Desmond Pringle – Fidelity

Desmond Pringle

Kingdom Records (2013)

By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog

The gospel sound of Desmond Pringle (no relation to singer-chorister Keith Pringle) is more of a direct link to the early contemporary work of the Hawkins Family than most of today’s artists.  

Fidelity, Desmond Pringle’s debut solo album for Kingdom Records and first album release in six years, demonstrates this with a handful of songs that artfully combine the traditional and contemporary in melody, arrangement, and lyric content.

If the opener, “Until it Rains,” is on the far modern side of the gospel music spectrum, “The Latter is Greater” is at the far opposite end.  It is a loose-meter church wrecker on which Pringle, accompanied by album producer Cedric Thompson’s gurgling B3, sings about a future that will more than make up for a challenging past.  In between are Walter Hawkins-esque ballads such as the title track and “Unmerited Favor,” on which Pringle exercises his expressive tenor.  A love ballad to God, “Can’t Even Imagine” is the most radio-friendly in its smooth production and arrangement.

“Get in the Word” is a havin’ church hand clapper on which Pringle encourages everyone to celebrate the word of God, and the prelude to “Nip It in the Blood” is downright hymnic.  “Command Your Morning,” a smoldering slow gospel jam at rocking chair tempo, finds Pringle in company with fiery vocalists LeJuene Thompson and Lydia Wright, encouraging the listener to control the day with morning prayer and steadfast conviction.

Lest modern gospel listeners think there’s nothing on Fidelity for their taste, the magic of the CD is that the songs blend the best of the past and present so well that everything will warm their spirit.