TBGB Reviews…Geraldine and Donald Gay

Soulful Sounds
by Gospel Legends Geraldine and Donald Gay
The Sirens Records 2007
www.thesirensrecords.com

If you don’t know about the Gay Family, you don’t know gospel.

The Chicago-based Gays – Mildred, Evelyn, Geraldine, and Donald in particular – are products of the Church of God in Christ and have been on the frontline of gospel music for decades. The original Gay Sisters (Mildred, Geraldine and Evelyn) had a monster gospel hit in 1951 with “God Will Take Care of You.” They recorded enough singles for Savoy in 1951 to fill an album later in the decade. Evelyn even accompanied Mahalia Jackson on piano from time to time.

Far from being one-hit wonders, the Gays were sought after to participate on gospel programs in Chicago and throughout the country. They continued to record long after their Savoy sessions, delivering the goods for labels such as Decca, Chess, Rush, Faith, B & F, Davis, and Hummingbird. Donald “Preacher” grew up and joined the group in the late 1950s and 1960s, when it was known as the Gay Singers.

Since Evelyn and Mildred have passed on, Donald and Geraldine are the ones who represent the family on Soulful Sounds. And it isn’t the first time The Sirens has featured the brother and sister duo. The Gays made their The Sirens debut on In the Right Hands, a Chicago gospel keyboard project that also featured Jessy Dixon and Nash Shaffer, Jr. Clearly, their talent warranted an entire project.

What will strike you while listening to Soulful Sounds is how tenuous are the marketing monikers that slice and dice music into categories. For example, on the opening track, “This May Be the Last Time,” Geraldine plays as if she were with a jazz combo, and Donald sounds like blues shouters Joe Williams and Jimmy Rushing. In reality, what we hear on Soulful Sounds is gospel as a youngster in the 1930s and 1940s, a time when some criticized gospel musicians for “jazzing the hymns.” Listen to some of Sallie Martin’s late ’40s recordings for Capitol and you’ll hear the same kind of sophisticated jazz combo backing.

Also noteworthy is how Donald’s distinctive voice hasn’t changed with time. He sounds the same on this CD as he did on singles he and Evelyn recorded in the 1960s.

The song selection on Soulful Sounds is entirely old school, with classics such as “Eyes Have Not Seen,” “Tell The Angels,” “There is a Fountain,” and “If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again.” Pay special attention to the strutting “Sing On My Singer,” included here as a tribute to Mahalia Jackson. Donald’s vocals go with Geraldine’s barrelhouse piano style like bacon and eggs. It’s the finest cut on the CD.

The Gays are accompanied by Yosef Ben Israel, Gregory Gay (the next generation), Donald “Bozie” Hambric, Anderson Edwards, and Curtis Fondren, the latter who puts his Fellowship M.B. Church training to work by giving the Gays a pulsing backbeat when the music and the spirit dictate.

What a treat it is to hear great musicians from a legendary gospel family given The Sirens’ trademark crystal clear production. It’s as if you are sitting in a church, enjoying a Sunday afternoon musicale on Chicago’s south side.

Three and a Half of Four Stars