Adie’s “Just You & Me” is one of the first Christian albums that we have had the chance to review for a few months, and our time away from reviewing the genre really acts as a cleanser to our collective palette. For those that had a similar hiatus from Christian music, Adie was part of The Benjamin Gate, and is married to similarly-famous singer-songwriter Jeremy Camp. “Where Could I Go” is the initial offering from “Just You & Me”, and it firmly establishes the tempo for the album. Rather than slowly getting back into the groove of things, Adie immediately puts eir all on the line.
This lack of introduction speaks volumes to the importance of each line, each lyric that is present here, as well as the subject material broached during “Just You & Me”. After listeners move past this first single, “Just You & Me” takes a much more personal and compelling turn; “All I Need Is You” is nothing more than Adie and God. Where the instrumentation of “All I Need Is You” is solid as all get out, I feel that it is the message carried by Adie eirself that shines brightest during the track. Longtime fans of Christian music will appreciate Adie’s covering of two tracks – “Soon” and “Oh You Bring”.
While those followers of a Hillsong United or Leeland (“Beautiful Lord”) may dig those versions of the tracks, I have no doubt in my mind that Adie’s reimagination of the songs will gain their own following. There seems to be a rising action present on “Just You & Me” that only increases through each subsequent track. Where songs like “Love Come Down” are great, it seems like Adie pours it on for late-disc efforts like “Redemption Song” and “Only You”. “Just You & Me” is a great album that can reach fans of a wider swath than would normally be possible on a typical faith-based title; while Christian fans will be able to reaffirm their faith or foster it further in others, there is nothing saying that Adie’s work here cannot be appreciated on its base, constituent elements.
Top Tracks: Where Could I Go, Love Come Down (Reach)
Rating: 8.1/10Adie – Just You & Me (CD) / 2010 BEC /10 Tracks / http://www.adie.com / http://www.becrecordings.com