I know what you’re thinking: “Michael McLean’s been at this for 25 years?!?!” Yes, it’s true, and to celebrate 25 years of hope-filled LDS music, Shadow Mountain has released the Michael McLean Silver Anniversary Boxed Set with six CDs of Michael’s greatest music.

If you’re a Michael McLean fan, you’re going to gasp when you hear that I’m not a huge fan. I should say wasn’t a huge fan. I’m one of those people that joined in at the stereotypical Michael McLean impersonations and brushed him off as way too “jump on the bandwagon” for me. That all changed when I watched the 2007 DVD release of Forgotten Carols. While my dear husband scoffed at the production, I was enthralled. I love the story, I loved the music, and I loved that Michael McLean and his family had made it into a family production. My one critique of the DVD was that I wish it had been made into a feature film and not just a filmed play. Yes, I think it could become a mainstream Christmas classic. Now I understand why LDSreview.net gets questions each year about where and when the live productions will take place.

But I digress…

When I received the Michael McLean Silver Anniversary Boxed Set, I hid from my husband and immediately started listening in on the first CD. Day after day, I’d listen to one CD after another. Now, I’m not going to say that I loved each and every song because, let’s face it: some of them are cheesy and most definitely have that 1980’s sound to them. But for the most part, I was pleasantly surprised at the singing quality, the differences in genre between the songs, and most of all, the heartfelt lyrics. Don’t think that every song is song by The Man himself because it’s actually the opposite: he is the minority vocalist on each CD, which means that it’s a varied listening experience.

Another great thing about the boxed set is that each CD has a different theme, which makes it easy to choose a CD based on your mood. The six CDs include:

Hope Hiding
Tender Mercies
The Other Side of Sorrow
It’s Not Love ‘Til It’s Been Through a Storm
Changed
See Us Shine

My personal favorite so far is The Other Side of Sorrow, but maybe that’s because I’m glutton for punishment and enjoy a good cry. But in all honest, I think the whole set is wonderful and a great achievement for Brother McLean.

You can find Michael McLean Silver Anniversary Boxed Set at Deseret Books stores or on the web at www.deseretbook.com. Each CD can also be purchased individually. The boxed set retails for $49.95 (that’s about $8.30 per CD), and the individual CDs retail for $12.98.