Essential Gospel – Classic Recordings: No. 129

“Rough Side of the Mountain”
Rev. F.C Barnes & Rev. Janice Brown
Consolating Sound (AIR)
1983

“Rough Side of the Mountain” was an early home run for then-fledgling, now major indie Atlanta International Records (AIR), when the company was doing business under the Consolating Sound imprint. The recording’s irresistible sing-along chorus and windshield-wiper tempo accompany Reverend F.C. Barnes and Rev. Janice Brown of the Red Budd Holy Church in Rocky Mount, NC. The two ministers harmonize like a hip version of the Consolers.

The overall groove of “Rough Side” gives the listener the feeling that the Reverends have not only made it past the rough side, but are sprinting happily down the easy side of the mountain en route to the land of milk and honey. Milk and honey, indeed: the duo’s Rough Side of the Mountain LP earned a gold record and stayed on the gospel charts at number one for more than a year.