Search - Michael W Smith :: Big Picture

The first "Big bang" of CCM in the 80's

jeff tellin elevendaytrip@yahoo.com | kansas city | 12/16/1999

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Without a doubt the best produced Christian pop album of the decade, and it still holds its own with much of Christendom's 90's musical output. The songs on the album form one cohesive exhortation to America's youth to keep their faith in God during the tumult of the teen years, knowing He's promised to give them an abundant life. Usually, such a pre-meditated effort to instruct through art causes the finished product to smack of overblown, trite piety. Not so with the Big Picture. If I found myself in the role of a youth pastor, I'd be sure to get a copy of this album into every kid's cd player. The quality that sets this album apart does not rest in the slick production, the unforgetably catchy beats and rhythms, or in the clever, creative song writing. This album deserves to be referred to as a landmark, watershed recording in the annals of Contemporary Christian Music because of the sincerity of Michael's heart to help teens see past their present trials and tribulations and grasp hold of the God who serves as the artistic inspiration for the big picture only He has the power to bring about in their lives. As this recording nears its 14th birthday, here's hoping every adult with a youth in his or her direct care will augment their efforts to impart the message of the Big Picture to their impressionable understudy, by giving them a copy of the album."

Smitty's still trying to top it

Greg Brady | Capital City | 01/14/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This CD was a big part of the soundtrack of my high school years with good reason. It was completely of its time in the 80s in terms of sound and production and it had something to say to me. For crying out loud, I got my hair permed because of this CD!



Those who only know Michael W. Smith from his last couple worship albums and "This is Your Time" will not even recognize the Smith that's present here. On this LP, Smith was clearly gunning for the pop charts. Though he missed that mark, it was a huge seller charting 4 tunes on the Christian charts. ("Rocketown", #1 for 10 weeks, "Wired for Sound" hit #4, "Voices" reached #19, and "Old Enough to Know" was a #6 with the album itself winning the Dove for Pop/Contemporary Album of the Year for 1987)



The album's opening sound of a jet takeoff tells you right away that this was not "2", his previous album. It immediately kicks into a driving ode to an "island paradise" where people go to get away from it all...with Smith poignantly pointing out that you never can run "from the One inside of you."



It's the consistent theme running through the album, that God is there and waiting but Smith resists the temptation to pummel his listeners with it, instead relying mostly on subtler and more effective words to get it across.



Media overload is the topic in "Wired for Sound" in this modern world where "wisdom from the sacred page is turned and ignored". Rather than just telling the teenage protagonist of "Old Enough to Know" to 'just say No' to her boyfriend's hormonal urges, Smith reminds her not to confuse real love...an honest concern and care for another's feelings and wellbeing...with a quick roll in the hay ("what some say love should be..") This may be the only song here that's less universal (at 33,this doesn't "connect" for me as much as it did years ago).



Probably the standouts of the LP are "Pursuit of the Dream", Smitty's anthem of optimism for the future for the teens this album was aimed at, "You're Alright", the closest Smitty ever gets to full-bore rock with him reminding awkward self-conscious teens that "when you see your life through His eyes, You're alright..", "Rockettown" imagines Jesus popping into a typical big city of today, and his anti-suicide ode "The Last Letter."



Probably the only letdown is "Voices" which is kind of lackluster...it never really punches all the way home. But the sheer sonic blast of the other tracks makes up for this one misstep. As a bonus track, it ends with a tasteful slightly jazzy piano instrumental that probably would be better left off. It's cool, but it doesn't really "fit" into the album's allout 80s pop thrust.



It's a 4/2 star outing...replacing "Voices" with "Place on this World" (which appeared on Smith's next release) would take this all the way to five stars. Smitty's definitive album and definitely a high point of Christian music history."