SouthernGospelBlog.com

As often happens, there were a few more stories this past week then I could cover in my daily posts.

• Greater Vision’s most recent update includes a prayer request for the recovery of Lari Goss, producer of numerous classic Southern Gospel albums. Goss was diagnosed with a rare form of tracheal cancer and will be undergoing radiation and chemotherapy treatments. Goss has been working from his house via an internet connection with Greater Vision’s recording studio; they have finished vocals on their next recording. This recording will be Jacob Kitson’s first as tenor.
• Harper signed the Mike LeFevre Quartet to a booking deal. Adding this to a record agreement with one of the top labels (Canaan), MLQ is in a position to be at the top of Southern Gospel, if they produce material worthy of this opportunity.
• Canaan Records announced a series of podcasts to promote their summer releases–titles by Kim Hopper, the Mike LeFevre Quartet, and the Mike Bowling Group. (And totally off topic, it just occurred to me that each of the groups on the Canaan label have a principal member named Mike.)
• Prophets manager Ed Hill’s wife, Sharon Hill, is recovering from serious respiratory problems. As of the most recent word received, she still has pneumonia in her left lung, but has been released for home due to respiratory illnesses spreading through her hospital and fear that she might catch something there.
• I have confirmed that Imperials lead singer Shannon Smith has left the group to become a minister of music; former Mercy’s Mark lead singer Scott Allen is filling in. An official announcement will be forthcoming.

Rating: ***1/2

Producer: E.T. Everett.

Song List: I’ll Tell it Wherever I Go; Consider the Lilies; His Hand in Mine; In the Garden; Little is Much; ‘Tis So Sweet to Trust in Jesus; Jesus Loves Me; Rock of Ages; I’d Rather Have Jesus; Praise to the Lord.

Website: www.mattsministry.com

Available from: The artist

***

Before I get into the review itself, a word about my rating system. My involvement in the Southern Gospel Albums project has involved using the five-level star system there (ten-level if you count half-stars). I’ve decided to switch over to it on this blog to make interfacing with the SGA project a little easier.

Matt Throgmorton got introduced to Southern Gospel Music through singing with the Florida Melody Boys. He joined the group in 1996 and sang with them for several years. The group won Favorite Horizon Group in the 1998 Singing News Fan Awards and evidently disappeared shortly thereafter. Throgmorton now sings solo, as well as doing some trio dates with a regional Illinois-based trio named “One Voice.”

Throgmorton released his debut solo project recently. It consists of ten familiar Southern Gospel songs and hymns. Most of the songs are mid to slow tempo numbers, but the slow tracks are interspersed among the medium tempo tracks well enough that the project doesn’t really drag.

Highlights include strong renditions of “His Hand in Mine,” “I’d Rather Have Jesus,” and “His Hand in Mine.” Two highlights deserve special mention:

• “Little is Much” builds to the big ending that Signature Sound’s Ernie Haase and several Gaither Vocal Band tenors have been known to close the song with. Throgmorton builds it to a big finish without the assistance of massive production. He avoided the temptation (which sometimes even legends of Larry Ford’s caliber fall for) to key the song too high in the verses to have power left for the big ending.
• “Praise to the Lord,” the project’s closing song, is the project’s strongest track. It carves out new stylistic ground with an innovative, energetic arrangement. You can listen to a sound clip here.

Rarely do I come across a project by a soloist that I like enough to listen to repeatedly. This is one of those rare projects. It was a tossup whether I would rate it at 3 1/2 or 4. I selected 3 1/2,  but it is a strong 3 1/2; a project with original material this strong would easily get a 4-star or higher rating.

Southern Gospel solo projects, especially those of cover songs, often fill the gaps between groups in a singer’s career. My initial thought on hearing this project was that Throgmorton wouldn’t disappoint Greater Vision fans. (Of course, Jacob Kitson got that position…but that does leave an open spot in Tribute.) But while this project is good enough to convince me that Throgmorton would be a good find for a major group, it’s also good enough to stand on its own as an enjoyable collection of classics.

According to New Release Tuesday, the Martins will be releasing an album on New Haven Records (Gold City’s label) in September. The album’s title is to be determined, but the release date is at least tentatively set for September 23.

It is unclear whether this will be an album covering new ground, or a collection of familiar songs from the Martin’s catalog, but either way, this will be welcome news to Southern Gospel fans who miss the Martins’ days.

The Dove Brothers sent out an email update yesterday that they will be changing CD prices in their website store. Here’s the announcement:

Effective July 1, 2008, all of Dove Brothers CD’s will go up to $23.00 which includes shipping and handling fees. So to get any Dove Brothers CD at the regular $18.00 price, then purchase them before July 1, 2008.

DBQ

I double-checked the calendar, and no, it is not April 1. So I assume they are serious.

Could this be a move to encourage fans to purchase the digital copies of their CDs, still available for $9.90?

EDIT (5/29/08, 6:11 PM): It looks like my speculation about encouraging digital downloads just might be on target. The Dove Brothers sent out a second announcement, which includes these paragraphs:

Since we released our pricing changes.  Some were concerned about how it would effect merchandise pricing at concerts.  This pricing is for our online store ONLY!  Due to shipping costs as well as the handling charges, we are having to raise our prices to compensate for this.  This does NOT effect concert merchandise.  These are seperate departments for us.  Sorry if there was any confusion about this.

Now, we have just received word from our record company that we can now release our entire recording catalog through our digital downloads store.  That’s right!  Soon you will be able to purchase and download Life, Never The Same, Anything But Ordinary or down to the first recording done through Crossroads Music.  You can buy one song or purchase the whole album!  Mix and match songs that you want on your very own Dove Brothers recording.  All of your favorite songs downloadable for you to make your own Dove Brothers favorites CD!

Fellow SG blogger John Scheideman did his most recent post on the most significant albums in Southern Gospel history. In an email exchange afterwards, we touched on how nearly impossible “best” is to quantify. I’m not entirely certain how we got to this point, but we more or less dared one another to post a top 10 favorite Southern Gospel albums list in our respective blogs.

So, totally freeing myself from the pressure to make a “best-of” list that I can give quantifiable justification for, here are my personal favorites:

1. Cathedral Quartet - Sings Albert E. Brumley Classics (1976)
2. Cathedral Quartet - Easy on the Ears, Heavy on the Heart (1976)
3. Cathedral Quartet - Plain Ole Gospel (1975)
4. Cathedral Quartet - Radio Days (1996)
5. Perrys - Look No Further (2007)
6. Ernie Haase & Signature Sound - Stand By Me Live (2004)
7. Cathedral Quartet - Reunion (1995)
8. Cathedral Quartet - Statue of Liberty (1974)
9. Perrys - This is the Day (2003)
10. Kingsmen - Live at the University of Alabama (1983)

    My short list must have been at least 35 entries long. So I couldn’t stop at 10. Sorry, John, but here goes!

11. Cathedral Quartet - Keep on Singing (1979)
12. Cathedral Quartet - Something Special (1979)
13. Kingdom Heirs - Going On with the Song (2003)
14. Florida Boys - He Shall Return (1996)
15. Perrys - Come Thirsty (2006)
16. Greater Vision - Hymns of the Church (2006)
17. Cathedrals - A Little Bit of Everything (1970)
18. Florida Boys - Timeless (1987)
19. Inspirations - Golden Street Parade (1975)
20. Perrys - Hits & Hymns 1 (2001)

And, for whatever it’s worth, here are my “honorable mention” runners-up:

• Blackwood Brothers - In Concert (1960)
• Blue Ridge Quartet - By His Hand (1963)
• Brian Free & Assurance - Live in New York City (2004)
• Cathedral Quartet - You Ain’t Heard Nothing Yet (1979)
• Cathedral Quartet - Live in Atlanta (1983)
• Cathedral Quartet - Master Builder (1986)
• Cathedral Quartet - Travelin’ Live (1986)
• Cathedral Quartet - Symphony of Praise (1987)
• Cathedral Quartet - Farewell Celebration (1999)
• Gold City - Are You Ready (2000)
• Greater Vision - Live at First Baptist Atlanta (2002)
• Greater Vision - Quartets (2003)
• Happy Goodmans - Portrait of Excitement (1968)
• Hoppers - The Ride (2006)
• Kingsmen - Big & Live (1973)
• Kingsmen - Live Naturally (1981)
• Kingsmen - When God Ran (2007)
• Legacy Five - London (2003)
• Liberty Quartet - Timeless Treasured Hymns 2 (2007)
• Mark Trammell Trio - Once Upon a Cross (2007)
• Palmetto State Quartet - Knock Knock Knock (2004)
• Weatherfords - Finest in Gospel Singing (1959)

What are your top 10 (or 20) favorites?

Alexa is a website that ranks most websites by the amount of traffic they receive. The system is not fool-proof; it only tracks website activity for those individuals who have downloaded and installed its Alexa Toolbar. (For the record, I am not one of them.) So if more fans of one website have the toolbar than fans of another website, that website’s ranking will be disproportionately high.

Southern Gospel’s fans tend to be older, and perhaps less tech-savvy than those who frequent web design or graphic design websites. So Southern Gospel’s numbers might be a little lower than they ought to be. But with that understood, here are the current numbers for various well-known websites in our genre.

News Websites

• #489,653 - Singing News (this includes forums.singingnews.com traffic)
• #811,627 - SoGospelNews (including forums traffic)
• #2,708,111 - Musicscribe
• #2,936,024 - Southern Gospel Reporter
• #4,828,891 - Averyfineline
• #5,054,998 - SouthernGospelBlog.com
• #6,219,937 - Burke’s Brainwork
• #11,746,604 - Coomer Cove
• #18,849,662 - Southern Gospel Critique

Artist Websites

• #328,846 - Gaither.com
• #1,292,924 - Perrys
• #2,213,751 - Greater Vision
• #2,773,725 - Gold City
• #3,157,672 - Booth Brothers
• #3,452,951 - Triumphant Quartet
• #3,753,002 - Legacy Five
• #4,313,944 - Chuck Wagon Gang
• #4,357,996 - Dove Brothers
• #6,225,491 - Browns
• #6,628,871 - Cathedral Quartet
• #7,110,742 - Florida Boys
• #7,486,654 - Dixie Echoes
• #7,662,303 - Kingdom Heirs
• #14,997,029 - Liberty Quartet
• #16,080,719 - Mark Trammell Trio
• #17,015,256 - Collingsworth Family (which is a shame, with all the photos they post!)
• #18,052,421 - Melody Boys Quartet

These searches can be tricky; all blogspot blogs come up with a ranking of “9,” since that is the site’s overall ranking. Signature Sound’s website is part of MusicCityNetworks, and so ranked (in the 40,000s) counting the combined traffic from many different artists’ sites.

There have been enough news stories over the past few days that I have fallen a little behind.

• Crossroads Records signed Cross 4 Crowns to a distribution and radio promotion agreement. The group caught my attention when Dallas Rogers joined them. They appear to have a solid sound, and I look forward to hearing what they will be able to do on the national level. Rogers’ previous group, the Dixie Echoes, was with Crossroads for a while, but that was before Rogers’ stint with the group.
• Christianity Today posted the story behind Dottie Rambo’s classic song “He Looked Beyond My Fault.”
• Soul’d Out Quartet has added Michael Howard on keyboards, freeing up baritone/pianist Tanner Stahl to focus on baritone vocals.
• I took part in mega reviews of the Dove Brothers’ Life and Triumphant Quartet’s Intermission. For once I gave the table project (Intermission) the higher rating!

Several weeks ago, I reviewed the Diplomats Quartet’s most recent release, Live in West Virginia. This is a solo project from the most recognizable voice in the group, alto Rita Pearson. Pearson is often compared to Vestal Goodman; as I commented in the Diplomats review, Pearson’s voice captures the raw energy of Vestal Goodman’s younger days, while Libbi Stuffle of the Perrys–the other singer on the Southern Gospel scene most frequently compared to Goodman–captures more of the polish of Vestal in her later years.

Pearson’s energy and enthusiasm shine clearly on this project. It includes several classic Happy Goodmans numbers (”God Walks the Dark Hills,” “What Heaven Means to Me,” and “I Hold a Clear Title”) and several other Southern Gospel classics

The project’s highlights include “What Heaven Means to Me,” a laid-back rendition of “Where the Roses Never Fade,” and the song “Place Called Heaven.”

The rest of the group provides background vocals on the tracks, but does not have any solos. While the project covers little new ground stylistically or in song selection, it is a solid collection of songs performed well by Pearson and the Diplomats.

Available from: The Diplomats.

Rating: Enjoyable. (Updated to 5-star system: 3.5 stars)

Especially since I was reminded of singer/songwriter Steven Curtis Chapman’s Southern Gospel ties, I feel this post is hardy inappropriate here.

His daughters* inspired him to write his most recent radio single, “Cinderella.” It can be heard on his MySpace page here. Since I don’t listen to CCM radio, I hadn’t heard the song until this afternoon. It was written before Wednesday’s tragedy, but the lyrics are poignant now.

She spins and she sways to whatever song plays
Without a care in the world
And I’m sitting here wearing the weight of the world on my shoulders

It’s been a long a day and there’s still work to do
She’s pulling at me, saying, “Dad, I need you,
“There’s a ball at the castle and I need to practice my dancing–
“Oh please, Daddy please…”

(Chorus)
So I dance with Cinderella
While she is here in my arms
Cause I know something the prince never knew
… all too soon, the clock will strike midnight
And she’ll be gone

How true.

* [Edit] Here’s the story.

Seven of Southern Gospel’s most prominent bloggers announce the joint effort, SouthernGospelAlbums.com. This website features joint reviews from various combinations of bloggers, as well as summaries and links to the bloggers’ reviews on their individual sites. The site is intended as a primary resource for fans of Southern Gospel music to find reviews of their favorite artists’ recording projects. Participating bloggers are Wes Burke (Burke’s Brainwork), Brandon Coomer (Coomer Cove), David Bruce Murray (Musicscribe), Daniel J. Mount (Southern Gospel Blog), Adam Edwards (Southern Gospel Critique), Kyle Boreing (Southern Gospel View), and Aaron Swain (Swain’s Musings).

For more information on the site, check out www.southerngospelalbums.com.

For more information on review submissions, send an email to contact@southerngospelalbums.com.