posted on Sunday, February 19, 2006 7:56 PM by Kujo

Review: Adoration

Album: Adoration

Artist: Fr. Stan Fortuna

Label: Francesco Productions

Kujo's Rating: 4.5 stars (out of 5)

 

Review:

So, the first thing that most people think when they hear the name Fr. Stan Fortuna is "oh yeah, that's that rapping priest, right?"

That's right, folks. We have a priest who is a hardcore rapper. Father Stan Fortuna is a Catholic priest who is a member of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal. But this dude is not a "gangsta" rapper, nor is he concerned with the "bling-bling" and "grills" that virtually every other hip-hop artist glorifies; rather, Fr. Stan  is interested in one thing--bringing Jesus into the world through whatever means necessary.

Now, I have seen this guy perform before and he is really talented. I've said it before that I am not a big fan of rap, but this guy has talent. His style, his lyrics, and his beats are all cutting edge (think Eminem, without the vulgarity and violence; or Ludacris without the bling-bling...and vulgarity and violence). But what really sets him apart is his outright devotion to Our Lord Jesus and his unashamed honesty about that devotion.

That said, I approached this CD in a similar way to Righteous B's CD: ready to nod my head and beat-box. But what God (and Fr. Stan) had in store for me was completely different. Adoration is a CD that, save two or three tracks, is all about mellow, low-key praise and worship. From beginning to end, this CD is a journey through the mind of a Catholic as he/she is in front of Our Lord in the Eucharist. The opening track, "Little Flower Song" is a simple, yet profound song about true love to God. The lyrics are easy to remember--"I will give everything to Jesus/when I have nothing to give/I'll give Him this nothing"-- and background music is an orchestra that is simply heavenly. They're so beautiful, in fact, that the second track is the instrumental version of this song without the lyrics. Combined, this 5 minutes of music sets the tone for the rest of the CD (and also becomes my favorite track!).

Fr. Stan keeps the pure adoration coming, with "The Humility of God," "Fatima Angel Prayer," and "Part of Me" all sounding like wonderful liturgical music. The latter ("Part of Me") has an awesome jazz sound, with a flute contributing to the melody. (And, if you've seen the movie Anchorman, you know how cool jazz flute can be!) He even goes old-school with a rendition of "Gift of Finest Wheat" (and the subsequent instrumental track). Our Blessed Mother is also given her honor in "Mae de Luz (Mother of Light)," a very different song that has a weird chant and some peculiar instrumentation. All of these form a pronounced feeling of deep, emotional prayer to Christ. The listener feels as if he/she is standing before Our Lord and the words of Fr. Stan are our word to Jesus. I simply love when musicians go deep into prayer!!!

The title track, "Adoration," gets the award for Most Theological Song (Check out this line from the song: "Adoration is the looking/of your being with new seeing/on the right side of the throne where Jesus sat."). And " I Wanna Go to Heaven" is a fun, reggae-sounding song that would make Bob Marley proud. I am a Florida-boy and, when I heard this song, I imagined myself with Jesus at the beach, running into the waves, sun-bathing on the sand, playing volleyball, and drinking iced-tea. It's a song about love and discipleship and peace.

Finally, Fr. Stan gives us "School of the Eucharist," a song that is hip-hop at it's purest. It's a 7:00 minute commentary on our culture and its need for a renewed-appreciation for the Eucharistic Adoration we Catholics hold so dear. The song is inspired by Pope John Paul II's writings and sounds like it would fit in quite well at a rap-concert or a poetry reading, given it's spoken-word feel. The beat is dope, the lyrics are poignant and the message is clear--"need more adoration 24/7."

All in all, this is one of Fr. Stan's better offerings to date. Given it's multicultural approach, one is left with the feeling that Fr. Stan is a true master at his craft, a humble, pious-priest who is living out God's plan for him and using the gifts He gave him. I recently found out that I have an interesting connection to Fr. Stan-- he grew up with my Aunt Barbara and remains very close friends with her to this day. Maybe some day I will have the chance to meet him and ask him why there aren't more rapping priests these days.

 

For more information about Fr. Stan, visit his website.

To purchase this CD, visit Catholic Music Network.