Blue Belly Sky, the first album by
the Waiting to receive much attention, is a sharply focused set of songs combining rock, pop, astonishing poetic imagery, and worship. The fusion is confident, resulting in a set that bears repeated listenings. Todd Olsen's guitar catches real fire here, foreshadowing the heady sonics to come on future releases. Outstanding tracks are "Look at Me," "Mercy Seat," "Staring at a Bird," "Dead Man," and "Is This the Day?" Later re-released on Sparrow with four additional tracks are the nice but marginal "Still So Pretty" and the Jackson Five cover "I Want You Back," the very good "Nobody's Love," and outstanding cut "Dead Man." ~ David Dwyer