Clara Ward and the Famous Ward Singers (Gospel Friend)

Gospel Friend (2013)

By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog

Forget for a moment that these recordings are between 55 and 64 years old, though some of them sound as if they were mastered directly from the original tapes.  The Ward Singers—individually and collectively—delivered the simplest hymn with an inner conviction and passion but also a vaudevillian’s instinct of how to win over an audience.  These skills are as relevant now as they were then.  Even one listening could teach several lessons on voice culture.

The collection, which Notini dedicates lovingly to the late Willa Ward-Royster, contains some of the group’s lesser known sides but not for lack of quality or obscurity of repertory.  The songs are hymns and gospels firmly established in the African American church, such as “Come Ye Disconsolate,” “That Awful Day Will Surely Come,” and “Climbing Jacob’s Ladder.”  As one might expect, there are a fair number of Rev. W.H. Brewster compositions, as he was the Ward’s songwriter of choice.

The CD gives the listener a feel for the evolution of gospel musicianship.  Opening with more conservative piano and organ led tracks from 1949, the collection gives way to mid-1950s uptempo selections accompanied by drums and the electrifying sounds of sacred steel wunderkind Sam Whinham.  Whinham’s guitar is another Ward Singer on “I’ll Be There,” answering Marion Williams’s explosive vocals like a frenzied congregant.  The steel shouts assent as Clara Ward sings lines from Psalm 23 on “Our God is Real.”

Royster and her distinctive warble can be heard on “I’m Bound for Higher Ground” and “When I Get Home,” but most especially on 1950’s Christmas-inspired “Glory, Glory Hallelujah,” where she solos.  I was also struck by how much Frances Steadman sounded like Mahalia Jackson on “God’s Amazing Love.” 

Professor Robert Sacre’s well-researched and well-written liner notes include commentary from historian and producer Anthony Heilbut.  Since many of the songs had yet to be released commercially on CD, the album will be an especially sweet treat for longtime fans who regrettably tossed out their turntables long ago.