dc Talk - Free at Last
| dc Talk - Free at Last |
Manufacturer: Forefront / Emd
UPC:
724382510024 Retail Price: $16.98 Avg. Rating:
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 "One of the best Christian groups ever!!" | 2007-10-29 |
| - Reviewed By musicman72 |
I've been listening to DC Talk since 1995!!
This album is one of their best!!
This album is a must have!! |
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| "A Must Have" | 2007-10-14 |
| - Reviewed By User: A16QJ649N8PRV |
As with all dcTalk albums, 'Free At Last' is excellent.
This CD features a number of outstanding songs in various genres. There is truly something for everyone. It includes rock, pop, and rap. The lyrics are unashamedly Christian.
Some of the best songs on this album include the following: Say The Words, Luv Is A Verb, Jesus Is Just Alright, Time Is, The Hardway, and Lean On Me.
The version that I have also includes 'Free At Last - The Movie' and two music videos. I highly recommned that version containing the DVD.
If you don't have any dcTalk, this is a good one to start with. Their music is something that will grow on you. Buy it! |
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| "Best 90's album period" | 2007-10-12 |
| - Reviewed By artie@artiesplace.net |
I personally think DC Talk is the greatest band that has ever walked the face of the earth. Their talent is bottomless, and the producing ability of Toby Mac is the most brilliant thing I have ever seen. There has never been a band with as much masterful originality as DC Talk, and I doubt I will ever see another one. They have also an incredible diversity, as their style for each of their albums is completely different, and conforms to the most popular style of each era.
This particular album happens to be born of the early 90's hip-hop/funk world, and is arguably one of the best albums ever made. 16 years (and hundreds of albums) later and this is still one of my absolute favorites. |
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| "A favorite..." | 2007-07-02 |
| - Reviewed By sing4dad |
People are surprised to find this CD in my collection. But I just say, "With the music, the beat, the lyrics, and the harmonies on this project, what's NOT for a middle-aged, Southern Baptist, white woman to like?" They just laugh and so do I as I crank it up a bit louder and sing along, drumming my fingers on the steering wheel of my Buick Century.....
Hmmm...that reminds me. It's time to buy another copy of this one.... |
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 "Simple..." | 2007-01-09 |
| - Reviewed By zyman04 |
| This CD is one of the early DcTalk Albums...its a classic and i really liked it when i had it. |
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| "HAHAHA...hey...this is actually good..." | 2006-04-06 |
| - Reviewed By pifflehopper316 |
I detest hip-hop. Really. I hate it. In fact, when I first heard Luv Is A Verb on Intermission, I thought, "They're kidding...right?" and had no interest in purchasing "whatever cd that came from." And I didn't until I heard great things about it. Since everyone who had heard it told me they loved it, I decided I should try it out, but only if it was cheap, which it was. I couldn't believe how good it was! It starts out with Luv Is A Verb, and I thought, "whatever, heard that before", but the rest of the cd is almost perfect!
There are a few interludes that are basically not worth the time, but if you're in the mood they can be funny.
The primary songs are (just skip down if you already know about them from other reviews):
1. Luv Is A Verb - Enter the infamous, "down with the dc Talk, d-d-down with the dc Talk, are you down with the dc Talk, d-d-down with the dc Talk." I can't count the number of people who I have heard make fun of those lines. But if you try to forget that, the lyrics are very good. "Luv is enough if it's unconditionally, given now ya livin' out the Great Commission" Great words. Toby McKeehan really outdid himself on this song. (I'm trying to omit how tired of this song I am. It's a great song, but it can get old really fast.)
2. That Kinda Girl - This song describes the "kind of girl" that "loves the Lord" and is "virtuous in every way". Toby raps his head off in this one. Kevin and Michael still both have great voices, but back in '92, they had incredible voices, which are displayed in this song and actually, in all the tracks. The beat is undeniably an early-nineties beat, but it's catchy, and more of that comes up next.
3. Jesus Is Just Alright - If you think about it, dc Talk have done scads of cover songs, probably their most known one being "In The Light", but this one is not to be ignored. Toby's rap is so catchy it's bound to be in your head, at least in small portions, for a week or so, even if you only listen to it once. The part that always gets stuck in my head is the last rap part, which is "Never trite when I write cause the Lord is my light and His word is my bond so ya know (know, know), He's alright." Great beat, underlined with repetetive but not annoying keyboards.
4. Say The Words - This is probably one of my favorite dc Talk songs, but not this version. You've probably heard "Say The Words (NOW)", which is the remix of this song. This version is lacking in any melody other than what is sung by Michael and Kevin. The rest is an overuse and underuse of bass and electric guitars. But Toby's rap toward the middle is great, climaxing with "choose to lose the pride that may tug at you, don't be afraid of the words I love you".
5. Socially Acceptable - This has slowly become my favorite song off this. Toby later described this song as one of the "phatest" beats off this cd. It is. My favorite lyrics from this one are the poignant words in the chorus, "it's okay, in whose sight?" Good reminder that it's not okay to do what everyone else is doing, just because they're all doing it.
6. Free At Last - "WHAT???" Don't be distraught at the first 30 seconds. Soon the strange intro morphs into one of the most awesome Christian songs of the 90's. Backed by a choir in the chorus, this showcases Michael Tait and Kevin Max Smith's best vocals. Toby's rapping, too, is some of the best in their history. "The father first receives us, the truth then frees us, forgiven, now I'm living like a man full of Jesus", that's some handy rhyming if you ask me.
7. Time Is... - "Straight up rock-n-roll", it begins...well, maybe. This is probably the most guitar-driven song on Free At Last, but definitly short of rock-n-roll. However, I personally love the almost uncontrollable sound of Kevin Max's vocals on the chorus. Mike Tait's voice is good here too, and Toby constantly is rapping "tick tock tickedy tock". The song drifts into a rock song with a strange beat, then, according to Toby's "orders", they "break it down" and return to hip-hop. But it goes back to that rock/pop beat towards the end again. This is a genius song.
8. The Hardway - "I guess I'm the kind of guy that has to find out for myself." This song, according to Tobymac, has been remade more than four times (I only count four, but he knows best, I guess). This song is a great song that ends with "I'm on my knees and I'm crying for help." This is the only song that is not fast-paced, and as such, had to be included on Intermission, but this version is great, too. It's a beautiful cry out to God acknowledging His power and our weakness.
9. Lean On Me - "Oldie but a goodie", the first words you hear on this song, are definitive of this song. It's an awesome rap/hip-hop version of the original song by Bill Withers. Don't think this version is anything like what you could've heard on the radio. Toby's rap isn't included in the edited radio version. I think they drive the song rather well, so don't miss this song.
10. I Don't Want It - Song about abstaining from sex until marriage. Good message, good beat, and Toby's rapping isn't even in the least bit annoying. Kevin's and Michael's singing are great. Again, their vocals are even better in this song than in the later songs.
11. Word 2 The Father - Just when you think they've outgrown their "rapping language" you hear this song. It's good, but so reminiscent of Nu Thang (but that should, of course, be expected, since the song is a pun on all the names of their songs from Nu Thang), it's just kind of annoying.
Overall, this is an awesome cd, I suggest it for Christians; who love music, or dc Talk, or even modern Christian rap/hip-hop, since this is how it all started. If you want more of "Jesus Freak", go try "Supernatural" instead, but if you even remotely liked "Nu Thang", even if just for its nostalgic value, you will absolutely love this cd. |
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 "The band's best work in retrospect" | 2006-03-29 |
| - Reviewed By columbusboy |
Don't get me wrong, I liked NU THANG when it came out (heck, I saw them on the tour with Michael W. Smith and my copy is autographed by all 3 of the trio) and still put it on from time to time though I snicker at some of the songs now. Some of that, admittedly, is due to the fact that I'm now 35 and not really in the 'target' audience of teenagers this music was aimed at when it came out in 1992. [I don't feel the empathy with the pro-parental communication message of "Talk it Out" that I may have when I was still a teen myself.]
This one, though: I still listen to it and for the most part it's holding up well outside of a few minor clunkers. This one found the crew working harder to integrate samples, snappy melodies and harmony vocals, more skilled rap (don't get me wrong, Toby Mac has never been a GREAT rapper but he's honed his skills more here. He's more of a 'pop' rapper..akin to the likes of a Will Smith or a member of Bell-Biv-Devoe than a Christian counterpart to 2PAC or Biggie.), and a more cohesive feel to the album as the sound coalesced more into R&B tinged pop with rap icing.
HIGHLIGHTS:
"That Kinda Girl" was the band's statement about the allure of the Proverbs 31 woman, a woman who's "virtuous in every way/The kinda girl that makes me say/I hope she comes my way". It was the antithesis of L.L.'s "Round the Way Girl" and the tune really nails it home with "Hey, the girlie ain't playin'!". "Jesus is Just Alright" is a great techno-influenced jittery update of the Doobie Brothers' classic complete with what is probably Toby's best rap break of the album . If you can past the jokey intro, title tune "Free at Last" marries a traditional black gospel choir sound to scratching and R&B sounds with a little rock guitar as accent to create an anthem celebrating the life one finds after embracing Jesus. The choir testifyin' on the hook is irresistible but the samples from Martin Luther King just make it niftier. "The Hardway" bemoans the hard lessons learned when we violate God's Word while being honest enough to admit that we all do this as sinners. ("Some people got to learn the hard way/I guess I'm the kinda guy who's got to find out for myself...I'm on my knees and I'm cryin' for help")
LOWS:
"Luv is a Verb" isn't outright bad but it does have some of the most unfortunate rhymes here ("drain-o" and "explain-O"..ACK!). "Lean on Me" is a pretty boring cover that more or less rips off the cover done by Club Nouveau only 4 years before. It simply doesn't add enough different to make the tune DCT's own, save a brief Toby rap break. (The Nouveau rendition stripped the soulful plaintiveness of Bill Withers' original, so I'm not sure why they chose to emulate the clearly inferior version anyhow.) "WDCT" is the weakest of the interludes heard here.
BOTTOM LINE:
Quantum leap from NU THANG. At the time, it managed to get them onto the then super-hip Arsenio Hall show (the "2 Honks and a Negro" bit was taken from that appearance). I consider this their best release. (CCM Magazine has also named this as the #9 Christian album of all time.)
3 1/2 stars |
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| "Life Changing..." | 2006-02-19 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1CM2L4VVZA0O |
This album changed my life during my formative years. It was nice to have music without all of the cursing and blatant sexual overtures during a time when it was prevalent in jr/high school. It helped me to stay the straight and narrow, yet have some fun, hip music.
Nearly 14 years later, it still has the same effect on me. While I may listen to secular music today, I still feel good listening to DC Talk's Free At Last and reminds me why I'm a Christian. |
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| "This CD has one most important messages of our time!" | 2006-02-01 |
| - Reviewed By User: A1WXCO0ZRYL1A1 |
I just have to say!! To the kid reviewer who said, quote:[I love all the songs except 1... The song i don't like is i don't want it.I wouldn't have s-e-x even if i were married!] Sorry, but this is not what they said in their lyrics or in their message!!! If you read the lyrics, it goes: Chorus: "I don't want it (4X) I don't want your sex for now, I don't want it til we take the vows!
Obviously, they're not saying 'no' to sex when married, they're saying that they won't take part in sex that's outside marrige. They're not saying that s-e-x is bad (sex is something that God gave us, and means for us to experience with the person we marry).
I'm gonna sum it up with more (rap)lyrics from this song that explain it perfecly: S-E-X is test when I'm pressed-So back up off with less of that zest-Impress this brother with a life of virtue-The innocence that's spent is gonna hurt you-Safe is the way they say to play-then again safe ain't safe at all today- so just wait for the mate that's straight from God- Don't have sex till ya tie the knot! |
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| "THE BEST DC TALK CD TO EVER COME OUT" | 2004-12-20 |
| - Reviewed By runnrwood01 |
THIS CD IS DEFINITELY THE BEST STUDIO RECORD FROM DC TALK IT IS THE FIRST TIME YOU HEAR TOBY McKEEHAN(MAC) SING ON A CD AND IT'S THE FIRST TIME HE GOES BY THE NAME TOBYMAC. THIS IS ALSO THE FIRST RECORD WHERE MICHAEL TAIT SHOWS HE HAS THE MOST RECOGNIZABLE VOICE IN CHRISTIAN MUSIC. THIS CD HAS 2 COVERS: JESUS IS JUST ALRIGHT and LEAN ON ME. HERE'S MY REVIEW
LUV IS A VERB the best song on the cd where Toby said he found out love is a verb
THAT KINDA GIRL where Toby says he met a girl that said she smoked drank and cursed and loves it and he wants the girl to know about Jesus
JESUS IS JUST ALRIGHT 1 of 2 covers on the cd saying Jesus is alright with them
SAY THE WORDS they're singing that it is ok to say the words "I LOVE YOU"
SOCIALLY ACCEPTABLE song saying that being with Christ makes them acceptable in todays society
FREE AT LAST song with the NEVER ENDING WITNESS CHOIR about being with Christ makes them free
TIME IS saying how you have to do what you want for Christ now because time is ticking away
THE HARDWAY the most meaningful song on the cd saying how you make mistakes and you learn the hardway
LEAN ON ME the second of 2 covers song saying when you're not strong and need a friend you have a friend to lean on
I DON'T WANT IT song saying it's best to not have sex until you're married
WORD 2 THE FATHER saying how they are there because of GOD
GREAT CD I RECOMMEND YOU BUY THE SPECIAL TEN YEAR ANNIVERSERY EDITION THAT CONTAINS FREE AT LAST THE MOVIE |
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