Comments for Ashton, Susan, A Distant Call

In many ways, this is a landmark Ashton album. She ends her almost exclusive producing/songwriting collaboration with Wayne Kirkpatrick -- a partnership beyond magical that defined the Ashton sound. While Kirkpatrickproduces four of her cuts here, she also partners with CCM giant Brown Bannister and veteranproducer Michael Omartian. Songwriters also run the gamut from Michael W. Smith to Sheryl Crow.This album, straddling both country and adult contemporary pop, also wears that "Christian lifestyle" label in that not all the cuts are explicitly focused on God. New producers, new material, new musical directions -- this album does not disappoint. My favorite cuts: "You Move Me" and "Lonely River" -- both have hauntingly beautiful melodies and deeply insightful lyrics. A solid, confident release from one of the most precise, expressive voices inmusic today that will challenge and encourage your walk with God.