Lynette White may have been born in the Bronx and raised in Southern California, but the Caribbean sun burns brightly in her voice. While the fetching, dreadlocked Lynette — born to Caribbean parents — may be better known for her secular work, her gospel debut CD I Will Lift My Voice blends R&B sultriness and island rhythms with inspirational lyrics to create a distinctive and altogether fresh sound in gospel music. If nothing else, you have to hear this CD to experience one of the only – if not the only – reggae-flavored adaptations of Albert Hay Malotte’s “Lord’s Prayer” ...

From a press release supplied by JL Media Relations: The “20th Annual Stellar Gospel Music Awards” airs in national syndication over broadcast and cable television from January 22 to February 20, 2005. Please check local listings for dates and times. 2005 Stellar Gospel Music WINNERS! Artist of the Year: Tonex & The Peculiar People – Out the Box Song of the Year: Make Me Over – A.C. Williams – (From Tonex’s Out the Box CD) Male Vocalist of the Year: Israel Houghton – Live From Another Level Female Vocalist of the Year: CeCe Winans – Throne Room Group/Duo of the ...

“If I Had a Hammer” – Five Blind Boys of Alabama from House of Blues CD: I Brought Him With Me (1995) Pete Seeger’s and Lee Hayes’s iconic “If I Had a Hammer” receives its best treatment ever at the hands of the Five Blind Boys of Alabama on one of the quartet’s live CDs, I Brought Him With Me. Recorded live at the House of Blues in San Francisco, January 14-16, 1995, the song is the highlight of a project with many outstanding tracks. If, however, you have had the good fortune to see the quartet do “Hammer” live ...

The following is an article by Aaron Cohen Special to the Chicago Tribune January 14, 2005 Just like gospel’s relatives in blues and soul, church music has gone through its own split between adherence to longstanding traditions and a move toward more contemporary productions. Some young gospel stars who’ve drawn on current pop trends fill large halls nationwide. But the side that features strong piano and organ soloists, spirited individual vocalists and a time-honored repertoire, remains strong in Chicago. “I know that we’re in the 21st Century and things change, and change is good,” says vocalist Sydne Evans. “But as ...

“He’ll Welcome Me (To My Home)” Soul Stirrers Specialty 851 1953 [also available on Specialty LPs LP2106 and SPS2137, and on www.rhapsody.com] It may have been akin to heresy for some churchgoers when in 1952 and 1953 the Soul Stirrers – beloved a cappella quartet that they were – began adding organ, piano, and drums to their recordings. Besides the fact that all the superstar gospel quartets were doing it, adding instrumentation and a stronger beat freshened up the quartet sound, made it more modern sounding, more in keeping with the youth-dominated Fifties. Also, pushing the musical envelope had been ...

From Veda Brown and Black Gospel Promo (www.blackgospelpromo.com): Donald McIntyre, the editor and force behind Gospel EUR, has died. McIntyre, 45, died Sunday morning in Dallas, Texas, said his mother, Mrs. Betty Hornbuckle. In speaking with his mother, who of course is grieving, we were able to get some information. Mr. McIntyre, who lived alone, was discovered in his apartment last Friday. When taken to a local hospital, it was determined that he was in a coma and had suffered brain damage and was only able to breathe through life-support. When asked how she would like for him to be ...

Like many quartets that have stood the test of time, the Swanee Quintet has consistently adapted its sound to meet the changing tastes of gospel audiences. Led by the effervescent Reverend Reuben Willingham, the quartet released dozens of remarkable singles and LPs for Nashboro and Creed throughout the 1950s, ‘60s and ‘70s, getting funkier as gospel music adopted the style of its musical progeny, such as rhythm and blues and soul. Today, more than sixty years after its founding, the Swanee Quintet is still going strong. Under the leadership of Percy Griffin, the quartet just released a CD, Still Holding ...

“How Long, Oh Lord, How Long” Pattersonaires 1965 Chalice C-101 Although the Pattersonaires formed in 1953, they did not make any commercial recordings until 1965, when two singles were released on Stax Records’ short-lived Chalice imprint. The quartet cut several tracks for the Memphis-based label but only four were issued until the early 1990s when Fantasy/Specialty released Free at Last, a sampling of Chalice’s eight released singles and plenty of previously unreleased material. England’s Ace Records issued this same CD in 1993 as Disturb My Soul. However, “How Long, Oh Lord, How Long,” a Rev. Brewster composition issued on Chalice ...

From the Center for Black Music Research “Associate” e-newsletter, 12/17/2004: The Encyclopedia of American Gospel Music is to be published by Routledge in Fall 2005. The one-volume encyclopedia will be the first comprehensive reference to cover both African-American and white gospel music. It will discuss all aspects of gospel music, including its history, performers, instruments, recording techniques, broadcast media, styles, and influence on other musical genres. The editors are seeking contributors to submit article manuscripts by February 15, 2005. For more information, visit www.routledge-ny.com/enc/gospel or e-mail gospelmusic@taylorandfrancis.com.

Farther Along – The Skylarks 1951 Nashboro 513 [available on Pewburner CD 527: Skylarks of Nashville, Vol. 1 (1951-1954); available from www.pewburner.com] In 1951, at the time “Farther Along” was recorded, the Skylarks were Willie Jefferson, Wilson Paige, James S. Hill, and Issac “Dickie” Freeman. Neither “Roberts” – Crenshaw nor Broussard – had joined the organization just yet. While the Skylarks were always a powerful quartet, especially in their early days, the group’s greatest asset was Dickie Freeman, arguably the greatest bass singer in gospel music. Freeman and fellow Skylarks James Hill and Edward Thomas (who had left the Skylarks ...