Almost There is the first studio album by the American Christian rock band MercyMe (singer and drummer pictured), released on August 14, 2001, by INO Records. Characterizing it as contemporary worship and pop rock, music critics praised the album's songwriting, especially on "I Can Only Imagine", but gave its sound mixed reviews, ranging from "fresh" and "innovative" to derivative. CCM Magazine cited it in the 25th anniversary edition of their 100 Albums You Need to Own list. "Bless Me Indeed (Jabez's Song)" was released as the album's lead single, but it underperformed on the charts. The second single, "I Can Only Imagine", boosted sales for the album, and crossed over to mainstream radio in 2003. The album peaked at number 39 on the Billboard 200 and number one on the Billboard Christian Albums chart. Billboard ranked it as the fourth best-selling Christian album of 2000–2009 in the United States. Both the album and the single "I Can Only Imagine" have sold more than 3 million copies.
Read more: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Almost_There_%28album%29
_______________________________ Today's selected anniversaries:
1888:
One of the first music recordings ever made, of Arthur Sullivan's "The Lost Chord" (audio featured), was played at a press conference introducing Thomas Edison's phonograph in London. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Lost_Chord
1941:
After a secret meeting in Newfoundland, British prime minister Winston Churchill and U.S. president Franklin D. Roosevelt issued the Atlantic Charter, establishing a vision for a post–World War II world. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Atlantic_Charter
2010:
The inaugural edition of the Youth Olympic Games opened in Singapore for athletes between 14 and 18 years old. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Youth_Olympic_Games
_____________________________ Wiktionary's word of the day:
en masse: In a single body or group; as one, together. https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/en_masse
___________________________ Wikiquote quote of the day:
Of all kinds of human energy, Art is surely the most free, the least parochial; and demands of us an essential tolerance of all its forms. Shall we waste breath and ink in condemnation of artists, because their temperaments are not our own? --John Galsworthy https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/John_Galsworthy