet.
'Take Another Run' is upbeat country when it comes to the music. Paul Franklin plays steel guitar and pedabro, while Rob Hajacos plays fiddle. It's about persevering in relationships: "Sometimes the mountain looks so high when we're standing at the bottom/But once we've made it to the top we can't see the problem/Right now it hurts a little bit but we've never been the kind to quit/And I know we'll make it over, we'll be rolling in the clover/Let's take another run at it baby, take another run at our love". 'Still Out There Swinging' is the only song Paul wrote alone here. It's an old school country and western song that tells a story: "So she gave him enough rope to hang himself/Now he's still out there swinging/He's all over town/He can always be found anywhere there's a cowgirl singing/She said that she hoped he might change, but she don't think that thought has ever entered into his thinking/So she gave him enough rope to hang himself/Now he's still out there swinging".
'Me and My Baby' is one of two co-writes with Paul Davis. Strings are arranged by D. Bergen White and background vocalists include Kathie Baillie and Lisa Bevill. This light pop love song was a #22 hit. Here's the chorus: "Me and my baby got a good old fashioned love/We ain't giving it up for nobody when the times get tough/As long as the world keeps spinning around/This is where I'll be found/Here with my baby, got a good thing going/And it keeps on growing/Got a good old fashioned love, oh yeah, uh huh". Paul and Taylor Dunn wrote 'There But For the Grace of God Go I'. It includes backing vocals by Wayne Kirkpatrick and Christopher Harris and won a Dove Award for 'Country Recorded Song of the Year'. This great mid-tempo country song encourages us to remember and help the least of these amongst us: "Oh there but for the grace of God go I/How without compassion can we pass them by?/Oh, it could be you and it could be me the world has locked outside/There but for the grace of God go I/Oh the time has come for everyone to learn to help another/We could turn this whole wide world around if we'd only love each other".
Next up is the title track, 'Love is Strong', a country ballad with these beautiful words: "Love is strong (2X)/It can move a mountain/It can roll away the stone/Love is strong (2X)/But never demands its own way/No love never demands its own way". Steel guitar is played by Paul Franklin and strings are arranged by Archie Jordan. 'Head Over Heels' is the song of one smitten by a lady: "I'm still head over heels in love with you/Just like the first time that we met/I know I never will forget/I knew right then that it was real/I still get a thrill when I think about you/Don't ever doubt the way I feel/I love you now and always will/I'm still head over heels".
Paul co-wrote 'What Goes Without Saying' with Jeff Borders. Supporting vocals are provided by Paul, Glen Campbell, Susan Ashton, and Kelly Willard. This is a sentimental country number: "He stood there looking at his father who was 85 years old/He remembered all the ball games they played so long ago/Then he put his arms around him and kissed him on the cheek/He said 'Dad, it's time I told you what a friend you've been to me'". 'Take Some Action' is a groovy sounding country song that includes this story: "Now Harry, he was married to his work and his wife/Had to decide which was first in his life/He traded some money for some more time at home/Now his wife calls him 'honey'/The romance is back on".
Paul and Randy Travis wrote 'Lord, She Sure is Good at Loving Me'. It's a country and western ballad of gratitude: "Lord, she sure is good at loving me/I know You had a hand in this/Cause it's been so plain to see/That I've been blessed with the very best that love will ever be/Lord, she sure is good at loving me". Last up is 'Till the Answer Comes (Gotta Keep Praying)'. Matt Rollings plays piano and Kelly Willard and Buddy Greene are background vocalists. It's an upbeat country song encouraging spiritual persistence: "Till the answer comes you gotta keep praying/Keep praying till the answer comes/If you knock one time and there's no answer/Well, don't turn away from the door/You've got to knock again until you've been let in/Sometimes it only takes once more"
To be truthful, to this day, there isn't a lot of great Christian country music out there. LOVE IS STRONG is a splendid album of country music, with some country and western music mixed in. There are more fast songs than slow songs. There are ones about happy, fulfilling, romantic, committed relationships, and ones about the value of working on relationships. God's tender, but strong, love for us is spoken of and we are reminded to tell our loved ones how much they mean to us. We are reminded as well to be a people of prayer. I'm rating this album, which runs 38 minutes and 42 seconds, a 100%. Paul's vocals are easy to listen to. For more info visit: www.pauloverstreet.com and connect with him on Facebook.