Personnel includes: Michael W. Smith (piano, programming); Allison Redman, Mike Carpino, Raphael Giglio, Geron Davis, Becky Davis, Shaun Groves, Ginny Owens, Chris Rice (vocals); David Hamilton (director, keyboards); Wes King (acoustic guitar); Glenn Pearce (electric guitar); Jerry McPherson (guitar); David Davidson (violin, viola); Jim Daneker (keyboards, programming); Brent Milligan (bass); Raymond Boyd (drums); Ken Lewis (percussion); The Nashville String Machine.
Engineers: Tom Laune, Brent King, Rob Burrell.
Recorded live at The Carpenter's Home Church, Lakeland, Florida on June 1, 2001 and at Bridgeway Studio, Nashville, Tennessee.
WORSHIP was nominated for the 2002 Grammy Award for Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album.
While Michael W. Smith has made his name in Christian music as a singer-songwriter possessed of prolific abilities, WORSHIP finds him putting down his pen for a moment to sing the songs of others. There's been so much activity in the worship music scene, so many songs written, that even a respected auteur like Smith recognized the need to document some of the more affecting tunes in one place. He does so here with the help of some luminaries from the Christian music world, including Amy Grant and a host of others. The music is a mix of smooth balladry, upbeat pop-rock with an occasional hint of U2's wide-screen epic feel, and gospel-flavored soul. Holding it all together, regardless of author or guest, is Smith himself of course, whose rich, pliant voice proves eminently up to the task of presenting what he considers some of the finest worship songs around.
