Live the Life

This is the one, the album Michael W. Smith has always wanted to make. Put simply, Live the Life is a masterpiece. The Christian music star has finally meshed his impressive songwriting skills and limited but effective singing with a tasteful producer's ear. The anthemic "Missing Person" sets the tone: Smith is playing for keeps. Guitars, not keyboards, play a large role on this release, as evidenced by Smith's cowriting with the vastly underrated Brent Bourgeois on "Live the Life," "Don't Give Up," and "Matter of Time." On the rest, Smith shares songwriting duties with master musician Wayne Kirkpatrick. Each number carries a depth unparalleled and showcases Smith's maturation. Fast, slow, happy, sad, quiet, and loud: you have it all on Live the Life. --Michael Lyttle