Happy New Year!

I would like to wish all my readers a Happy New Year! Its my prayer that 2018 will be a great one for you and that you’ll experience great blessings in the days to come. 2017 has been quite busy for me and 2018 looks to be quite the same. This summer, my wife and I found out that we are going to be parents for the first time! Our little girl, Charlotte Faye Fuson, is due to arrive in just less than 8 weeks and we are extremely excited. I’ve also been singing with a group here in Michigan, The Royalheirs. We’ve had a busy year, recording a new project and traveling throughout the state and we’re looking forward to doing more of the same this year. Check out our website and Facebook page to find out more about us!

I’ve got quite a few things in the works here at the blog and I’m looking forward to posting some more Album Reviews shortly and from time to time, chiming in with more commentary pieces. No matter what I post here, my goal is to be honest, fair, and balanced. So stay tuned and I hope you enjoy the posts.

God Bless,

Brian

Kingdom Heirs Announce New Baritone Vocalist

The Kingdom Heirs have announced that Brian Alvey will be the groups new baritone. Alvey will begin his duties with the group immediately. The group has spent the last 3 weekends with three different men auditioning for the baritone position, Bryan Walker (Perrys), Loren Harris (Wilburns, Perrys), and Alvey.

In a press release today, group owner/bass guitarist Kreis French stated, “A lot of prayer and consideration went into our decision and we are thrilled to welcome Brian and his family, into our family.”  

French continued to say, “During our time on the road this winter, we had the privilege to audition close to 60 men who traveled many miles for this chance and we thank each of you so much. We feel that God has led us to the man He wants for us.” 

 To say I am skeptical of how good of a fit Alvey will be is an understatement. While there is no doubt that he is a talented singer, he is not known for his longevity. His longest tenure with one group is the 3 years he spent with Tribute Quartet from 2008-2011. He also spent a year with singing with his wife, Lauren Talley, and her family The Talleys. Alvey was last seen traveling in a short stint with The Skyline Boys. The Kingdom Heirs are one of the foremost quartets in Southern Gospel, and one of the main reasons why is because of the members longevity. The baritone position is so vital in a quartet because it is the glue that holds the blend together. The Kingdom Heirs cannot afford turnover in this position and it would be sad to see the baritone in this group become slot a revolving door. It is my sincere hope that history will not repeat itself with Alvey.

The group, who are celebrating their 30th Anniversary this year, is currently working on a brand new recording which is slated to release in October on the Crossroads label. Until then, the only way to hear Alvey with The Kingdom Heirs will be at Dollywood. We wish both Brian & the group nothing but the best.

Feel free to Chime in with your thoughts in our Comments section. 

NQC Review Part 1: My Thoughts On The LeConte Center

Tonight I sit in bed, unwinding from 2 great days at the National Quartet Convention in it’s new location in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. I attended both the Tuesday and Wednesday night concerts and enjoyed the music both nights thoroughly. I thought I would take a few moments to hit on a few key things that impressed me about my time here. Let me first start off with my thoughts on the new venue, the LeConte Center.

THE LECONTE CENTER

The City: It was absolutely beautiful during our time in Pigeon Forge, and you could not have asked for better weather. I could not have been happier with our time there and I enjoyed it thoroughly! Pigeon Forge was a great host city for NQC.

Seating: There are many mixed reviews from the fans on the new home of the NQC. Some people have been pleased with the new venue, while others have not been so impressed. Despite it’s appearance in pictures or videos, The LeConte Center is not a small venue, at all. The 10,000 seat auditorium served it’s patrons well for the most part. I sat 8 rows from the front and had a great view. The majority of comments that I have seen from people sitting near the back of their sections were not so positive, saying that they could not see the stage or their view was obstructed by those in front of them. I guess your satisfaction would depend upon where you were sitting. But for me personally, I was very happy with my seats both nights.

Sound: Everynight is a different experience, sometimes the sound was great. Sometimes it was horrible. But all in all, it was what you’ve come to expect at NQC. When it was good, it was good. But when it was bad, it was ridiculous. The Rick Webb Family’s set I would pick as the worst moment of my time at the convention. The sound was never right for them, and it fed back horribly for the first half of their performance of “Oh For A Thousand Tongues”.

Booth Space: Booth spaces were quite an adjustment this year, as the booths shifted from one location (Louisville) to being more spread out throughout the lobby of The LeConte Center. While most of the major groups tables lined up the hall that led around to the food court, some were set up in various locations. There was a conference room where a majority of groups were located, but there were some smaller rooms off to the side that had some booths as well. Not the best setup but I was eventually able to find all the groups I wanted.

Food Court: The new Food Court was what I expected, not a whole lot of options and way too much money. Not pleased with it at all.

Parking: This is the biggest issue. The parking is a joke. Before the doors opened both nights, the lot was 90% full. With nowhere to put people, folks were forced to either park across the street or at different locations. Then there was the tram issue. There were trams that picked up the group and took them back to their section of the parking lot. You would not believe the flat out rudeness and hostility of CHRISTIAN people, shoving and pushing folks out of the way to get a seat on the  tram. I witnessed police officers having to raise their voice to SENIOR CITIZENS, so they would stand on the sidewalk and patiently wait for their ride. And Thank God for the Pigeon Forge Police Department and their presence there. I cannot believe it, but we could of been on the brink of a riot because of impatient people who should know better than to act how they were.

Traffic: I recall hearing someone in a prominent group remarking , “I live there and I can tell you there will not be heavy traffic, its the off season.” Well, we all quickly figured out that was not the case. Once 3:30 hit traffic moved VERY slowly, and it was slow moving getting out of the Parking Lot.

CONCLUSION

I heard some complaints from folks who had attended Louisville for years. The main complaint is that the seating/views were not as good, especially from farther away. As I said, i was 8 rows from the stage so I cannot judge it, but I understand their point of view and frustration. But I will say that when I stood in the back of the hall and watched, the view was not horrible. Sometimes people don’t realize how good they had it until it’s gone. Louisville was the perfect setup (especially when you figure that all the showcases were on site) and as nice as Pigeon Forge was, I missed Freedom Hall. It’s a mixed bag, but you can’t have everything you want. Would you rather walk up a ton of stairs to get to an upper bowl seat where you can see everything, even if its farther away? Or would you rather not have to walk steps, but possibly sit farther back and be forced to watch the screens, which is what you would have been doing in the upper bowl of Louisville? There are plenty of kinks that need to be worked out and hopefully they will be in time for next years event.

However, if Christian people cannot voice their displeasure any better than I have witnessed this week, we are in trouble. And let me say if you did not attend this week, you have NO RIGHT WHATSOEVER to complain about the size of the LeConte Center. The venue is plenty big enough, and video and picture views can be deceiving. I believe there were some falsehoods that were told to many people when it came to topics, such as traffic.  I can’t tell you where this event will be two years from now, but whether its stays in Pigeon Forge or goes elsewhere I hope it will be in a better position than it is today.

 

 

 

What Is Taking So Long????

A few days ago, I read a wonderful article from singer/songwriter Daryl Williams, whose perspective is one that has been a complaint of many Southern Gospel fans for years, and one that will continue to grow in the age we live in. Why is it difficult for people to music when its released?

 

Here’s a scenario for you, one I’ve dealt with often, that is not unusual. You see a release date for the new project from your favorite artist advertised in the Singing News or mentioned on a blog. You go to your local Christian bookstore, and you don’t see it in the ever shrinking Southern Gospel music section. You ask the clerk if they can order it, and they tell you its not listed in their catalog, and they question your sanity. Then you try the online route to download the music. You go to iTunes, search the artist, yet the albums not listed. You hop on the artists website, and its not available in their online store for purchase yet. You may go to the website of the artists record company, and there’s no mention of the albums release because the website is not up to date. How does it make you feel?

 

Of the SG labels that I know of, Crossroads is the only one who comes to mind that you can download the music from directly, and in some cases before the release date. With iTunes & other digital media outlets, we face another issue. For those of us who love to read the album credits, find out the song information (lyrics, writer, musicians), we get nothing. One feature that Williams mentions in his article is the iTunes LP feature, which offers a download of the artwork, lyrics, and other features. And many other albums on iTunes, that are not part of the LP releases, also come with the artwork & liner notes. Crossroads at one time included the artwork with their downloads, but I have not seen them recently.

 

I personally think SG artists & companies need to spend their energy making sure they are interacting with their fans, and their music is available digitally. Now we know that illegal sharing is an still an issue, and it does hurt the artists when people are sharing music with people outside their household. But, I believe many artists are losing out by not making their music available for digital purchase. In areas that artists may not tour, they are making their music available for their fans, who may have to wait a long period of time before seeing their favorite artist again.

 

I’m curious to hear your take. What’s your opinion? How long have your waited to get your favorite artists new cd? What steps do you think SG artists & record companies could take to improve their services, and get their music to fans faster?

The Top 10 Greatest Quartets?

In the coming days, I will begin a new series of articles, ranking the Top 10 Greatest Quartets. This is a very exciting series for me personally, I’ve grown up listening to Gospel Music, and even though I’m 27, In my research for these articles I have come up with about 16 different quartets that I believe rank in the top groups of all time.

So if you were to rank the top 10 groups, or select the top group, who would it be? Be sure to check back with us later in the week, to see who makes the list!

Is This Record Really Worth $154.00??

One of my hobbies is scouring eBay for old Gospel lps, cassettes, or cd’s. Sometimes its finding a tape or cd thats out of print or replacing my worn out copy. Then sometimes its discovering an artist whose music I am just getting into.  Either which way, its a fun little hobby that I have, and I have gotten some cool treasures from it.

However, quite frequently you run into people who are taking advantage of these old recordings, and charging way too much money for them. Today I saw something rare, a Dumplin Valley Boys record featuring Gerald Wolfe. The asking price, $154.00.

Now theres no one who appreciates Gerald Wolfe more than me, I love the guy. But $154 for an lp of The Dumplin Valley Boys?? Which raises a question, what is the most you have paid for a vintage project, or what is the most you will pay?  Also, is there any recording that you feel is worth the price you paid for it?

My Top 10 Albums 2011 Part 2, 5 to 1

Hope everyone had a great weekend, mine was quite busy. On Friday, I posted Part 1 one of My Top 10 Albums of 2011. Here is Parts 2, counting down form #5 to #1!

5. Part Of The Family by the Collingsworth Family

The Collingsworth Family released another album, that many believe is their best to date, and there’s no denying that Part Of The Family is a very strong album. This family has the best harmony of any group, any genre that you will hear.  Not only that, but they, along with Producer Wayne Haun, are masters at picking the right songs & arrangements that fit them. The wow factor on this album is Phil Jr, whose voice has matured to a nice solid baritone. His performance on Tell The Mountain was one of the best songs of the year.

Every song on this cd is enjoyable, my favorites would be God’s Family, Jesus Is All I Need, I Pray, Praise You, The Resurrection Morn, That’s The Place I’m Longing You. My only complaints are the lack of uptempo material, and that theres no Phil Sr. solos till the last 3 songs of the album. But even considering that, this is a wonderful album, and one of the years best, hands down.

4. God Makes No Mistakes by the Inspirations

This album is a complete musical transformation of the Inspirations, thats been about 3 years in the making, since the retirement of longtime tenor & founding member Archie Watkins. The group has changed and its for the better. They now have one of the best vocal lineups in Gospel Music, with Jodi Hosterman at tenor, David Regan at lead, Jon Epley at baritone, and Mike Holcomb anchoring the group at bass.

This project is awesome top to bottom, every song is impressive. The title track is a departure for the group musically, but absolutely beautiful and one of the best songs of the year. Holcomb & Hosterman sing the verses with feeling, and the blend is amazing. More of my favorites are My Lord Is Taking Good Care Of Me, He Got Up, Thats Why We Came Here, Talk About Dying, Living In The Land Of Canaan. They even brought back a popular song from the 80’s, He Made A Way.

The cd closes with a beautiful song, I Choose The Lord. The music & lyrics are different than anything that is considered normal for the group, but they knock it out of the park. If you want a blessing, pick up this cd!

3. We Will Stand Our Ground by The Kingdom Heirs

This album was one of the most anticipated releases of the year, being the first project to feature new tenor, Jerry Martin, and it did not disappoint. This group knows what they’re doing when it comes to recording projects, and selecting the right songs.  Top to bottom, this a great project.

My favorites include Tell Me Why, Heaven Is My Goal, It’s Real, Just Preach Jesus, No Bones About It, and When Heaven’s Gates Swing Open Wide. Two highlights of this recording everyone should hear is are Where’s John? & We Will Stand Our Ground. Jeff Chapman’s performance on this project is just awesome. If you don’t think he is one of the top bass singers in our industry after listening to this project, you’re crazy!

2. Treasures by The Mark Trammell Quartet

It has become quite common practice for groups to cover Cathedrals songs or release tribute projects. Ernie Haase & Signature Sound, Greater Vision, and Legacy Five have all had a part in reviving some of the Cathedrals classics (Haase & Co. released a tribute album).  Treasures is a tribute album as well, and it is one of the best you will ever hear. Trammell wanted to stay as true to the songs as possible, and the result is phenominal.

My favorites include Echoes From The Burning Bush, That Day At Calvary, Statue Of Liberty, I Thirst, Bloodwashed Band, Wedding Music.  Another great feature are live versions of Gentle Shepherd & An Old Convention Song with Gerald Wolfe providing piano accompaniment. Trammell really did this album right, and it is a classic that everyone should own.

1. Let It Be Known by The Booth Brothers

When it came to my #1 choice, it was tough, but to me this was the best album of the year. This is one of the most versatile albums you will ever hear. The album opens with an acapella number, than an anthemic galloping song with celtic feel and orchestra, then it segues to a gentle acoustic song. The Booth Brothers are one of the most talented groups in Gospel Music. They can sing any style of music, and blow you away.

The album is awesome top to bottom, every song is a winner. My favorites are First John, See What A Morning, When You Bow At Jesus Feet, Masterpiece of Mercy, The Masters Table, & Since Jesus Came. One of the songs you want to make sure you don’t skip over is What About Now, a ballad written by Jim Brady, that took more than 2 years to complete. The song was basically Michael’s heart, written by another writer. This is a powerful, challenging song, that really needs to be heard.

Aside from their great singing, another fact to notice is Jim Brady’s growth as a songwriter. Jim’s not only written great songs for the Booths, he’s also had songs recorded by Legacy Five, Mark Trammell Quartet, Gold City, and others. If you haven’t heard Let It Be Know, do yourself a favor and pick it up.

I hope you’ve enjoyed the countdown, and please feel free to post your feedback and your favorites as well!

Top 10 Albums of 2011 10-6

I apologize for my tardiness in posting this. I hope everyone had a great Christmas and wonderful New Year’s Eve. As we look forward to all that 2012 holds, I wanted to take a moment and reflect on 2011, and feature my Top 10 Albums of the Year.

Let’s kick it off with Number 10.

10.  Amen by the Down East Boys         

Released in November, I have not spent as much time listening to this as much as the other albums on my list. Crossroads really hyped the release of Amen, stating the album had elements of The Cathedrals, Gold City, and The Kingsmen.  While I personally don’t hear any shades of those groups mentioned, I do believe this is the finest project the DEB have recorded. Tony Jarman has added alot to their sound, and they have a great group blend. The song selection is excellent, and there are 3 songs on this project(I Won’t Trade My Crown, When I Could Do Nothing, Suddenly One Morning)  that have great potential as singles.

Other Highlights of this Recording are, Every Word In The Word, Hold On, and Redemption Draweth Nigh.

 

9.  Songs From The Heart by Triumphant Quartet

This was a table project released by the group, with a cool concept in mind, 10 songs, 2 written by each group member. The project features some great moments, some songs I love are Be Of Good Cheer, Thank You Lord, Streets Of Gold, Let The Rapture Come My Way, and Almost Home.  However songs like Lets All Stand For America, and God Works All Things For Good seem to not be of the same quality, and missed the mark. Yet the cd is great, and one of the years best.

I also wanted to say, I believe Jeff Stice is the most underrated producer in Gospel Music. This guy is not only a great musician, but a musical genius himself. He is very valuable part of this group, and Triumphant would definitely not be the same without his arrangements.

8. Somebody’s Coming by Gold City

One of the most anticipated releases of the past 2 years, Somebody’s Coming was finally released in November. This project is definitely the best Gold City has produced in recent years. Jerry Pelfrey’s addition to the group was a big shot in the arm, giving the group a sound almost reminiscent of the 80’s lineup, with Ivan Parker.

Production wise, the project is excellent, Michael English & Danny Riley did a great job. Song selection was quite good, my personal favorites being, I Get Down, It Won’t Be Long, Showers of Blessings, Lord of Life, Leave That Burden, and I Have An Anchor. The only song that seems to be out of place on this project is Never Too Broken To Belong.

This album was a true return to form for Gold City, I hope this lineup stays together for many years to come.

7.  More Than Enough by The Whisnants

On this project, The Whisnants decided to employ the services of the best producer in Gospel Music, Lari Goss. Co-Produced by Goss, long time Whisnants Producer Mylon Hayes, and Jim Brady, More Than Enough continues the trend of great albums the Whisnants have made, while Goss puts his unmistakable touch on the project. The cd has a great balance, songs like It Is Jesus, Are You Ready, Weapon Of Prayer are Vintage Whisnants. The Goss treatment is given to He’s Living Today, I’ll Trust The Potter’s Hands (one of my favorite songs on the project), I Will Glory In The Cross, and The Ready Medley.

The song that really needs to be heard on this project is the Dianne Wilkinson penned, Burn The Boat. Susan’s delivery on this song is amazing, and the lyrics are very thought provoking.

6. Why Can’t We by The Isaacs

I have never really been a huge Isaacs fan, but Why Can’t We is an great album, and contains some of the best songwriting from sisters Sonya Isaacs Yeary and Becky Isaacs Bowman.  Why Can’t We is one of the most powerful songs I have heard in a long time, it really grabbed my attention when the group performed at NQC and made me want the new project.

I have also thoroughly enjoyed Waiting In The Water, God Still Has A Plan, I’m Gonna Love You Through It, Get On Board, and Hallelujah Turnpike.  I really like the project alot, but I really couldn’t squeeze it into my Top 5.

Check back tomorrow to see my Top 5!

What’s Up With The Kingsmen?

I don’t know about you, but I was a little surprised when lead vocalist Bryan Hutson left The Kingsmen to join the Soul’d Out Quartet.  I was even more surprised to find out this morning that tenor Harold Reed is leaving the group to join the Lefevre Quartet. How sad that the group with the Number 1 song in Southern Gospel Radio (for what its worth) has lost their Lead & Tenor within weeks of each other.

This leaves me to ask what is up with The Kingsmen? It looks like the Reece’s made a good hire in Bob Sellers to replace Hutson, only time will tell who will take Reed’s place. I remember the good old “3 chrods and a cloud of dust” days, with Big Jim Hamill. My personal favorite lineup, that I heard in person, was Garry Sheppard at Tenor, Parker Jonathan at Baritone, Tim Surrett at Lead, and Ray Reece at Bass. The Kingsmen have a rich legacy, yet in recent years they seemed to balance their traditional material with a more contemporary/progressive direction ( ala When God Ran, Missing People).

So heres a couple of questions. 1. What will become of their sound, 2. Are The Kingsmen still an elite group in SG? I look forward to your thoughts.

Its Just My Opinion: Lets All Do Digital Singles!!

Who remembers the day of vinyl single’s, featuring the hits of artists of the day. Back in the 80’s & 90’s cassette & cd singles took their place, and many rushed to their Sam Goody to purchase them, I may actually have a few of them left. Now in the iTunes age, the digital single has taken its place. If you’ve ever  pre-ordered an album on iTunes, in some instances a single from the album will automatically download.

Recently I noticed that two Southern Gospel artists have released digital singles, Gold City, with “Peter, James and John” and back in July, HisSong released a digital single of “Trust You In The Trial“.  Now I have no idea how successful these two groups were with this, I downloaded both myself. But this sure seems like a great way to promote new music and get people excited about a new album.  I don’t know about you, but if I hear a  group sing a new song  that I like, but they do not have it available for purchase, I’m less likely to purchase any music from them until the new cd comes out.

Now “Peter, James, and John” was released as a digital single on iTunes a week before Somebody’s Coming was made available digitally. But it was still a great idea. It gave fans a little something to hold them over till the album was released.  If Southern Gospel artists decide to promote their radio singles this way, which they should, release them 4-6  weeks before the albums release, and let the fans know about it. This way the public gets a taste of new music, and are more likely to get excited about the new project and purchase it.

Another great idea that I love is allowing the customer to download a song if they pre-order your album from your website, which I’ve seen from artists like Ernie Haase & Signature Sound and even Crawford Crossing. Maybe its the albums first single, a live cut, or bonus track, but its a cool idea to let the fans know you appreciate them.

Now I understand,  there are some Grandma’s & Grandpa’s out there, even non elderly non technically inclined folk too, that have no clue what iTunes or a blog  is, or how to download music, let alone they think “burning a cd” means setting one on fire. So what do you do? Print up a limited supply of cd singles, and sell them at the table for $5. All I’m saying is promote new music, and use technology to your advantage. Is their a cost to it, yes, but it lets fans know you’re excited about the music, and if you’re excited, they’ll get excited as well.

Hey, you may disagree, but after all, It’s Just My Opinion! Thanks for reading & have a great day!