“I Love the Lord” – The Voices of Clouds

“I Love the Lord”
The Voices of Clouds
VOC Records
www.thevoicesofclouds.com

Legendary quartets never die: they change record labels or produce their own material, but they continue travelling the gospel highway, singing the glory down along the way.

Such is the case with Rev. Charlie Wells and the Voices of Clouds, which quartet record collectors will remember from the group’s output on Song Bird Records and Hoyt Sullivan’s Champ and HSE imprints. It was in the 1970s with Sullivan and HSE that the group, organized in 1954, finally attracted national attention, becoming one of the label’s top quartets.

Despite their success, the members eventually went their separate ways, but a few years ago, Joe Jones, Jr. was able to persuade his father, Joe Jones, Sr. and Rev. Wells to re-organize the group. Good move: the reconstituted Voices of Clouds went on to take home awards at conferences and appear on television.

“I Love the Lord,” led by Rev. Charlie Wells, is a drive-tempo quartet shouter that at three-plus minutes is reminiscent of the days when 45s didn’t allow much more than that. Yet Wells was just warming up when the performance comes to a conclusion, so one can only hope that an extended version of the song will be available soon.