Jason Serinus, Music Critic

Los Angeles-based David Francis, a frequent composer for television, is known for his championing of 20th century piano music and his frequent collaborations with gay writer/poet Gavin Dillard. The handsome Francis has even earned the accolade expert pianist from two-time Pulitzer Prize winning composer Ned Rorem. (Francis promises a future CD of previously unrecorded 20th century American piano compositions, including the debut recording of Ned Rorem’s Eight Etudes).

Francis herein offers arrangements of 12 hymns he learned as a child born in Memphis. While the tracks, including What a Friend We Have in Jesus, Sweet Hour of Prayer, and Amazing Grace, are meant to reflect the nostalgic yet bittersweet memories of Francis’ Baptist upbringing, the sweetness of a lovely, fluid touch and a sensitive soul predominate. Only Trust Him does have its share of irony, and Blessed Assurance, Jesus is Mine its force, but as the Precious Lord takes Francis’ hands in a jazzy manner, one senses that the pianist has, in many ways, made peace with his upbringing. This is an easy-to-listen-to CD that can provide perfect accompaniment to a hazy afternoon or mellow evening. It can certainly warm the heart and sweeten one’s day.

Francis plays a Steinway, digitally recorded at close range without equalization or signal processing. While the engineer has curiously put the bass notes on the left and the treble on the right, the flow of the music comes through abundantly clear.