“People Get Ready” for Toledo’s First Creation

Gospel singer Jerry Boose took time from a busy schedule, including pastoring a Toledo, Ohio church and serving as a fireman, to tell TBGB about his gospel group, First Creation.

Boose organized First Creation in Toledo during the mid-1980s. “I had been singing around Toledo all my life, in different choirs and ensembles,” Boose explained, “but I had a desire to start a male contemporary group. That was when the Winans and Commissioned, some of the top groups of the day, were singing a different style of gospel music. I pulled together four guys I knew and had sung with over the years, and together we formed a group called Deliverance. Four years later, we changed the name from Deliverance to First Creation.”

From the outset, First Creation’s target audience was young people, “to inspire them” Boose said, “through the contemporary sound.”

First Creation made its first recording in 1989. Will You Take a Stand was released on the Philadelphia-based imprint Pure Gospel Sound. The title track secured radio play through a strong national distribution and marketing program. Today, First Creation has four CDs to its credit.

The latest release, Nobody Like Jesus, was recorded in May 2008 and earned the group a nomination on the first ballot of the 2008 Stellars for best contemporary group. The project’s singles are the traditional-flavored “Jesus, You’re My Everything” and a funky arrangement of the Impressions’ classic hit, “People Get Ready.”

“A lot of radio stations focused first on ‘Jesus You’re My Everything,’” Boose said, “but ‘People Get Ready’ is the song people enjoy most when we sing live. That’s why we are now promoting this particular single to radio.”

Like many singing groups, sacred and secular, First Creation has gone through its share of personnel changes over the years. “The cover of each CD has a different face on it,” Boose said. “The new face on Nobody Like Jesus is William (Redd) Crooks. He joined just before we entered the studio to record.” The current lineup consists of Boose, Crooks, Jesse Coleman and Ron Hogue.

While First Creation’s style remains contemporary, Boose acknowledges that the group’s sound has changed a little over the years, due mainly to the musical influences of its chief writers. “Minister Terry Cook wrote the music for our first CD and the project just before Nobody Like Jesus,” Boose explained. “He was influenced by Commissioned, so our earlier CDs sounded more like Commissioned and the Winans.” Crooks’s writing on Nobody Like Jesus adds a quartet feel to the mix. “William grew up in Chicago, where his mother sang in a gospel quartet,” Boose noted. “She has been one of his influences.”

That being said, Boose adds, “First Creation maintains a contemporary style and flow, even though we have been characterized as quartet. Yet I believe the CD has something for everyone, including a little praise and worship. Praise and worship has had a strong influence on all of us.”

First Creation continues to sing and promote its ministry. The group just returned from performances in Michigan and Indianapolis, Indiana. Evangelist Golden Lewis is organizing the group’s singing tour of Florida in November.

Boose reflected on First Creation’s main message. “We are in a time when people are seeing different things happen in our country,” he said. “We’ve experienced recession, war, and we felt that people were giving up hope and didn’t know where to turn. We want our message to be that no matter what happens, no matter how dim your life looks or what your situation might be, there’s nobody like Jesus. He’s the one who can pull us out of every situation.

“Even when you feel like there is no hope, He’s the one who can give you hope again. People get ready. It’s not the end.”

Learn more about First Creation at: www.myspace.com/firstcreationmusic.