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Dave's Top Eight
1. Jerry Reed...Revisited by Darrell Toney (reviewed 6/07) (5 Stars) Click title to purchase at CBD.com...click artist name to read Dave's Review. A CD will automatically fall out of the Top Eight after twelve months if no CD surpasses it before then.
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-----------October 2, 2006CD Review: Gold City (Revival) RATING: 4 1/2 Stars Label: New Haven Records Producers: Michael Sykes, Michael English, Daniel Riley, Ken Harding, and Dave Lehman Website: www.goldcityqt.com Song Titles: "Ain't That What It's All About," "Preach The Word," "God's Still God," "Look Who Just Checked In," "Truth Is Marching On," "That's What I'm Talking About," "Teach Me Lord To Wait," "Not Anymore," "Mercy Came Running," and "I'm Rich" Six tracks on Gold City's Revival feature a power blend of vocals with Country influenced tracks of a compatible flair. "Ain't That What It's All About," "God's Still God," "Look Who Just Checked In," "That's What I'm Talking About," "Not Anymore," and "I'm Rich" are all excellent, giving group members individual opportunities to be featured while maintaining a consistent musical focus. If you consider the Oak Ridge Boys' sound from the last five years and imagine the pitch shifted up half an octave, you'll get a pretty good idea of the prevailing Gold City Revival sound. Of these, the standouts are the remakes "Ain't That What It's All About," originally recorded by the Hinsons, and "I'm Rich," which has been re-interpreted over the years by a number of artists ranging from the Nelons to Jessy Dixon. "Look Who Just Checked In" also deserves a mention. It's a modern Christmas song written by Stephen Hill and Daryl Williams that seems tailor made for a male quartet (unlike many Christmas arrangements adapted for male quartets). Gold City has helped introduce Christmas songs of this type before...you may recall "That Little Baby." The other Revival tracks go in contrasting musical directions. A pop/inspo production approach complimented by one of Steve Mauldin's string orchestrations provides the backdrop for "Preach The Word," a big ballad for tenor Steve Ladd. "Truth Is Marching On" is the second power ballad on Revival, featuring Daniel Riley. This song starts meekly with a light acoustic guitar intro, adds keys/strings followed by a lightly sung first verse, a strong chorus, a bigger verse/chorus, and ending with a huge bridge/chorus. "Teach Me Lord To Wait" steps back in time with a traditional string orchestra feel and features Aaron McCune. Finally, the Revival arrangment of "Mercy Came Running" is pretty much the same as the original version by Phillips, Craig, and Dean. Gold City's version is set apart by the addition of a bass singer in the mix. Songs like "Preach The Word" and "Truth Is Marching On" are as solid as you'll hear anywhere, even though the musical approach differs from the majority of songs on Revival. "Teach Me Lord To Wait" is the only selection that feels somewhat out of place. As a standalone track, it's very good, but I think it would have been better suited for McCune if it appeared on a Palmetto State recording. It's in the style of a "White Christmas" type soundtrack from a Bing Crosby Christmas special and McCune's choppy vocal interpretation runs counter to the smooth flowing accompaniment. When I saw Daniel Riley a few weeks ago, he told me he wanted Revival to introduce a new direction for Gold City, but not abandon the expectations of existing fans in the process. I believe he's accomplished that goal. Gold City fans will like Revival if they possess a reasonable tolerance for change, variety, and more specifically if this "Gold City goes Country" approach suits their personal tastes. It's worth noting that while Revival may contrast recordings like Walk The Talk and First Class, it's really not so different from Heaven. Labels: CD Review posted by David Bruce Murray @ 4:35:00 PM
 
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