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Greg Howlett’s Reflections on a Journey is a flawless production, but more importantly it emulates the Glory of the Lord in a triumphant manner. This is Greg’s sophomore release, a fully orchestrated CD, an extremely complex success. His first release was solo piano which is a very popular internet genre, so to tackle orchestrated piano was quite ambitious and to every listener's benefit.
The Love of God envelops you from the beginning with piano and waves of orchestration like a wave finally reaching the shore after miles of struggle in the open sea. You feel comfort as if God's hand reaches though the clouds to hold you and let you know you’re safe in His loving hands. Howlett is a wonderful pianist, and an obvious perfectionist. This project was impeccably performed with masterful orchestration from Steve W. Mauldin and the Nashville String Machine. The instrumentation was quite extensive with 35 musicians playing violins, viola, celli, bass, flute, oboe, clarinet, harp, French horns, trumpets, trombones, tuba, and percussion. There is no skimping or cutting corners anywhere.
Count Your Blessings is a bouncy arrangement and shows off Greg’s chops as his hands are all over the keyboard. You don’t just crack your knuckles and go for it, playing like this takes years of practice, dedication, and natural God-given ability. The orchestration arrangement again follows suit and complements the piano on a piece that wakes you up a bit after being so caught up in the love of God.
My Jesus I Love Thee is a standard from the mid 1800’s and the beauty of this great old hymn is best showcased with Greg alone at the piano. If you shut your eyes you can almost see the hands of time bringing us back to the time this song was written. Most assuredly the music writer, Adoniram J. Gordon, had the Holy Spirit leading him. This song is brought back to life and one of the high points of this elevated reflective journey.
From the previous solemn and personal hymn, Reflections moves to His Eye is on the Sparrow, a major production. If you were listening in a theater, you’d surely stand up and applaud. The beauty of this song is that you can feel that this was done live, yet perfectly. The orchestration is so seamless, much like the choral voices, which seem like a separate integrated instrument that goes hand-in-hand with the production and takes you on another enlightened journey. Have You any Room for Jesus? is just beautiful, perhaps the most soothing track of this journey and so much meaning flows through this song! It will take you back to happier times where families were intact and most in this God-founded nation made room in their hearts and lives for the Lord and Savior. Such peace and eternal joy overwhelm the senses while listening to this project that it’s hard to pick a favorite track. With such great continuity, the best track is really the whole CD.
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Does Jesus Care? adds a lighter touch at first, a slight jolt back to reality in an easing fashion, then carries you into your accustomed dreamland with gentle wisps of keyboard and complementing violins. This song brings the reminder that Greg is a great piano player but he does not overdo the arrangement to showcase that talent; instead he glides along to ensure the mood of this CD stays intact. Turn Your Eyes Upon Jesus has an old-time congregational feel to it, which is a good thing as you find yourself singing the words while listening. These hymns should be firmly implanted in your heart everyday, so we recommend you play this CD daily!
Breathe on Me keeps things rolling. It's a beautifully written 1800 hymn with an updated arrangement that is nicely tagged with Daniel Iverson's Spirit of the Living God. Greg ventures into an arena that seems often forgotten in the new church sound of CCM praise and worship. The older generation cries out for these songs to be heard, and melding the two centuries together satisfies all who listen. The gentle piano introduces Breathe to you for over three minutes before the violins and string section carry you off to the sweetness of Spirit. Jesus Is All the World to Me is a splendid piece with a fullness that reminds you just how grand music can be when played with the feeling some songs deserve. The King of Kings deserves such excellence! This track is one of the best emotional highlights of many on this musical Journey.
Near to the Heart of God closes out an adventure you don’t want to see come to an end. You truly are in a reflective state after the last all encompassing notes cease. If you “get it” then you perhaps are reaching towards your Bible to keep the love flowing as you don’t want to ever leave His peaceful state.
You can see Greg’s heart and know this journey was for Him. Going far above-the-norm is evident as this CD is interactive for your computer and will pop up a flash player for a behind-the-scene videos (also posted on his website). It’s a joy to see the process and the video lets you appreciate the hard work involved in this professional, blessed endeavor. All we say is Bravo, bravo….encore, encore!!!
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