"You are a product of your environment where music is concerned, so naturally, the Latin sound is in my subconscious," says Cabrera, a bilingual artist of Cuban and Puerto Rican descent. "I grew up with Salsa, Merengue, R&B and Motown, and I think that comes through in my songs."
Always & Forever is Cabrera's artistic debut in that it features songs she wrote or helped choose, although she had a run-of-the-mill record out five years ago. As such, her new release has both the unevenness of a debut and the solid self-assuredness of an accomplished veteran.
The whole album sounds great -- in part because of the presence of the Michael Jackson horns and the rhythm section of Gloria Estefan's Miami Sound Machine -- but in a genre where the lyrics are as important as the music, the album has its highs and lows.
The disc has an unpromising start with a title cut that brings little creativity to an oft-repeated theme of sharing the Gospel, followed by "Home (Wherever Your Heart Is)," a sensuous love song that likely will find it easier to get played on adult contemporary radio.
The song "Family" is another story. The Latin conga-laden tune, spiced up further with an intriguing rap break, is the real starting point for the album, melding multiple musical styles around a message that families donšt just happen, they are created by God. (Cabrera performed it at the Republican National Convention in San Diego.)
From there, Cabrera dives into urban contemporary, hip hop, rhythmic ballads and rockin' grooves, all with a distinct Latin undercurrent. The uplifting "Love Needs People" and the Jon Secada-penned up-tempo "I Hear Love" are gems buried toward the end of the album, while "Take It Away," which Cabrera co-wrote with producer Bob Parr, is especially gorgeous. Acoustic guitar, some sweet Michael W. Smith piano, and Cabrera's resonant voice set off the smartly written lyrics with a solid spiritual center: We live among the pavement of lies and broken dreams/We hold on to what falters, only believe in what we can see/But He can move the mountains, reach out and calm the sea.
With songs like that and the album-closer "I Can't Let Go," which sets her voice against a gentle interplay of plucked guitar and a small string section, Always & Forever leaves the listener wanting more. My guess is that it won't be five years before the next Patty Cabrera record!
Bill Hobbs is a freelance reviewer of Christian music in Nashville, TN.
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