Christianity Today

Style: Easy listening big band; compare to Michael Buble, Brian Setzer Orchestra, Dean Martin

Top tracks: "Beyond the Sea," "It Had Better Be Tonight," "(Lullabye) Goodnight, My Angel"

Having sold seven million recordings thanks to the mass appeal of his new age piano interpretations and worldwide radio and TV recognition, the multi-faceted celebrity makes his singing debut on an album of American standards. Appropriately recorded at Hollywood's historic Capitol Studios, schmaltzy big band numbers like Nat King Cole's "L-O-V-E" and Irving Berlin's "Blue Skies" swimmingly complement modern fare like Billy Joel's "Goodnight My Angel" and three Tesh originals. Growing up singing in the church and having released several worship albums, Tesh's vocals are strong, though his straightforward lyric singing transfers nothing new. Extended instrumental breaks will appease his piano fans, and with airtight horns, an easy-to-love repertoire, and his affable charm, Big Band hearkens back to the glory days of pop music.

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