Curley L. Jones – Let’s Get Excited (2007)

Curley L. Jones
Let’s Get Excited
Self-produced 2007
(203) 507-3661

I tried to get excited about gospel singer-songwriter Curley L. Jones’ Let’s Get Excited. I even listened to it twice to see if it was just my mood getting in the way (it’s the dead of winter, and I live in Chicago), but no dice.

First and foremost, the project is challenged by a pinched-sounding production. Jones’ vocals, for example, often sound as if they are coming forth from a small transistor radio speaker. That works for some hip-hop artists, at least temporarily, but I don’t think that this was the effect Jones was trying to demonstrate. The chief problem is that monaural vocal tracks muffle lyrics, and this happens at several junctions throughout the project. Not good if you are a songwriter trying to get your message across.

Second, an over-reliance on synthesized keyboards (that sometimes borders on bubble-gummy) gives the album a two-dimensional, saccharine feeling – again, not the best vehicle for Jones’ songwriting.

Not to say that there aren’t interesting moments. “I’m Gonna Be Right There with Jesus” is a ready-made gospel ballad for a quartet. “Keep God First” has a beat reminiscent of the fabled ring dance, or the 1950s “hambone” craze popularized on Okeh Records by the Hambone Kids (featuring a young Dee Clark). I can imagine “Keep God First” being a fun, interactive composition for a children’s choir.

It’s quite possible that Jones’ real songwriting talent lies in developing songs like “Keep God First” or “Jesus True” for youth groups. Surely the combination of singing and percussion could bring the Orff methodology of music instruction into orbit with gospel singing. Many a young person would be turned on to gospel singing this way, I’m sure.

I applaud Curley Jones’ entrepreneurial eagerness to share his music and passion with a broader audience, and he seems like a really fine gentleman. I only hope that his next release removes the audio filters that shroud and muffle the messages on Let’s Get Excited.

One of Four Stars