Disc One
- Holy, Holy, Holy—Steven Curtis Chapman
- Take My Life—Chris Tomlin
- For the Beauty of the Earth—BarlowGirl
- 'Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus—Casting Crowns
- Fairest Lord Jesus—Natalie Grant
- I Need Thee Every Hour—Jars of Clay
- I Surrender All—Brian Littrell
- All the Heavens—Third Day
- In Christ Alone—Newsboys
- Just As I Am—Nichole Nordeman
- Wonderful Maker—Jeremy Camp
- Trust and Obey—Big Daddy Weave
- There Is a Fountain—Selah
- Here Is Love—Matt Redman
- The Solid Rock—Avalon
Disc Two
- Doxology—David Crowder Band
- The Wonderful Cross—Michael W. Smith
- This Is My Father's World—Amy Grant
- The Old Rugged Cross—Bart Millard
- It Is Well—Rebecca St. James
- All Creatures of Our God and King—Bethany Dillon & Shawn McDonald
- Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing—Mark Schultz
- Draw Me Nearer—Caedmon's Call
- Praise to the Lord, the Almighty—Passion
- Be Thou My Vision—Fernando Ortega
- Grace Greater Than Our Sin—Building 429
- Savior Like a Shepherd Lead Us—Todd Agnew
- All Hail the Power of Jesus' Name—Point of Grace
- Great Is They Faithfulness—Israel Houghton
- Rock of Ages—Chris Rice
Oh c'mon. First the WoW Hits series, then WoW Gospel and WoW Worship, followed by WoW Gold, WoW Christmas, and WoW #1's. After all that, is WoW Hymns really necessary? This brand has always been driven by the marketing and promotion of Christian artists, so with numerous covers of hymns in recent years, a 2-disc compilation like this was probably inevitable.
Actually, the idea's not half bad. If only the song selection wasn't trumped by artist representation. Including Chris Tomlin's "Take My Life" only makes sense—the original hymn is intact, paired with a new praise chorus. The same is true of Tomlin's "The Wonderful Cross" (performed here by Michael W. Smith). But why does Tomlin's 2002 original "Wonderful Maker" (performed here by Jeremy Camp) qualify? Or for that matter, contemporary hymn-ish originals like "In Christ Alone" (performed here by newsboys) or Third Day's "All the Heavens"? Hence why the album is sub-titled "30 Classic & Modern Hymns," but it doesn't really seem in keeping with the spirit of this collection's intent.
On the other hand, it's rare to find this many new recordings on a WoW compilation—9 out of 30 ain't bad, especially when they're generally worthwhile. Covers by Steven Curtis Chapman, Nichole Nordeman, Natalie Grant, and the duet of Bethany Dillon and Shawn McDonald have only previously appeared on the recent Amazing Grace movie tie-in. This collection additionally features new interpretations by Casting Crowns, Brian Littrell, Mark Schultz, Building 429, and Point of Grace.
The compilation succeeds most as testament to the enduring reverence for hymns in the Christian faith. And though the variety of styles won't appeal to everyone, one can still appreciate the diversity with which believers can reinterpret standards for today's churches. We can also appreciate that for a time, this collection is free with a modest donation to World Vision. All of which makes Wow Hymns hard to fault—it is what it is, even if it's not exactly what you'd expect.