Gospel Music

Lynda HodgesFreeAsaph Productions 2010www.lyndahodges.comIn addition to her music-loving father, Washington, DC singer-songwriter Lynda Hodges cites Richard Smallwood, the Voices Supreme and the Hawkins Family as among her early musical influences. On her debut CD, Free, Hodges combines these contemporary gospel influences in her smooth, gentle-to-soaring pop-influenced alto, tender (and tenderly [...]

Teddy CrossFamily Healing, Vol. 1Mega Faith Records Megafaithrecords202@msn.comMany know Teddy Cross as a member of the iconic Gospel Keynotes. His CD, Family Healing, Vol. 1, showcases the quartet specialist as a solo artist, allowing him room to experiment with styles and songs that might not necessarily fit in the Gospel [...]

“You That I Trust”The Rance Allen Group feat. Paul PorterFrom the forthcoming CD/DVD: The Live Experience II (scheduled release: Jan 25, 2011)www.tyscot.comRemember our interview with Rance Allen regarding his 40th anniversary celebration in Detroit? While the audio and video fruits of the historic live program will not be available until [...]

Blue Chip & SpecialistGround ZeroArete Music Group (2008)http://www.chipandspec.com/On “Clear the Air,” a track from their 2008 CD Ground Zero, Christian hip hop artists Gerard Henning (aka Blue Chip) and Rudy Ramos (Specialist) announce, “If you don’t know my story, you won’t understand my praise.”That line could have opened the duo's second [...]

“Power in the Blood”Pastor J. Jasper Wilkins, Jr. & the Voices of WCCFrom the CD/DVD Hymns for HimWake Chapel Church (2010)www.cdbaby.com/cd/PastorJJasperWilkinsJrWhile Pastor J. Jasper Wilkins, Jr.’s debut CD Hymns for Him gives old church songs a contemporary touch – “Leaning on the Everlasting Arms” has a slow swagger, Bill Withers-style – [...]

“The Power of God”Bishop Samuel R. Johnson, Sr.From the forthcoming CD The Sounds of Living WaterRoyalton Records/In Season Records/Universal Music Christian GroupSingle available on iTunes.When Bishop Samuel R. Johnson, Sr. sings “The Power of God,” he seems to be having a good time. As if to prove it, Johnson, his [...]

“Unmerited Favor”Rhonda ThomasFrom the CD Listen (2010)Rhonvocals Productions/HNL Records www.rhondasings.com“People sometimes ask me, do I have a problem with the music that I sing?”When Rhonda Thomas posits this question at the outset of “Unmerited Favor,” you know she’s heard it plenty of times before.The Atlanta-based soul songstress uses the selection [...]

Totally DedicatedQuarTemporary http://www.totallydedicated.net/Available on iTunes (2010)The name of Totally Dedicated’s new album, QuarTemporary, is evocative of the music within. The members of this Louisville, Kentucky-based group are Charles "Noo" Simmons, Ben "Black" Bush, Raymond "Three" Noah, Steve "Stuff" Frazier, Demarcus Everett and Ricky Wiggington. Like Commissioned and the Soul Seekers, [...]

Julien Crue', a radio announcer and journalist in France, alerted TBGB to the sad news below.LOS ANGELES (AP) — Gospel and R&B singer James Phelps, who performed with soul greats including Lou Rawls and Sam Cooke, has died in Los Angeles. He was 78.Elder Lee M. Harris, who co-wrote an [...]

Greetings, readers!The first five individuals to email TBGB at bob@gospelmemories.com with the correct answer to this question will win a copy of Shekinah Glory Ministry’s new CD, Refreshed By Fire, courtesy of Kingdom Records and The Black Gospel Blog.Q: What Shekinah Glory Ministry song title is also the name of [...]