Mercy | ||||
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Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1994 | |||
Genre | Gospel, soul, R&B | |||
Label | Qwest/Warner Bros.[1] | |||
Producer | Andraé Crouch, Scott V. Smith | |||
Andraé Crouch chronology | ||||
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Mercy is an album by the American musician Andraé Crouch.[2] Released in 1994, it was his first album in 10 years.[3][4]
The album won a Grammy Award for "Best Pop/Contemporary Gospel Album".[5] It peaked at No. 16 on Billboard's Top Christian Albums chart.[6]
The album was produced by Crouch and Scott V. Smith; it was recorded at Crouch's Woodland Hills home studio.[7][8] Crouch chose from a pool of around 450 songs that he had written during his break from recording.[9] Quincy Jones, Crouch's label head, took a hands-off approach, allowing Crouch to do whatever he wanted during the recording sessions.[10]
El DeBarge contributed vocals to "The Lord Is My Light".[11] Joe Sample played piano on "Nobody Else Like You".[7]
Review scores | |
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Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [12] |
Chicago Sun-Times | [13] |
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music | [14] |
MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide | [15] |
USA Today | [16] |
The Dayton Daily News wrote that Crouch "escapes the bounds of his genre while maintaining a spiritually rich, praised-filled album."[17] USA Today stated that "the arrangements, vocals and instrumentation are high-level."[16]
The Philadelphia Inquirer determined that "this is a celebration of styles—from the joyous gospel of 'Give It All Back to Me' to the silky R&B of 'Nobody Else Like You', and the blend of reggae and African rhythms on 'Mercy'."[18] The Virginian-Pilot concluded that, "occasionally, all this star-studded genre-hopping gets to be a bit much."[19] The Chicago Sun-Times thought that the "rich deviations from the more traditional gospel vein are not a dilettante's superfluous musings over more exotic music forms, but rather a convincing display of musical chops, confidence and passion."[13]
AllMusic called the album "a potpourri of musical styles from Caribbean to African, laid down with impeccable taste in arrangement and production."[12] MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide labeled it "a refreshing, triumphant break from contemporary gospel's norm."[15]
No. | Title | Length |
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1. | "Say So" | |
2. | "Give It All Back to Me" | |
3. | "The Lord Is My Light" | |
4. | "Love Somebody Like Me" | |
5. | "Nobody Else Like You" | |
6. | "Mercy" | |
7. | "This Is the Lord's Doing (Marvelous)" | |
8. | "We Love It Here" | |
9. | "He's the Light (Of the World)" | |
10. | "Mercy Interlude" | |
11. | "God Still Loves Me" |