CeCe Winans - More Than This

…like a Sunday morning worship service if your church worship team could really cook, and happened to have an amazing female singer up-front.

More Than This

CeCe Winans

CeCeWinans.com

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Producer Kyle Lee | Co-Producers Thomas Hardin, Jr. and Tyrone Jackson

13 tracks / 64 minutes

Following up 2021’s massive Praise and Worship project Believe For It, CeCe Winans is back with her second live concert recording, More Than This – and like the title track of the previous album, these thirteen songs will no-doubt spawn some worship team standards for many Sunday mornings.

The album features a variety of styles from up-tempo contemporary praise (“Lord and Friend,” “That’s My King,”  “In a Little While”) to moderately-tempoed ballads (“Be Still and Know,” “Come Jesus Come”) and of course to congregation-friendly praise anthems. The live atmosphere is supported by some excellent musicianship (I’d love to have heard more of that lead guitar work on “In A Little While”) and a ‘choir’ made up of church members and invited worship teams. Interspersed with the body of songs we get some welcome familiar moments, briefly revisiting ‘church congregational classics’ like “Oh, The Blood of Jesus” (I’m sure CeCe would give us a phenomenal full rendition!) and “Sanctuary.”  No, “In a Little While” isn’t the old Amy Grant song, but an energy-filled celebratory rocking gospel anthem! Essentially, More Than This is like a Sunday morning worship service if your church worship team could really cook and happened to have an amazing female singer up-front.

Indeed, CeCe has an incredible voice and has successfully traversed the sub-genres of Gospel, CCM, Praise and Worship, and even (paired with her brother BeBe Winans) pop. I remember seeing no less than Whitney Houston surrendering her superstar status to sing back-up vocals behind CeCe on stage. Yet here we have CeCe as worship leader – not dominating the album with vocal pyrotechnics but lending her talent to a greater calling. More Than This is not a project all about a great singer – it’s about an experience, and a great singer, CeCe Winans, is your host.

Many of us will still be waiting for another CeCe Winans ‘solo’ album featuring originals and some classic covers. Her legacy as a solo Gospel artist still has room for more milestones and CeCe is in her prime. Meanwhile, you can enjoy More Than This – a worship experience featuring quite an amazing worship leader named CeCe.

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- Bert Saraco