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I just added a new feature to this blog. If you scroll down to the (presently) last one of the boxes in the right-hand column, you will see the most recent comments and pingbacks. (Pingbacks occur when someone links to this blog from another blog.)

It can get tedious to check each post individually to see if there are new comments. Enjoy the new feature and comment away!

As I mentioned earlier this week, Gold City launched a new website. I returned for a second visit this week. A few questions present themselves. Why do they only post a discography back through 1984?

They have one of the most professional websites in Southern Gospel. With that in mind, why in the world would they choose for the header a picture where the tenor’s eyes are nearly closed and the lead singer (who is also the most senior member) is standing so far back that he appears to be in the background, fading off into the distance?

Let’s turn our attention to another website. Legacy Five’s website is finally back up, but only if you know the password. It is possible to work around this if you close the password box and click on a page quickly before the page opens back up, but even then it’s a major irritation. Some of the pages are up (i.e., schedule, which was what I wanted to check, and photos), but others (i.e., store, which I also wanted to check out) do not work.

The Mark Trammell Trio has posted more NQC photos of appearances by their group and by the Perrys (with Nick Trammell). Eric Phillips’ impressive ability to hit super-high notes without the slightest appearance of strain is demonstrated in this picture. (One does wonder why he would have brought a cell phone on the stage with him…it is improbable that he would have answered it in the middle of an appearance, and it is equally improbable he would have brought it on just because he looks better wearing one!)

Finally, The Perrys are preparing a new site design, but they do have a new welcome screen while that is in the works.

Legacy Five recently released Live in Music City, a project billed as their first live release. This isn’t technically accurate, since they have released several live videos, as well as one previous live CD, Live at the Palace (with Greater Vision). But this is their first live project on which they introduce new songs.

Legacy Five takes the stage with “Strike Up the Band,” an up-tempo Dianne Wilkinson tune featuring Scott Fowler (and a brief piano solo from Roger Bennett).

No sooner do the notes of this song fade out than the introduction to the second song, “The Blood Covers it All.” The song, which features Scott Howard on the first verse and Scott Fowler on the second, is one whose appeal might not be evident on the first time you listen through the project. Its placement could leave a first impression of the song as a song meant to calm the audience down immediately after the up-tempo opener. But taking the song out of the context of the concert lets it shine as one of the nicest ballads Legacy Five has recorded.

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Gold City launched a new website this week. It is designed by Music City Networks; their previous design had been by Aaron Crisler. Music City Networks, which also designed Signature Sound’s website, did a superb job with the Gold City project. Stop by and take a look.

Last month, I mentioned Adam Crabb and Terah Penhollow’s plan to start a new group. Plans are evidently progressing, as they announced on their website today that they will be seeking a lead singer. The announcement states in part:

Adam and Terah will be launching their new group in August 2007 and are looking for someone who can sing both lead and harmony. They are praying that God will send the right person, and that person could be you! If you are interested, please send a bio/resume, letter of interest, photo and demo to crabbdemo@yahoo.com.

There was some commotion a few years ago when Singing News made many sections of their website subscriber-only. They announced yesterday that they are opening all of their website to non-subscribers on a temporary basis. This could be a temporary move to boost subscribership, or it could signify the new Singing News management testing the waters for future changes in the concept behind their Internet presence.

The Ball Brothers, who toured with Signature Sound this summer, officially launched their message board this evening.

Stop by and check it out; it’s really quite fun to browse. All the members of the group active in answering fans’ questions. Daniel Ball is the most active of the brothers, followed by Andrew and Josh.  Stephen drops in every few days. They don’t just limit their activity to answering direct questions–they participate in the games, the prayer requests, and the general discussion.

But that isn’t all. There is an added bonus: SarahJ89, an active board member, is one of the Ball Brothers’ younger sisters. She said she likes coming on the board to see what people say about her big brothers. She even has a few stories she could tell on them if you ask nicely enough!

Sometimes I think Averyfineline revels in his reputation in the Southern Gospel blogosphere. He’s not afraid to say or print just about anything unless it could get him into legal trouble. But every now and then, he’ll post something that soars above the daily rhetoric of scandals and flat notes. Yesterday’s post was just that.

He has made no secret of the fact that he does not like Roger Bennett’s voice. I have been quietly amused by his opinion, because I think Bennett’s voice was one of the best the Cathedrals ever had, as well as the best voice in Legacy Five. (Probably at least half the reason I purchase Legacy Five albums is to hear Roger Bennett’s vocal solos.)

In his post, he talks about getting a Cathedrals concert poster autographed at a concert shortly after Roger Bennett had temporarily come off the road due to cancer. After mentioning that he has yet to get Bennett’s autograph on the poster, he transitions into discussing the need to lay aside the critical approach of looking at Southern Gospel and simply appreciate the human courage and endurance behind the songs. Then he returns to the concert poster motif in his closing words:

…faith still wears a deeply human face in ordinary life. We may understand it better by and by, but it sure doesn’t hurt that there’s a song to sing or play or listen to or hum in the darkness of the soul’s long night to help us cope in the meantime. I think I’ll go hang up that poster now. And hope for another day, another concert, another chance to get that last signature.

If there was a Pulitzer Price for “Best Southern Gospel Post of the Year,” this post would get my vote.

The Dove Brothers posted audio from their new project, Never the Same, yesterday. It seems like an excellent project, but appears to feature David Hester much less than their other recent project, Shout it Out.

That does not come as any surprise. A project of new songs rarely features the bass singer as much as a CD of classic songs. On a project of classic songs, the bass is featured on the verses or chorus for somewhere near half of the songs. But on a project of new songs, the bass singer is usually fortunate to get one or two solos (unless, of course, he happens to be the group manager).

These are just simple facts that most fans of Southern Gospel know. But one thing that’s not as often addressed is why. Why do the projects of classic songs feature the bass singer more often than the projects of new songs?

Perhaps it is because the classic songs became classics because they feature the bass, and that’s what the fans like to hear.

There has been speculation on the Singing News message board over which song Brian Free & Assurance would select next to release to radio. Some thought BF&A would release “Jesus Will Pick You Up,” a song in the same vein as “Long as I Got King Jesus.”

Their e-letter today, though, mentioned that they chose instead to go with a song more in the vein of their biggest hit (”For God So Loved”), picking “It’s All About the Blood” as their next radio song.