“Praise Your Way Through” The Showers Aquila and Priscilla Records (2013) From Hammond, Louisiana, the Showers, a family gospel group, garnered national attention in 2009 for its debut album, Hear My Prayer.  The single, “Jesus You Died,” earned a Rhythm of Gospel Award in 2011 for Best Traditional Song of the Year. The Showers are back with “Praise Your Way Through,” the lead single from their sophomore project to be released later this year. Possessing somewhat of an early Mary Mary groove, “Praise Your Way Through” is a rhythmically charged but stylistically smooth contemporary song about breaking through the detritus ...

Donald Malloy Live: Finally Home (2012) www.donaldmalloyministries.com By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog. There’s something about old-fashioned, good-time gospel music that alleviates troubles by its very presence.  It does not need complex, mind-altering, or heavy riffing to ease the burdens. That’s what Donald Malloy’s sixth CD, Live: Finally Home, is about.  Offering a live performance in his hometown of Cheraw, South Carolina, Malloy gives traditional gospel just enough of a beat to keep in step with the times.  Stellar Award-winning Isaiah D. Thomas produced the album and wrote and arranged some of the songs. Malloy gets the audience ...

Charles Jenkins & Fellowship Chicago The Best of Both Worlds EMI Gospel/Inspired People (2012) www.emigospel.com By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog. It could not have been easy for Charles Jenkins to succeed the iconic Rev. Dr. Clay Evans as Pastor of Fellowship Missionary Baptist Church in Chicago. Evans, a Civil Rights leader and founder of “The Ship,” had taken his church from very humble roots to one of the nation’s most significant religious institutions. Fellowship’s radio choir was no less celebrated than the church it represented. Directed at the beginning by Willie Webb and later by Evans’ sister, ...

  “I Remember” Wincey From the CD Time to Say (2012) www.winceycomusic.com “I Remember” is an uncomplicated, smooth-as-caramel contemporary gospel song with cheerful vocals by Wincey Terry-Bryant. The Newark native sings praises to the one who has “always been there for me,” in good times and bad, for the hurt and for experiences “too good to be true.” Wincey brings to the table a professional and eclectic vocal resume that includes the church choir as well as work with Grover Washington, Jr. and Sesame Street.  In 1988, she founded a performing arts troupe called WinceyCo that educates audiences about serious ...

The Sounds of Blackness (self-titled) Malaco Records 2011 http://www.malaco.com/ By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog. On its latest, self-titled CD, the Sounds of Blackness underscores its optimistic message of healing, unity and hope with dramatic flourishes of theatricality. The sound is so tight, the theme so on point, and the melodies so compelling, the album stands out as one of the group’s best. Even more than the quality of the individual tracks is the album’s overall motive and emotive force, its rhythmic complexity echoing Michael Jackson’s later work. Sounds of Blackness could easily develop an effective stage musical ...

“He Walked Alone (The Story of Jesus)” Chris Jasper From the forthcoming Gold City Music CD Inspired http://www.goldcitymusic.com/ Isley Jasper Isley alumnus Chris Jasper is no stranger to writing and singing sacred music. “He Walked Alone (The Story of Jesus)” is Jasper’s brief musical biography of Jesus from birth to crucifixion. A tender James Taylor-style ballad with a soulful conclusion, “He Walked Alone” gets Jasper’s high tenor treatment throughout. Available as a download on CDBaby and other media outlets, the song is a good choice to play during the Easter Season.

“Surrender” Carla Martin 5:11 Music Group (2011) http://www.amartinproduction.com/ With a rocking beat that speeds along like a brakeless freight train, “Surrender” riffs on the irony that in the midst of trials, it is in surrendering that life begins. Don’t give up, she sings, give in. First place winner at the 2002 McDonald’s Gospelfest, Evangelist Carla Martin now lives in Orlando, Florida and is married with seven (!) children. Her voice is reminiscent of Cher’s no-nonsense alto, which is appropriate to the content and message of the single.

By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog. Scan the liner notes of a gospel CD and chances are you will see the name of Jonathan DuBose, Jr. listed among the musicians. Not surprising: DuBose has been an in-demand guitarist in the sacred and secular music arenas for many years. DuBose recently spoke with TBGB about his beginnings, where his career has taken him thus far, and his passion for “C.A.U.S.” Beginnings in Bridgeport Born December 12, 1960, DuBose first picked up steel string guitars at age four when his mother and father, quartetter Jonathan DuBose Sr. of the Sensational ...

Chris Jasper Invincible Gold City Records (2007) http://www.goldcitymusic.com/ Reviewed by Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog. Some deliver the Word with fire and brimstone, others with flatfooted, melismatic vocal power, and yet others with honey-sweetness so the message goes down easy. Chris Jasper falls into the latter category. On Invincible, the former member of the R&B group Isley-Jasper-Isley and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee bathes messages of hope, faith, encouragement and reliance on the Almighty in the cool, sweet soul that was the soundtrack of the mid-1980s. For example, on “A New Life in Christ,” Jasper exhorts ...

By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog. Multi award-winning Andrae’ Crouch is moving into his sixth decade in gospel music, but he’s not slowing down. The singer-songwriter who, along with the Hawkins Family and the Rance Allen Group, helped birth the contemporary gospel movement in the 1960s, is promoting a new single, a new album, and a choir competition. The Journey, available May 15, will be Crouch’s first CD since 2006’s Mighty Wind. The album’s first single, “The Promise,” will be available as a digital download on Tuesday, February 15 exclusively at Walmart.com, iTunes, and Amazon.com, and all other online retail ...