JGM Pick of the Week: December 30, 2014
“Can You Feel His Glory” foreverJONES From Prayer Tools, Vol. 1 (released November 2014) www.foreverjones.com Turns out that the shortest song on the two-and-a-half-hour Prayer Tools Vol. 1 by foreverJONES is the best. With only piano and organ as accompaniment, Djeniele evokes the majesty of yesterday's church soloists with her [...]
J Moss – Grown Folks Gospel
J Moss Grown Folks Gospel PAJAM (released November 25, 2014) www.pajam-music.com/jmoss.html By Bob Marovich The next generation of Detroit's Clark-Moss gospel dynasty is growing up. For J Moss, son of Bill and Essie Moss, that doesn't mean he's embracing his parents' traditional gospel style. His music is just settling down, [...]
Whosoever South – Come On In
Whosoever South Come On In Elevate Entertainment (released October 7, 2014) www.whosoeversouth.com By Bob Marovich Whosoever South is one of the most innovative Christian groups of the decade. The trio’s self-proclaimed “country crunk” style blends elements of rootsy Americana and country with deep groove bass, gospel, and hip hop. Think [...]
JGM Pick of the Week: December 24, 2014
“Lord I Just Wanna Thank You” Pastor Tyrone Jefferson From Taking It Back to Church (2013) www.cdbaby.com/cd/pastortyronejefferson The title of Pastor Tyrone Jefferson’s album is Taking It Back to Church, and that is exactly what he does on the high-spirited “Lord I Just Wanna Thank You.” Jefferson puts his preacher’s [...]
Eddie James – Shift
Eddie James Shift Fresh Wine Records (2012) www.ejworship.org By Bob Marovich Back in the day, recorded black sacred music was restricted by its medium. The brittle 78 rpm and its cooler cousin, the 45 rpm record, gave singers and musicians about four minutes per side to get their message across. [...]
JGM Christmas Pick of the Week: December 22, 2014
“Tis the Season for Miracles” Tarralyn Ramsey Nylarrat/Heartstrings Music (2014) www.tarralynramsey.com Tarralyn Ramsey translates the wonderment of Christmas into a word of encouragement to people who don’t need presents under the tree—they need real miracles in their lives. Embellishing the melodramatic melody with melismatic runs from the Whitney Houston toolkit, Ramsey reminds the downhearted [...]
Blind Boys of Alabama & Taj Mahal – Talkin’ Christmas
Blind Boys of Alabama & Taj Mahal Talkin’ Christmas Sony Masterworks (2014) www.sonymasterworks.com By Bob Marovich Like the Chieftains, the Blind Boys of Alabama have been embraced by some of today’s hippest rock and roots musicians. On Talkin' Christmas, the gospel quartet that is now an American icon celebrates the holidays [...]
Marcel Anderson – Still Living
Marcel Anderson Still Living Marcel Anderson Music (2014) www.marcelanderson.com By Bob Marovich You’ve heard the saying, “I don’t look like what I’ve been through.” Marcel Anderson doesn’t look or sound like what he’s been through. The title of Anderson’s CD is not hyperbole. His story, starkly presented in the accompanying [...]
“Flow” – Jonathan Valencia
“Flow” Jonathan Valencia From the CD Kingdom Bound www.jonathanvalenciamusic.com This teenaged Rhythm of Gospel Award winning and Stellar nominated artist is better known for his Christian rap, “Kingdom Bound,” but he also sings. On “Flow,” a simple, atmospheric song with techno overtones, Jonathan calls on the Holy Spirit to pour into [...]
JGM Pick of the Week: December 14, 2014
“Gonna Tell the World About You” Eddie Ruth Bradford From the CD Blessed to Be a Blessing www.eddieruthbradfordmusic.com Eddie Ruth Bradford’s latest single is deliciously old-school, complete with whirring organ, funky backbeat, and multi-tracked quartet of voices on the chorus. By referencing Bible stories that demonstrate Jesus’s ability to give eyesight to [...]
“Amazing” – Livre’
"Amazing" Livre' Glory2Glory Records/PRODIGY Entertainment Group www.livremusic.com Taking their name from the Portugese word for "free," Livre' (pronounced Liv-Ray) is a young and talented vocal harmony quintet from the Bronx. JGM first learned of them in 2012 upon the release of their single, "I Will Be Alright." The song earned [...]
Yancy – Pequena Fiesta de Alabanza
Yancy y Amigos Pequena Fiesta de Alabanza (Praise Party) Elevate Entertainment (2014) www.yancynotnancy.com By Bob Marovich Christian singer-songwriter Yancy began writing kid-friendly songs for the littlest congregants at Church on the Move in Tulsa, Oklahoma. Her “Little Praise Party” series of compact disc and DVD song collections caught on so [...]
“Blessing Me” – J. Nichole
“Blessing Me” J. Nichole From No More Running (released October 2014) www.myjnicholesong.com Juliet Nichole Jones, aka J. Nichole, has a huge, soulful voice that is equally suited for sacred and secular music. Her original aspiration was to sing pop, but when she rededicated herself to the church, gospel music won [...]
When I Reach That Heavenly Shore: Unearthly Black Gospel 1926-1936
Various Artists When I Reach That Heavenly Shore: Unearthly Black Gospel 1926-1936 Tompkins Square (released December 9, 2014) www.tompkinssquare.com By Bob Marovich Tompkins Square continues its stretch of quality black sacred music reissues with the three-CD When I Reach That Heavenly Shore: Unearthly Black Gospel 1926-1936. Using 1926 as a [...]
JGM Pick of the Week: December 8, 2014
“He’ll Make It Alright” Pastor Antoine Hutchins featuring the Christian Unity Choir From the CD He Still Loves Me (2014) www.cdbaby.com/cd/pastorantoinehutchins No doubt the members of Christian Unity Baptist Church in Waldorf, Maryland, shout whenever Pastor Antoine Hutchins and the Christian Unity Choir break out the churchy Tommies hit, “He’ll [...]
Book Review: Nothing But Love in God’s Water
Nothing But Love in God’s Water: Volume 1: Black Sacred Music from the Civil War to the Civil Rights Movement Robert Darden Penn State University Press (224 pages) By Bob Marovich “A singing army is a winning army, and a singing labor movement cannot be defeated.” So proclaimed labor leader [...]
“Mary Did You Know” – The Bishops Quartet
“Mary Did You Know” The Bishops Quartet From I Know What Prayer Can Do (2014) www.thebishopsquartet.net Mark Lowry and Buddy Greene’s “Mary Did You Know” is one of the two or three Christmas songs to come out in recent times with real "legs," or longevity. The Bishops Quartet gives it [...]
JGM Pick of the Week: December 3, 2014
“Do Life Big” Jamie Grace From the Gotee album Ready to Fly (2014) www.gotee.com Isn’t it a pity and a shame how many in the gospel music community ignored Jamie Grace’s “Beautiful Day,” despite its longevity on the Billboard charts? It reminds me of how songstress Heather Headley won a [...]
Visit Today : 1056
This Month : 28568