Flashback Friday Album Review: Heart in Motion

At the time this was released, it was quite controversial. Not that it had anything controversial within it, really. In fact, it’s about as bubble-gummy as you can get. But a lot of Amy’s longtime fans thought she had left the fold for fame and glory.

1991’s Heart in Motion was Amy Grant’s biggest selling album at 5 million copies, and the biggest selling Contemporary Christian Music album in history, staying at the top of the Christian music charts for 32 weeks.

Even though this might be due to its crossover success, the album was successful for a reason: it’s amazingly good. It’s top-notch production by not one, but the industry’s three best producers (Brown Bannister, Michael Omartian, Keith Thomas) and a number of songwriters (Wayne Kirkpatrick, Tom Hemby, Chris Eaton, Charlie Peacock, and then-husband Gary Chapman, among others) earned hit singles on both the Christian and top-40 charts and a Grammy nomination for album of the year.

And its romantic elements lend itself perfectly for us to review for this week, considering Valentine’s Day is just around the corner.

But it’s hard to really put into words what needs to be said. This is among the best pop albums in Christian music history, and stands among the best pop albums in the early 90s secular market. That, to me, is a testament as to what can be–and should be–achieved “for a Christian album.” It shows that a Christian album can still be Christian even though it’s replete with simple love songs for a larger audience outside the four walls of the church.

Though it isn’t preachy, and some lyrics are just for fun, there’s still plenty of gospel in songs such as “Ask Me,” “You’re Not Alone,” and “Hope Set High.” And this is among several reasons why it has earned the support from Christians for so long.