Former Cleveland Singer issues new CD

A Light to this World – Gene Viale
3rd Generation Records 3GRCD-245-01
www.geneviale.net
2005

Forty-one years ago, Gene Viale, a handsome seventeen year-old San Franciscan of Puerto Rican-American descent, was invited to join Rev. James Cleveland’s talented Cleveland Singers. Viale traveled with the group when singing the gospel “together” was a dangerous thing, especially in the Jim Crow South. He sang tenor on the Cleveland Singers’ Savoy LP Heaven That Will Be Good Enough for Me and later recorded solo LPs for Checker Records (1968) and Camella Records (1976 & 1984), as well as a single for Atco (1972).

On his latest release, A Light to this World, Viale reprises the Cleveland Singers sound, as his vocal ensemble demonstrates the tight, treble harmonies, clear phrasing and vocal articulation associated with Rev. Cleveland, a musical disciplinarian if ever there was one. Meanwhile, Viale’s own singing style echoes Cleveland’s effective use of dramatic pauses while his tone ranges from light and gentle to a huskiness reminiscent of Brother Joe May. All in all, Viale’s project is a musical paean to his former mentor.

The best performed tracks are those written by pioneering composers such as Doris Akers (“Lead On”) and King James himself (“The Lord is Blessing Me Right Now”). For example, Viale really lets loose on Cleveland’s “What a Mighty God We Serve,” which sounds so much like a Cleveland Singers cut that one can almost imagine the music coming from a mid-60s Savoy LP. Charlene Moore’s piano work is equally retro-sounding and enjoyable.

A Light to this World will appeal to fans of traditional gospel and Southern gospel music, as well as those who remember and yearn for the simpler, melodic sound of mid-60s gospel ensemble singing.