Dennis Quaid Embraces His Faith with Gospel Album, ‘Fallen’

Dennis Quaid is going gospel. On July 28, the actor will release Fallen: A Gospel Record for Sinners, a collection of a dozen songs that reflect his faith. The album features a combination of originals like “Fallen,” “Please Don’t Give Up on Me” and others that were written by Quaid, alongside gospel standards, including “Amazing Grace,” “Just As I Am,” “I’ll Fly Away” and “The Lord’s Prayer.” Ahead of the album’s release, Quaid has shared his rendition of Kris Kristofferson’s country and gospel hit, “Why Me,” which shows off his rugged vocals as he sings, Tell me Lord / What did I ever do / That was worth loving you / Or the kindness you’ve shown.

Quaid invites famous voices to join him, as gospel group The Isaacs and Jackson Brumley provide background harmonies on “I’ll Fly Away” and The Oak Ridge Boys on “Life’s Railway to Heaven.” This isn’t the Parent Trap star’s first step into gospel territory, as the album includes his original song, “On My Way to Heaven,” which appeared in the 2018 film, I Can Only Imagine, based on MercyMe’s hit song of the same name. In the film, Quaid stars as Arthur Millard, the abusive father of MercyMe frontman Bart Millard.

According to a press release, “On My Way to Heaven” was inspired by Quaid’s struggle with addiction over the years. “Quaid also vulnerably acknowledges these personal struggles and his subsequent return to Christianity on songs like the title track,” the press release states. The Houston, Texas native’s last album, Out of the Box, was released in 2018.

“I realized that I was never going to be someone who could shred on guitar,” Quaid previously shared with American Songwriter about how he got into songwriting. “Music was something that I did alone, after school. So, it was a pretty natural thing for me. It always has been.”

Quaid has also starred in The Rookie, A Dog’s Journey, A Dog’s Purpose, and Far From Heaven, the latter of which he was nominated for a Golden Globe Award in 2003.

Fallen: A Gospel Record for Sinners Tracklist:

1. Fallen
Dennis Quaid
2. Please Don’t Give Up on Me
Dennis Quaid
3. Why Me
Kris Kristofferson
4. God Gets Lonely Too
Dennis Quaid
5. Just as I Am
Charlotte Elliott and William B. Bradbury
6. Amazing Grace
John Newton; American Melody
7. Life’s Railway to Heaven
M.E. Abbey and Charles D. Tillman 
8. On My Way to Heaven
Dennis Quaid
9. What A Friend We Have in Jesus
Charles C. Converse and Joseph M. Scriven
10. The Lord’s Prayer
11. Welcome Home
Dennis Quaid
12. I’ll Fly Away
Albert E. Brumley

Photo by Derrek Kupish / Adkins Publicity