- Your Name High
- Run
- Desert Song
- This Is Our God
- He Is Lord
- High and Lifted Up
- Stronger
- Healer
- You Are Here (The Same Power)
- You Deserve
- Across the Earth
- Where We Belong
- Sing to the Lord
- You'll Come
- Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus
- With Everything
One of the most prolific music ministries in the world is that of Hillsong Live, the praise team from Australia's Hillsong Church. Already in its 17th concert recording—not counting ancillary studio projects, youth and children's albums, or music from subsidiaries the world over—the group presents
Interestingly, worship pastor Darlene Zschech seems to be aware of the changing face of Hillsong—her involvement is becoming less and less prominent, making way for others to take center stage. This delegation of duties is a double-edged sword, especially in the area of songwriting. It's refreshing to see new, young faces putting pen to paper, but not everyone who does so is necessarily a great songwriter.
The closest thing to the usual Hillsong standard doesn't come until the sixth track, "High and Lifted Up," and sure enough, it's the only song on the album written by Zschech. Even so, that song is very typical for Hillsong: congregational, for certain, but all too familiar and commonplace in the church's extensive canon. And that's the problem with the bulk of
Right now, the only composer from the Hillsong community consistently delivering strong materials is Brooke Fraser, a singer/songwriter who moonlights as a worship leader while working full-time as a successful recording artist. Her two contributions to
The buzz song of the album is "Healer," a stirring cry by worship leader Mike Guglielmucci, written after he was diagnosed with cancer and given a prognosis of six months to live. Nearly two years later, he stepped on to the stage, oxygen tank in hand, to deliver the most memorable song of the night. [It's since been revealed that Guglielmucci's story is a hoax.]
The performance is stirring—one of Hillsong's very best in recent years—but "Healer" and Fraser's two compositions alone do not a great album make. It's disappointing, considering the wealth of talent and resources at the megachurch, which you'd think would lead to a wealth of new repertoire. Tighter songcraft, less tolerance for platitudes, and a better cliché detector can only help Hillsong Live commit only the best of what they have to offer to a recording. After all, the world is listening.