20

Personnel: Jake Goss (drums).
Audio Mixer: Vance Powell .
Recording information: Gray Matters Studio, Nashville, TN; SiloTREE Studio, St. Louis, MO; String Cell Studio, Franklin, TN.
In celebration of their 20th anniversary together, Christian rockers Jars of Clay offer up a unique take on the career retrospective format. Rather than compiling a standard anthology package, they put their fans in the producer's role, offering to record new studio reinterpretations of 20 fan-selected songs from their deep catalog. The resulting collection, simply titled 20, features a mix of popular favorites like "Worlds Apart" and "Love Song for a Savior" as well as deeper album cuts, many of which pleasantly surprised the veteran band. Looking back on their own songs through the eyes of their followers two decades on was a powerful experience for Jars of Clay and their updated arrangements rely on rich, mostly acoustic retellings, backed by lush string sections and the strong harmonies fans have come to expect from the group. Following on the heels of their March 2014 remix album Inlandia, the fan-funded, fan-curated 20 marks a significant milestone for the popular group. ~ Timothy Monger