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Michael W. Smith is one of the best in Christian music.  Point of Grace is one of the most successful female groups in CCM over the past 20 years.  Smith and Point of Grace together have all the makings of a highly enjoyable concert and the Katinas are an added bonus.  Some will consider that all of these artists are together to perform a Christmas concert is an  even bigger bonus. 

Unlike the Amy Grant Christmas tours that Smith appeared on, this Christmas tour did not feature a full symphony.  The small band was complemented by the sparse stage setup consisting of Smitty's white piano in the front and several small video screens, two of which were in the shape of Christmas trees at the back.  Unfortunately, the sparseness of the stage was mirrored by the sparseness of the crowd as even the lower level of the venue wasn't full. 

One of the more remarkable things about this concert was that it  did not follow the usual pattern.  Most concerts feature a few songs for the opening artist, followed by a set of about 5 or 6 songs from the lower billed artist and an hour-long set by the headliner.  The structure of this concert was much more broken up. Michael W. Smith surprised the crowd by performing first as he sat down at the piano and played a number from "Freedom," his instrumental album.  He followed this up with a Christmas piece.  Point of Grace and the Katinas joined Smith as he did one original Christmas song and then "Hark the Herald Angels Sing" with help from the crowd.  Point of Grace took center stage to perform one of their original Christmas songs followed by "Jingle Bell Rock."  Michael W Smith took the stage to perform "The First Snowfall," read the Christmas story as recorded in the Gospel of Luke, and several other Christmas songs before introducing the Katinas.  They performed "Joy to the World" before breaking into a jazzy version of "Mary Did You Know."  After a few more songs by Smith with the others backing him up, there was a twenty-minute intermission. 

After the intermission, the second half was pretty much the same as the first with one exception.  There were more songs that are rarely associated with Christmas, such as Smith's "Healing Rain," "Above All," and "Bridge Over Troubled Water."  There was also more audience involvement as they  sang along while Michael W. Smith played piano on, "The First Noel," "Silent Night," and "O Come All Ye Faithful."  After all was said and done, the concert was 2 hours long, plus the intermission. 

Unfortunately, one of this concert's strengths was also its biggest weakness.  The frequent shifts between artists and styles resulted in a lack of flow to the concert, a lack of cohesiveness. The predominance of original Christmas songs instead of old familiar ones also didn't help unify the experience. 

Overall, this was a good concert, but the lack of cohesiveness and flow resulted in some disappointed concert-goers at the end of the night. 

Burton Wray December 29, 2004