When the leaves start to change and a chill is brought to the air, nothing is quite as comforting as putting on a new CD on a rainy day, curling up on the couch with a good cup of tea and experiencing the sounds and comforting messages of your favorite Christian artists.
Here are some the most anticipated albums scheduled to be released this fall.
Sara Groves
Album: The Collection
Release date: September 17
Sara Groves has consistently provided great Christian music for 15 years now. To celebrate, she is releasing a collection of songs from 10 studio albums and throwing in a few new songs for good measure. The two CD set is a celebration of this storyteller’s 40 years on this earth.
“I made a map of my life on my 40th birthday, and remembered in broad strokes the first 20 years of my life, and then the second. Drawn out in a sort of graph, I was amazed that there was rarely just one monolithic line, plummeting and rising, but that in the darker hours, there was almost always a counter-rise — this hard thing was happening, but at the same time, this other (sometimes completely unrelated) wonderful thing was happening,” says Groves on her website. “You know what I’m talking about because when I go out and sing, you come and tell me about your plummeting and rising, and these songs that mark each turn in the line.”
Songs included in the collection include “You Cannot Lose My Love,” “All Right Here” and “Roll to the Middle.”
Thirty-six of Today’s Top Christian Artists & Hits
Album: Wow Hits 2014 (Deluxe Edition)
Release date: September 24
Since 1995, WOW Hits have released a collection of the prior year’s best hits from Capitol Christian Distribution, Provident Distribution and Word Label Group. Highlights on this year’s collection include: “Jesus, Friend of Sinners” (Casting Crowns); “Redeemed” (Big Daddy Weave); “The Proof of Your Love” (For King & Country); “Steal My Show” (TobyMac); “You Are I Am” (MercyMe) and “Whom Shall I Fear / God of Angel Armies” (Chris Tomlin).
The deluxe edition also includes these extra tracks: “Good To Be Alive” (Jason Gray); “Pray” (Sanctus Real); “Restore” (Chris August); “Every Good Thing” (The Afters), “Hurricane” (Natalie Grant) and “Carry Me” (Josh Wilson).
Phil Wickham
Album: The Ascension
Release date: September 24
It’s pretty crazy to think that even after five albums to his credit, many people are just now discovering Phil Wickham for the first time. Since 2003, Wickham has been churning out praise and worship albums and will be releasing his sixth, The Ascension, on Sept. 24, 2013. He can hardly contain himself. “Listening to the final mixes of the new record and I couldn’t be more thrilled. Poured all I could into this record, so stoked to share it!” said Phil in a recent tweet from his Twitter account.
The Ascension will bridge the gap between the older and younger generations. Songs like the title track might be mistaken at times for a fantasy movie soundtrack, as they have a sense of wonder to them. These songs may even remind you of your childhood and the mysteries of life.
For country lovers, Wickham gets a little twangy with “When My Heart is Torn Asunder” and “Tears of Joy.” Both songs have the distinction of sounding unlike anything else on the album.
Steven Curtis Chapman
Album: The Glorious Unfolding
Release date: October 1
Perhaps the most anticipated album to arrive this fall is Steve Curtis Chapman’s latest. Believe it or not, Chapman has 47 No. 1 singles under his belt, and The Glorious Unfolding will be his 18th album.
What makes this one so special is that it has been seven years since his last album. It’s no secret that Chapman and his family have been going through some difficult times since the death of their daughter, Maria Sue, in 2008, and this album explores how one focuses on God during the emotionally trying and difficult times in our lives. It’s great to see the never-aging singer smiling again.
To hear a sample from the new album, visit Chapman’s website.
Laura Story
Album: God of Every Story
Release date: October 1
Laura Story is so real and unpretentious, which is exactly what makes her music so much more special. “Don’t get the wrong idea. It hasn’t been easy,” Laura admits on her website. “Everyone wants to be a mature and equipped follower, but would I have signed up had I known what it would take? God has grown us up, deepened our faith, our awareness of our great need for Him as a savior, daily. We knew it before, but we didn’t see it. This is a good place to be.”
God of Every Story is the pianist / singer’s third studio album and the studio says that Laura “returns to that deep place of vulnerability before the Lord and honesty with herself.” The stories on this album include one from her own life: her husband’s brain tumor discovered early in their marriage. The songs highlight God’s love and grace during these types of trying times.