25 Selections from CCM Top 100

Christian Century, Nov 30, 2004 by Louis R. Carlozo

25 Selections from CCM Top 100, by various artists (Creative Trust/ Provident). Contemporary Christian music.

It's a genre and a magazine. CCM has been covering contemporary Christian music for more than 25 years, and this double CD is one of several planned volumes celebrating the best. But are these songs truly "the best," and is CCM (the music) truly a "genre"? Musically speaking, it's a mix of styles from hip-hop (de talk's "What If 1 Stumble") to orchestrated, triumphant pop (Rich Mullins's "Awesome God"). This is a good introduction to CCM, but there is a lyrical stiffness, absence of drama and predictability to much Christian music many of these songs included.

Reviewed by Louis R. Carlozo, who is an entertainment editor and staff writer at the Chicago Tribune, an independent record producer and a studio musician.