Mercy Me (Top-10)

#6 Mercy Me (Almost There 2001)

Any Christian band that can enable non-believers to ìimagineî heaven for the first time is a band worth being in the top ten. Mercy Meís 2001 hit single ìI Can Only Imagine,î climbed the secular and non-secular charts and touched thousands of lives through the airwaves. The hit song led many to listen to Mercy and left fans wanting to listen to more. The bandís CD Almost There is more than one hit single but rather a collaboration of great songs than many will recognize.

This top band from Texas produced three albums over three years, Almost There (2001), Spoken For (2002), and their newest CD, Undone (2004). With every album there is a hit song that continues to build a name for the band, but still none as prominent as ìI Can Only Imagine.î Band member Mike Scheuchzer tells a story of a woman who came to Christ after listening to the powerful message of that song.

Scheuchzer claimed, ìShe had to pull over off the road and just started crying. She had been an atheist, and just listening to the song made her realize God loved her and that one-day she would die and move on to the afterlife.î The band has a list of testimonies from fans of all faiths, in which their song was an inspiration.

Almost There laid down the groundwork for their fans and should be one of your top choices of investment in Christian music. From beginning to end, the album creates a foundation of well-produced music with strong lyrics. The music successfully combines worship music and contemporary rock.

Instrumental sounds of piano, guitar, and drums enhance the clear sound of lead singer Bart Millard. The sincerity of his tone in ìI Can Only Imagineî is what makes the lyrics seems so real over a soft piano sound:

Surrounded by your glory/ What will my heart feel?
Will I dance for you Jesus/ Or in awe of you be still?
Will I stand in your presence/ Or to my knees fall?
Will I sing hallelujah/ Will I be able to speak at all?
I Can Only Imagine

The opening song ìI Worship Youî is upbeat and rhythmic, and the lyrics do not show right away it is a worship song: ìIím walking with a big grin/ Singing with my eyes closed.î The chorus itself adds a new perspective by mentioning the worship of God in an allusive way as ìit:î

I am never going to doubt it/ I could never live without it
Every day is new-yeah/ There is nothing any better
I will sing of it forever/ I worship you.

This fun beat and fresh sound sets the tempo for the rest of the CD and transitions to the next song smoothly. Even if ìI Worship Youî was to be burned into a personal mix, the song would still make the listener think a new CD was starting. The song has the ability to start out so strong and ready to worship God - the heart of Mercy Me.

The same innocent questioning that inspired ìI Can Only Imagine,î comes into play with ìHow Great is Your Love.î A similar slow sound, but different tone and beat still creates the same Mercy Me affect of envisioning Godís love for a first time. With the chorus singing, ìHow great is your love/ So much higher than the heavens/ Faithfulness that reaches the skies above.î One cannot help but refer to some scriptural accounts in Psalms as the authors tried to describe the greatness of God.

Mercy Me does the same but through questions and song. ìHow Great is Your Loveî is a great transition song on the CD before ìI Can Only Imagineî because it already builds the slow tempo and pondering of Godís greatness. The combination of the two Mercy Me songs generates a humbling experience for the new Christian music listener.

Mercy Me drew a large crowd to Christian music because of their contributions of a new sound to the genre. The band felt it was necessary to improve their musical performance for the success of the band and all Christian music. Scheuchzer added, ìWe do want people who've looked down on Christian music to think of it as a notch above.î Mercy Meís ability to produce quality music with contemporary acoustic sounds creates an atmosphere enjoyable for all audiences which is obvious through record sales recognition. In the past three years they have sold over two million records and were nominated for an American Music Award.

Mercy Me is now one of the top bands in CCM and will headline Christian music festivals this summer. Any of their CDís are great first albums for new believers and will soon become one of your favorites, but we recommend Almost There first.