Tim Spady & Inspiration – Songs From My Heart

Tim Spady & Inspiration
Songs From My Heart
Tspady Music 2011
tspadymusic@gmail.com

By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog.

We first met musician, songwriter and sociology student Tim Spady last July, when he introduced “I’ll Forever Praise Him,” a touching ballad sweetly sung by Nneka Best.

As promised, “I’ll Forever Praise Him” is available on Tim Spady & Inspiration’s recently released full-length project, Songs From My Heart. The influence of Richard Smallwood is manifest throughout the album, but particularly in the majestic flourishes the classically-trained Spady places within songs such as “In His Presence” and “You Are God.”

A remarkable piano solo, “Great is Thy Faithfulness,” demonstrates Spady’s gift at the keys.

The passionate praise ballad is Spady’s sweet spot, and “I’ll Forever Praise Him” is his magnum opus to date. Still, the jazzy, urban “Can’t Make It Without Your Love” is intriguing for its dalliance with harmonies that move up and down one-half step at a time. “Come In” is a high energy praise rouser that is conventional in melody but exercises a keen feel for dynamic development.

Although Spady is in his early twenties, many of the selections on Songs from My Heart were written while he was a teenager, some when he was only fifteen. One might conclude that the more recent songs are the most accomplished, but that’s not necessarily the case. “In His Presence,” which Spady wrote as a sixteen-year-old, stands out as one of the album’s best tracks and equally as sophisticated as his more recent work.

Songs From My Heart is a fine introduction to Tim Spady’s sacred songwriting. One can only hope that he will continue pursuing his craft with diligence in the years to come.

Four of Five Stars

Picks: “I’ll Forever Praise Him,” “In His Presence,” “Can’t Make It Without Your Love.”