Keith Green left a huge mark on Christian music. Most of the artists we listen to today would not be here were it not for him. Over the years numerous tribute albums have been made as a dedication to him and his legacy. The latest, Start Right Here, compiled by BEC Records, mixes some classic music with some more progressive artists.

The record opens with Hangnail offering a basic rock song. The next song is Cadet entitled "You Are the One." The song is slow and features some good vocals. Bleach's latest song, "Asleep in the Light," is perhaps the best song on the album. It's a lot different than anything else they have done, being it's more mellow and Dave Baysinger's vocals take a little to get used to. Joy Electric's "Make My Life a Prayer to You," is like everything else Joy Electric has done.

MXPX's cover, "You Put This Love in My Heart," is off of their On the Cover EP from 1995 and is under two minutes long. Starflyer 59's "Lord I'm Gonna Love You" sounds like the usual Starflyer 59 material, similar to Smashing Pumpkins. The second best song is by Ace Troubleshooter, the surprise punk band of the year, with their cover of "Your Love Broke Through." Midway through the song there's a nice little instrumental piece and then the music breaks through towards the end to finish off the song.

MG! The Visionary's "My Eyes Are Dry" is hip-hop with some reggae influences and some nice background harmonies. Element 101 offers their rendition of "You!" which starts like a country western song and later turns into a rock song, with some vocals that don't really fit into the song. Ill Harmonics plays the ultra-classic "40 Years," perhaps one of Keith's most popular songs. It's a rap song that blends well with some of the original music. This song shows some of Keith's sense of humor involved in many of his songs.

Overall, this collection is a bit weird. There is a wide array of style's from rap to techno to punk music. There are a few highlights on the album, but some of the stuff just lacks the quality that this album was hyped to have. It follows in a line of tribute album let downs over the last year or so. I feel that this album could have been much better considering who it was supposed to have been a tribute to. I think that there are a lot of better artists that could have been put on here. One note of interest that lights up the album a little are the liner notes by the artists telling why Keith Green has had an influence in their lives and their music.

- Review date: 7/21/01, written by Kevin Chamberlin