Album Review: Michael Booth Leaves Yesterday Behind On The Warm, Wisdom-Filled "This Is Now"

Prime Cuts: "Dream Small," "That Was Then, This Is Now," "If Not Today"

Overall Grade: 4/5

For years, Michael Booth's voice has been inseparable from the Booth Brothers. That history is not something he can-or should-discard, but This Is Now finds the celebrated Southern Gospel singer sounding increasingly comfortable outside the trio. This is not Michael Booth attempting to reinvent himself for a younger audience. It is a seasoned communicator recognising what he does best and building an album around it.

Booth has said that it took him several years to discover what worked for him as a solo artist. That search gives This Is Now its central tension: how does a singer with such a recognisable musical identity honour his past without merely repeating it? His answer is to favour songs filled with testimony, encouragement and practical Christian wisdom. The record rarely chases novelty, but its sincerity prevents familiarity from becoming complacency.

"Dream Small," written by Josh Wilson, captures Booth's strengths almost perfectly. Rather than presenting discipleship through grand gestures and dramatic accomplishments, the song locates faithfulness in ordinary acts of love. Its message could easily become sentimental, but Booth's conversational delivery keeps it grounded. He sounds less like a performer dispensing advice than a friend reminding listeners that seemingly insignificant acts may have eternal consequences.

Wilson also wrote the title track, "That Was Then, This Is Now," which supplies the album with its theological and emotional centre. The song turns the record's title into more than a career statement. "Then" represents regret, failure and identities formed by the past; "now" represents the new beginning made possible by grace. Booth does not oversell the transformation. His mature delivery carries the credibility of someone who knows that spiritual renewal is often quieter-and considerably harder-than Christian songs sometimes suggest.

"If Not Today" provides the album's most urgent challenge. Originally recorded by the Travelers Quartet, the song was brought back to Booth's attention by his father shortly before a tracking session. Its inclusion consequently feels connected to both Gospel music's history and Booth's own family story. The central question confronts the listener with the danger of indefinitely postponing obedience: if one will not respond to God today, when exactly will that response come? Booth allows the lyric to carry the weight, avoiding the kind of excessive vocal dramatics that could turn invitation into manipulation.

"Gentle Stranger," associated with legendary Gospel songwriter Mosie Lister, reaches further into Southern Gospel's rich musical inheritance. It suits Booth because he understands how to sing older material without treating it as a museum piece. The song's portrait of Christ carries an inviting tenderness, while Booth's interpretation reminds listeners that gentleness should never be confused with weakness.

"City of Joy" brings a welcome lift to the proceedings. Its more exuberant outlook prevents This Is Now from becoming overly reflective and gives Booth room to display the personality and humour that have long made him such an effective concert communicator. The song looks towards heaven without becoming gloomy about the present, capturing the anticipatory joy that has always animated the finest Southern Gospel music.

Booth produced the album with assistance from Steve Mauldin, while Darrell Toney helped translate his musical ideas into the finished arrangements. The result places the singer and the songs ahead of unnecessary studio embellishment. Nothing seems designed merely to demonstrate how contemporary or adventurous Booth can be. That restraint is largely an asset, although the album's commitment to familiar Southern Gospel language means listeners searching for a radical stylistic departure may find it overly safe.

The record's greatest strength is also its clearest limitation. Booth knows his audience exceptionally well, and This Is Now has been shaped to encourage that audience rather than unsettle it. The arrangements support the testimonies, the melodies remain accessible and the theology is direct. A few more unexpected musical turns might have broadened the album's emotional range, but experimentation was plainly never its principal ambition.

Instead, This Is Now succeeds as a carefully focused portrait of Michael Booth at this point in his life and ministry. He is no longer trying to determine how a member of the Booth Brothers should make a solo record. He is making music as Michael Booth-still carrying the history, faith and humour audiences cherish, but now speaking with a voice that confidently belongs to him.