Gospel Music

“Never Would Have Made It”Marvin SappFrom the Verity CD Thirsty2007www.marvinsapp.com“Never Would Have Made It,” like “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” is a gospel song that appeals to listeners immediately because it is hewn from the dark, seemingly bottomless well of emotional pain and sorrow, and as such strikes a universal [...]

Tune to 88.7 WLUW Chicago Sunday morning, March 2 from 3:00 to 7:30 a.m. Central Time for this month’s live broadcast of “Gospel Memories”: the soundtrack of That Old Time Religion.Not in Chicago? No problem. Go to http://www.wluw.org/, click the Listen Live button, and enjoy “Gospel Memories” from wherever you [...]

A Second ComingBryan WilsonBryan’s Songs Records/CE Music 2008http://www.bryanwilson.com/In 1994, twelve year-old boy soprano Bryan Wilson stepped up to the recording microphone to lead “His Eye is On the Sparrow” with the Mississippi Children’s Choir. When Wilson finished, his world changed. The astounding popularity of the recording brought the pre-teen Dove [...]

“Sweeping Through the City”Shirley CaesarFrom the Shu-Bel/Light CD After 40 Years...Still Sweeping Through the Cityhttp://www.light-street.com/The energetic Pastor Shirley Caesar reprises a memorable moment from her days with the Caravans on a live version of “Sweeping Through the City,” aka “I Won’t Be Back.” Caesar and her backing choir take “Sweeping [...]

Right Now PraiseJonathan Nelson featuring PurposeIntegrity Music 2008www.integrityMusic.com/JonathanNelsonStellar Award-winning songwriter, praise and worship leader, and “PK” Jonathan Nelson of Baltimore grew up in a singing family and attended the Baltimore School for the Arts, but received his first real taste of professional singing while backing Karen Clark-Sheard. The singer was [...]

Tell ItThe Georgia Mass ChoirSavoy Records 2007www.malaco.comWhile the big gospel choirs have lost market share to the current crop of small groups, never fear: there are several powerful choruses that remain forces with which to be reckoned when it comes to gospel hits. The top choirs include the mighty Chicago [...]

“Got Fruit”YunekFrom the CD Exodus Three:Seventeenwww.yunekmusic.comTwenty-six year-old Jessica Joseph of Houston goes by Yunek (pronounced “Unique,” and not like a village in Eastern Europe). A semi-finalist in the Gospel Dream competition, Yunek’s most recent single, “Got Fruit,” bounces brightly along like a neo-soul track by Lauren Hill or India.Arie, both [...]

Golden NuggetsThe Sons of the Soul ReviversAlpha 7 Ministries 2007www.alpha7ministries.comMuch in the tradition of the Sons of the (Dixie Humming) Birds, the Sons of the Soul Revivers are in the family business. Since 1970, the quartet has continued and expanded the quartet-singing tradition of their fathers, uncles, and other relatives, [...]

A blog article written by Peter Holderness for the Chicago Methods Reporter provides a thoughtful and provocative exposition of the clash between the old and the new in gospel music. The conflict between traditional and contemporary is certainly not new to gospel music; this is just the latest example.The piece [...]

WOW Gospel 2008Various ArtistsZomba Gospel Group 2008www.wowgospelonline.comFor the past eleven years, I have looked forward to each February with eager anticipation, knowing that the latest installment of the WOW Gospel series was due for release. This double-CD gospel music yearbook, the sister series to Christian music’s WOW project, has never [...]