Phil Keaggy ~ Phil Keaggy & Sunday's Child (album review) ... When the Beatles met God!

Style: christian, retro, folk-rock
Label: Myrrh Records
Year: 1988
Home: n/a

Members: Phil Keaggy ~ lead vocals/guitars/bass
Rick Cua ~ bass
Mike Mead ~ drums
Lynn Nichols ~ b. vocals/guitars

Additional: Lenny Castro ~ percussion
Robbie Buchanan ~ Hammond B-3
Rudy Valentine, Jimmy Lee Sloas ~ b. vocals

Guests: Mark Heard ~ guitars/keyboards/b. vocals
Steve Taylor ~ percussion
Randy Stonehill, Alwyn Wall, Derri Daugherty, Russ Taff ~ b. vocals
James Hollihan ~ guitars

Phil Keaggy is probably one of the most recognized names and guitarists in Christian music, having been performing since the 60's when his first band was opening for prog-rock legends Yes. Albeit, as a guitarist his albums are not stuffed full of expected guitar solos but rely more often on the folk or Neil Diamond approach of interesting melodic arrangements where solos are almost trivial. Keaggy has always had more than a hint of the Beatles in his happy sounding upbeat arrangements, but on Sunday's Child the evolution is complete. This is the legendary lost Beatles album (that you never knew was lost until now)! And, it's quit deliberate ... as Ringo's own drum set was borrowed & only vintage guitars & amps. But, it takes more than equipment to recreate a sound. A few songs are a bit too modern sounding, while a few others are filler, but on the whole this is the Beatles reincarnate. Even the Beatles had filler & they definitely were too modern sounding at times. There's a few rockers (i.e. "I'm Gonna Get You Now" & "I Always Do") but the Beatles approach of melodic little mini-stories shines through with bare bones solos akin to Harrison & Lennon. Keaggy has never changed his musical style to suit the decades & many of his albums have often fall into the world of lightweight overly sentimental pop tunes, though always well-received if for nothing else but their predictably. Sunday's Child breaks the predictability making this the best album for rockers who want to check him out. But, Keaggy is quit prolific, often releasing multiple albums a year, so there's no lack of potential starting points. This further features an all star guest list, including compositional co-credits, of Christian music icons including Randy Stones, Mark Heard and Steve Taylor.