From the outset of his career,
Josh Turner
leaned into classic country traditions and he also began singing professionally in a gospel quartet, so it was perhaps only a matter of time before he devoted an album to gospel music. That album,
I Serve a Savior
, arrived in 2018, just over a year after
Deep South
gave him his third Billboard Country number one.
relied heavily on
Turner
's way with a ballad, a gift that also serves him well on
. Opening with a rollicking version of
Hank Williams
' "I Saw the Light," the record quickly shifts down a gear with "I Pray My Way Out of Trouble," a duet with
Bobby Osborne
. Much of the album proceeds at this sober, reflective pace, yet there are just enough uptempo cuts to give this a pulse.
also gains warmth through its duets with
Osborne
,
Sonya Isaacs
, and the Turner family, along with its canny inclusion of three tracks recorded live at Gaither Studios. The end result may not deliver surprises, but it's a sturdy, comforting listen, which is precisely what it was intended to be. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine