Dave's Review

Are you tired of the glut of new releases from all the bands who are flocking to the alternative fad? Three Crosses doesn't dissappoint us in this fashion. Jefferson Street is another dose of good ol' rock 'n roll, offering a little more variety in style and instrumentation than the self titled debut album. The gospel style, acoustic piano on the beginning of "We've Got To Come Together" is particularly refreshing. Acoustic guitars are less obvious on Jefferson Street, though they haven't been completely neglected.

If "The Stone Was Rolled Away" sounds suspiciously like a Jars of Clay tune (including acoustic guitars), it's for a good reason. The two bands co-wrote the song while touring together as the opening acts for Michael W. Smith's I'll Lead You Home tour last year. It should garner substantial airplay as the first release to radio from the new album.

"Welcome To The Jesus Movement" is a unifying battle cry with indirect references to the Promise Keepers men's conferences and the True Love Waits campaign for youth:

"Men who are called by the thousands you see, they are filling our stadiums, down on their knees. Men of integrity, called to be men of conviction, and kids who commit to be pure and abstain, well they're finding the strength through the power of His name. The movement is spreading. It's spreading across this whole nation."

Lead singer Steve Pasch softens and smooths his delivery considerably for "Heal My Heart," a ballad with harmonica interspersions. He quickly returns to his biting, almost sarcastic style on the following cut, "Getting Ready For The End Of The World." He has a fitting voice for this style of music (similar to Steve Earle), but I'd sure hate to hear him attempt opera! (There's probably no danger of that.) Guitarist Ed Nicholson gives our ears a bit of variation when he handles the lead vocals on "The Stone Was Rolled Away."

The nice thing about Jefferson Street is the way the guys have moved in new directions without abandoning their past. Any of the songs on Jefferson Street could have easily appeared on the first album without sounding out of place. They've found a rare balance between the extremes of mundane sameness and total departure.