Here's regrettable proof that loveliness alone can only lull for so long.

BeBe Winans has one of the most calming, beautiful voices in contemporary gospel music. He's calm and beautiful on the first single — actually it's more like a long chorus — titled "When We Pray." He's calm and beautiful on the next, fluttery "Love Thang." And he's calm and beautiful yet again on the more serious look inward, "Love Me Anyway."

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CONTEMPORARY GOSPEL • BeBe Winans "Dream." Still Waters Recordings/TMG. 11 tracks. Grade: C+ On the web: www.stillwatersrecordings.com, www.bebewinans.net.

By the time Winans gets to his unfortunate "I Have a Dream" — yes, it uses Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s famous speech as a springboard — you could understand if someone were actually snoozing. Just hope someone shakes them in time to hear the last two listed tracks — "Miracle of Love," on which he and R&B singer Angie Stone trade spirited, church-honed power belts, and the beautiful, calming and finally compellingly written, "Safe From Harm."

— Sonia Murray