Description

Live at Spre·e Album is a multi-artist live album recorded and released in the UK by Key Records in 1974.

Spre-e, or to give it its full title, Spiritual Re-emphasis, had been born out of the experiences at the Explo 72 event in Dallas, Texas, of Maurice Rowlandson, at the time the British Director of the Billy Graham Evangelistic Association. He’d been very impressed by the teaching and training programme laid on at Explo for several thousand young American Christians and decided that he should try to organise something similar in the UK. Earls Court Arena and Wembley Stadium was hired and Billy Graham from the USA was brought over the pond to speak at the evening meetings. Musically, the event would see the participation of names such as Cliff Richard, Johnny Cash, Malcolm & Alwyn, Terry Dene, Parchment and Judy MacKenzie.

Trivia: Tedd Smith wrote most of the songs on the Time to Run Movie Soundtrack released in 1973, including the track “Gone Away”, which featured lead vocals by a young Randy Stonehill.

Compilation of live cuts recorded in England Johnny Cash and Cliff Richard both perform gospel material («The Last Supper» and «Jesus Is My Kind Of People» respectively) as do UK troubadours Garth Hewitt («Let Them See The Light Of God») and Graham Kendrick («Kingdom Come»). Malcolm & Alwyn bring out guitar and auto-harp for a cover of «The World Needs Jesus». Also appearing is Aleksander John («Yesterday, Today, Forever»), plus there are live non-LP cuts by The Advocates («Jesus») and 11:59 («Here Comes Jesus»). Beginning and ending the set are the contemporary choral sounds of Sweden’s Choralerna. Tedd Smith includes a more traditional number and there’s a brief sermon by Billy Graham. Most of the performances are fairly stripped-down, often just the artists and their guitars with the audience occasionally joining in on the singing. Gate-fold cover with pictures of the performers on the inside. [Ken Scott, The Archivist, 4th Edition]

LP tracklist:

Side One
A1. Choralerna – “In The Name Of Jesus”
A2. Johnny Cash – “The Last Supper”
A3. The Advocates – “Jesus”
A4. Tedd Smith – “Gone Away”
A5. Garth Hewitt – “Let Them See The Light”
A6. 11.59 – “Here Comes Jesus”

Side Two
B1. Cliff Richard – “Jesus Is My Kind Of People”
B2. Graham Kendrick – “Kingdom Come”
B3. Aleksander John – “Yesterday Today Forever”
B4. Malcolm & Alwyn – “The World Needs Jesus”
B5. Billy Graham – Sermon
B6. Choralerna – “Allelujah”

Gatefold Cover Art, Inside