Elder Randall Ogans Sr. and Dorian Ogans – Jesus the Light of the World

Elder Randall Ogans Sr. and Dorian Ogans
Jesus the Light of the World
Alpha 7 Ministries (release date: January 19, 2024)

By Robert M. Marovich

The story may be apocryphal, but nearly seventy years ago, Thomas A. Dorsey, the Father of Gospel Music, had a fit over a musical trend he considered nothing more than jazzing the hymns.

Dorsey didn’t disclose the object of his ire—it may have been trombonist Jack Teagarden, whose 1957 album for Capitol, Swing Low, Sweet Spiritual, set sacred songs to a Dixieland-style arrangement and featured an uncredited Five Keys as vocalists—but he was angry just the same. Dorsey, himself once disdained for putting the beat of the street into sacred music, considered the trend of turning hymns and spirituals into fodder for jitterbuggers a sacrilege.

Time heals all wounds, and nobody questions the influence of jazz in gospel anymore, though truth be told, it was there from the start. Gospel and jazz, said saxophonist Harold Rayford, are first cousins. Among today’s artists who work within the gospel jazz idiom are Elder Randall Ogans Sr. and his son Dorian Ogans. They jazz five old and new hymns on their EP, Jesus the Light of the World.

The California-based duo interprets and improvises on organ, piano, guitar, bass (and do I hear a flute?) on hymnbook staples “Jesus Loves Me,” “There is a Fountain,” “Walking in the Light,” and “Pass Me Not,” and Thomas Whitfield’s “Precious Jesus.” Like a supper club combo, the two offer soft, soothing takes on the hymns. They play gently, with no sudden flights into the stratosphere or complex themes, though they do boost the tempo slightly on “Walking in the Light” and “There is a Fountain.”

Team Ogans offers a balm to calm all and offend none. Their serene touch would even put a smile on Professor Dorsey’s face.

Three of Five Stars

Pick: “Precious Jesus”