"Wisdom from the sacred page / Is turned and ignored / In a world that's wired for sound." Released 40 years ago yesterday, this is the third album by Christian pop royalty Michael W. Smith. Smith and his frequent songwriting collaborator Wayne Kirkpatrick craft '80s keyboard-heavy pop songs about life and Christianity on this release. Though this was a few years before I started listening to Michael W. Smith as a kid, it's been an album I'd listen to on occasion over the last 25 years or so, and "Old Enough To Know" and "Rocketown" were on his first hits compilation that I listened to a lot throughout the '90s and beyond. More than his '90s works, I would say that the '80s music sounds very dated, but it's still pretty fun for an occasional listen. "Rocketown" is the most well-known song from this album, telling a story of a modern day Jesus Christ hanging out on the street and in the bars and presenting revolutionary ideas. The first half of the album is long songs full of electronic keyboard sounds, with "Lamu", "Wired For Sound" and "Pursuit Of The Dream" all over 5 minutes long. I think Michael W. Smith perfected his sound and started writing even better songs as the '80s and '90s progressed, but it's fun to hear these early, maybe more experimental years where the drum machines ruled and the guitars were hiding behind the keyboards on most songs.

Release Year: 1986
Listen on Apple Music
Listen on Spotify