Elain Thomas – Songs in the Key of Jazz
Elain ThomasSongs in the Key of Jazz (2013)www.reverbnation.com/elainthomasBy Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel BlogDespite the well-worn argument about "devil's music" vs. "God's music," gospel and jazz and blues—and now rock, soul, R&B and pop—are intertwined, fruits from the same musical tree. Elain Thomas’ self-produced Songs in the Key of [...]
“I’m More Than a Conqueror” – Ajaay Swindell & Company
“I’m More Than a Conqueror”Ajaay Swindell & Companywww.ajaayswindell.comAs much affirmation as prayer, “I’m More Than a Conqueror” is a hard-hitting, rock-fueled contemporary gospel that encourages the listener to remain steadfast in belief. It is performed in the style of James Fortune & FIYA, with lead vocalist Ajaay Swindell interjecting spoken [...]
Shirlene Jackson – Wow
Shirlene JacksonWowCRNI (2011)Available at CD BabyBy Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel BlogWow is a self-produced five-track EP by Shirlene Jackson of New Edinburg, Arkansas. A capable gospel singer who proved her merit in 2005 by winning the Gospel Talent Showcase in Hot Springs, Arkansas, Jackson’s calling card is lofting [...]
TBGB Pick of the Week: June 16, 2014
Anointed By God“I Give You My All”One Voice Media (released March 18, 2014)Available on Amazon and iTunesFabulous gospel vocalist LeJuene Thompson leads this lovely ballad of unbridled discipleship. Anointed by God added Sharonda Walker-Mitchell, Carla Barnes, and Cachet Morganfield to make the background more sweetly treble-focused, and it works. This [...]
Ricky Dillard & New G – Amazing
Ricky Dillard & New G Amazing Light Records/eOne Entertainment (release date: June 10, 2014) www.rickydillard.net By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog Ricky Dillard was once the young turk on the gospel block. Beginning in the late 1980s, Dillard and the New Generation Chorale, a Chicago gospel choir [...]
Christon Gray – School of Roses
Christon Gray School of Roses Collision Records (release date: March 25, 2014) www.collision-records.com By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog Christon Gray’s School of Roses may be the most unusual, and the most cerebral, inspirational project you have ever heard. It’s less gospel in its typical structure and more [...]
‘Wanna Be Close” – J Kingdom
"Wanna Be Close" J Kingdom www.jkingdom.com In 2009, Pastor Michael J. Fisher (aka J Kingdom) led Compton, California's Voices of Destiny choir to the Verizon How Sweet the Sound competition, where the group took top honors as "the best church choir in America." J Kingdom puts as much of a [...]
Pastor David Wright & the N.Y. Fellowship Mass Choir – Next Generation
Pastor David Wright & the N.Y. Fellowship Mass ChoirNext GenerationGodfather Records (released February 2014)godfatherrecordsinc@gmail.comBy Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel BlogRecorded live at Brooklyn’s historic First Church of God in Christ, Pastor David Wright and the N.Y. Fellowship Mass Choir’s Next Generation does more to preserve the legacy of Bishop [...]
Minister Terrell Rogers & Men of Destiny – I’m Still Here
Minister Terrell Rogers & Men of DestinyI’m Still Here(released November, 2013)By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel BlogMinister Terrell Rogers & Men of Destiny of Blytheville, Arkansas, are young men with old souls. This is evident by the traditional bent of the quartet’s new self-produced CD, I’m Still Here.Rogers is the [...]
TBGB Pick of the Week: June 2, 2014
“Turning Away” Bryan Andrew Wilson EchoPark JDI (2014) www.echoparkjdi.com Maybe it’s me, but less can be more, especially in gospel music. Gospel started with only piano for accompaniment. Nine decades later, piano and voice (and organ, of course) are still the ideal combination for a Zion song. Proof is Bryan [...]
Mississippi Mass Choir – “God’s On Your Side”
“God's On Your Side” Mississippi Mass Choir feat. Le’Andria Johnson From the Malaco CD Declaration of Dependence (release date: June 3, 2014) www.malaco.com Put the Mississippi Mass Choir together with Le’Andria Johnson, and you have a potent combination of old school passion. Opening with a Kirk Franklin-esque call and response, [...]
“Word of God Speak” – Perfection
“Word of God Speak" Perfection 4 Winds Records (released October, 2013) www.malaco.com The modern gospel quartet Perfection covers MercyMe’s 2002 hit “Word of God Speak” with delicately smooth harmonies, soulful lead singing, and an arm-waving sing-a-long at the conclusion. On the album version, Perfection adds a snippet from Thomas Whitfield’s [...]
TBGB Pick of the Week: May 26, 2014
“Better”The ShowersA&P Records (2014)Nothing like being pushed to the edge of the fire, metaphorically speaking, to produce a good gospel song. “I’m tired of my life / I’m tired of the pain / I’m tired of my past / the guilt and the shame,” the Showers sing on “Better,” their [...]
Eloho – Arise
Eloho Arise (Released March 15, 2014) http://elohoefemuai.co.uk/ By Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel Blog From Nigeria and now living in Scotland, Eloho Jocelyn Efemuai, known simply as Eloho (it means “prosperity”), is a singer, worship pastor, and presently part of the worship team at The Junction Church in Aberdeen. [...]
Reel Brothers – The Reel Experience
Reel BrothersThe Reel ExperienceShekinah Praise Music Publishing (2011)http://www.reverbnation.com/reelbrothersBy Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel BlogOn some quartet projects today, the singers and musicians seem as if they are in a tug-of-war over who should be most prominently featured. On The Reel Experience, the Reel Brothers gospel quartet and their musicians [...]
TBGB Pick of the Week: May 19, 2014
“Only God Can”Danetra MooreTyscot Records (2014)www.tyscot.comDanetra Moore’s anthem “Only God” sings the praises of He who can do anything and everything, including move the mountains, calm the raging sea, and “take someone like me to use for His glory.”Introduced by a delicate acoustic piano, the song traverses through a robust [...]
Deitrick Haddon’s LXW (League of Xtraordinary Worshippers)
Deitrick Haddon’s LXW (League of Xtraordinary Worshippers)Tyscot Records (released April 22, 2014)www.tyscot.comBy Bob Marovich for The Black Gospel BlogDeitrick Haddon and Tyscot Records want to bring the choir back. To make manifest their pledge, they’ve released Deitrick Haddon’s LXW (League of Xtraordinary Worshippers). The album not only celebrates the youthful [...]
“I Survived” – Marquis Jelks
“I Survived”Marquis JelksAvailable on iTunesAccompanied only by warm, warbling B3 organ, Marquis Jelks delivers “I Survived” in the conversational singing style that goes back nearly as far as gospel music itself.A sung testimony in the mode of “I’m Still Here” and “I Can’t Complain,” “I Survived” has that church solo [...]
Visit Today : 296
This Month : 29399