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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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Most Recent Articles
Why blog? (Three years and counting)
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-----------July 31, 2006Word VP: Lost Album will release August 29 Good news. According to one of the top representatives at Word Music, The Lost Album by the Imperials will be out in a few more weeks. The project was first announced with a July release date, but that day came and went and then the product listing also disappered from Word's release schedule on their website.
I emailed Word today to find out what was up. I got a quick response from Tim Marshall. Marshall is the Senior Vice President of Artist Relations & Music Publishing at Word Label Group and Word Music Publishing. David, Thanks for your inquiring regarding the Imperials "The Lost Album." Due to some producer paperwork delays we had to move the street date to August 29th. The project is at manufacturing and will absolutely be in stores on the 29th. Thanks for your support of this project! Tim Marshall Concert Review: Dixie Echoes 7-30-06I took in a Dixie Echoes concert earlier this evening. They were coming off a late night sing in PA on Saturday that lasted until 2 AM or so. I think Stewart Varnado said they arrived in our neck of the woods at 11 AM on Sunday morning, so needless to say, they were fatigued. Those guys are pros, though, and they delivered an excellent performance. The Dixie Echoes get a good bit of variety out of a traditional two mic setup. Varnado played a rapid-fire piano solo and kept the crowd entertained with his alternating looks of woe and glee. Tracy Crouch is sounding confident at the bass position. The father/son Shelnuts on the middle vocal parts sing to their strengths and provide variety with their guitar work. Dallas Rogers is an excellent tenor who should be able to write his own ticket in a couple of years. All told, it's the best combination of Dixie Echoes I've heard in several years. They performed most of the songs on A New Chapter plus a number of standards like "Glory Road" and "Oh, What A Savior." The evening ended with an invitation and the guys sang "Just As I Am" out of the hymnal. It was a good overall mix of traditional vs. less familiar songs. The sound was at a comfortable volume that allowed the group to sing with dynamics, something that is too often overlooked with modern groups. More importantly, the Gospel message came through clearly, and they entertained the people as well. Labels: Concert Review July 24, 2006Telemarketer ComebackA telemarketer called today and when I answered with "Hello," she asked, "Is Mr. or Mrs. Murray in?" I said, "Well, I can only be one or the other." She hung up...gotta love it! Labels: Observations July 21, 2006AUDIO/PODCAST>> Report from Stamps-Baxter in NashvilleAshley Hawkins, an associate of ours at the radio station, has been attending the Stamps-Baxter School of Music in Nashville, TN this past week - and will continue through next week as well. She called in to report on what has happened thus far, lets us on in the rumors flying of who's gonna show up, and even to say she has met the Toronto Southern Gospel Blog Queen, Allison Lynn (whose guitar broke in two)!
link: Allison Lynn's blog.  July 18, 2006Behind The Music with Barbara Huffman I recently exchanged a few emails with Barbara Huffman, co-writer of "Mary For A While," which is found on the new Perrys CD, Come Thirsty. Read what I had to say in my review of the CD HERE. The CD is available for sale if you click HERE. You can also hear soundclips from Come Thirsty at that link. In one of her emails to me, Barbara explained what prompted the writing of "Mary For A While." "Mary For A While" was a song that I really felt would catch the ear of people, especially women, and when Libbi called about doing the song, it was evident that she had really, really felt the song. I think she did a great job. When she called me up, she said, "I'm Martha! That's me!" I had pitched the song to every woman who has ever held a microphone in this industry, it seems! But it was evident after talking with Libbi that she was the person to sing it--she nailed it, as far as how I heard it as the writer of the song. I was actually at my "day job" (LOL) when someone made the comment about how this scripture story might have been played out, if it were a modern-day scene. One of my co-workers said she could just imagine Martha standing in the doorway between the kitchen and living room, calling out to Jesus, "What is up with this? Lord, I'm in here working and Mary's not doing a thing. I want to be Mary for a while!" When she said that, I nearly gasped out loud! I was at my desk and I just kept smiling and nodding at her while she was talking as I slipped a pad and paper out of my desk and jotted the thought down. How sweet it is when ideas like that just sort of fall into my lap! On my first "official" songwriting session in Nashville a few years ago, I was blessed to be paired up with Sue C. Smith for one of my first co-writes in the Music City. She and I were discussing what to write, and I brought the "Mary For A While" idea to the table. She really liked the idea, and the song was written in probably under an hour, if I recall correctly. Sue is brilliant, by the way. I was just happy to be in the same room with her! Thanks to Barbara for sharing that story with me and giving me permission to pass it on to my readers. Labels: Interviews July 17, 2006Hold Your Horses Legacy Of Love: David Phelps Live has been delayed. Originally set to release on August 29, it's now slated for a September 12th date according to CBD.com. But hey, at least now I have a cover photo to show you.
The Lost Album by the Imperials is going to remain lost to Imperials fans for a little while longer. We were expecting this to hit shelves last week, but now it appears Word is going to sit on it until September 15th. Way to go, Word. You've had the masters stored away for thirty years and now, even with today's modern mastering technology, superior graphics design technology and a publicity staff who presumably knows how to spread the word, you can't meet a release date. Again...my source for the new release date is CBD.com. I've also verified that the original release dates have been deleted from Word's website. Word's published release dates currently stop with August. To be honest, I am a bit worried about the Imps CD. You can still look up the Phelps project on Word's website, but the Imps CD is nowhere to be found. Could they have lost it again?UPDATE (7-24-06): Word has their September and October titles listed on their website now, and as I feared, The Lost Album is still lost. July 16, 2006Concert Review: Kenny Bishop 7-15-06 I got to hear Kenny Bishop in concert last night. He had some sound system issues at first. (Running tracks from a laptop is NOT a good idea...too many variables vs. a simpler, dedicated music playing machine like a CD player or Mini-disc.) Fortunately, they got the kinks worked out after three or four songs. I believe he sang all the songs from his new CD, which I reviewed a couple of months ago. When sharing his testimony, Bishop took full responsibility for the demise of the Bishops in 2001 and told how God followed him even when he tried to run to a place he thought God wouldn't go. That should be an encouragement to us all. Sometimes, even those people who have lived a life of deliberate deception discover the mercy and grace of God. In Bishop's case, it took his world "crashing down" (his words) and a period of rebellion before he allowed God to totally have his way in his life. What I admire most is that he's man enough to go on stage night after night and explain his failures to yet another group of strangers. Now I clearly don't recommend testing God in the way Kenny Bishop did. Jesus told Thomas that people of faith will be blessed for believing without seeing the proof. Still, it was a real encouragement to hear Bishop bear witness to the faithfulness of God. Labels: Concert Review July 15, 2006CD Review: Doyle Lawson And Quicksilver (He Lives In Me) BUY THIS CD! RATING: 4 1/2 Stars Label: Horizon Producer: Doyle Lawson Website: www.doylelawson.com Song Titles: "He Lives In Me," "In His Presence," "I Am On My Journey Home," "Remember My Name In Your Prayers," "Help Me Lord," "'Til I See You Face To Face," "There's A Treasure In Heaven," "The End Of The Road," "Will You Meet Me Over Yonder," "We Shall Inherit," "Far Better Than This," and "When He Welcomes Me In" The standard for quality Bluegrass Gospel has been maintained by Doyle Lawson And Quicksilver for a number of years. We've always been able to count on this group to keep it traditional while veering just enough away from conventions to keep it interesting. That tradition continues with He Lives In Me. The title track is the first selection on the CD, featuring Jamie Dailey on the lead vocal. Dailey puts a slight syncopation on the chorus lyric that makes this track stand out. "In His Presence" slows the tempo down a bit, then "I Am On My Journey Home" quickens the pace with Terry Baucom's banjo leading off and fiddle and guitar solos after the choruses. "Remember My Name In Your Prayers" (written by Buford Abner) is in a slow waltz tempo, while "Help Me Lord" has a traditional up-tempo bluegrass feel. Lawson and Co. are also know for their a cappella singing. He Lives In Me has two a cappella cuts in "'Til I See You Face To Face" and a Jamie Dailey/Barry Scott original lyric titled "When He Welcomes Me In." (By the way, Scott isn't pictured on the back of the CD with the rest of the group, but he does sing and play bass on this project.) Another song I enjoyed on this CD is from the Stamps-Baxter tradition. Titled "Far Better Than This," the song is sung in four-part harmony with a very dry bass singer exposed on a few lines. He Lives In Me is for the devoted bluegrass fan, but it's also suitable for the listener who only wants to hear bluegrass if it has some variety. With an emphasis on vocals that blend as well as instrumentalists that can play at full speed when asked, He Lives In Me offers a nice range of expression within the traditional bluegrass framework. Labels: CD Review CD Review: Stewart Varnado et al (The Southern Gospel Players, Volume 2) RATING: 4 1/2 Stars Producer: Stewart Varnado Website: www.stewartvarnado.com Song Titles: "Just Over In The Gloryland," "Down By The Riverside," "Heaven Came Down," "I Feel Like Traveling On," "The Holy Hills," "One More Valley," "The Lighthouse," "When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder," "If That Isn't Love," "He Keeps Me Singing," "Just A Little While," and "The Unclouded Day" In 2004, Stewart Varnado assembled more than 30 of the top studio and touring musicians in Southern Gospel to record The Southern Gospel Players (a release I included in my Top Five for that year}. Two years later, he's done it again. Perhaps this will be an ongoing series. (The National Quartet Convention should take note of this pair of recordings. I think it's potential fodder for a showcase and/or live video recording in the future. I know I'd be willing to pay to see a group of musicians like this on the same stage.) The Southern Gospel Players, Volume 2 gets underway with "Just Over In The Gloryland." About 50% of the track is actually Mark O'Connor's "A Bowl Of Bula," which segues neatly into "Just Over In The Gloryland." David Johnson is responsible for most of this track, playing five instruments including an acoustic guitar solo to contrast Varnado's piano solos. A pounding bass guitar (Adam Borden) provides the foundation for "Down By The Riverside," with a harmonica solo by Randy Miller and some thrilling organ licks courtesy of Gordon Mote. "Heaven Came Down" has a Steve W. Mauldin arranged string orchestra for a backdrop with Mike Riddle providing an acoustic guitar solo in addition to Varnado's piano solos. "I Feel Like Traveling On" does indeed "travel on." Varnado (piano), Jeff Tolbert (fiddle), Lewis Phillips (banjo), Jeremy Brown (electric guitar), Steve Easter (steel guitar), Randy Miller (harmonica), Stephanie Brown (mandolin), and Mike Riddle (acoustic guitar) all take solo breaks for an exciting up-tempo track. The pace slows for "The Holy Hills," giving Steve Easter and Jeff Tolbert opportunities to shine on the steel guitar and fiddle respectively. Gordon Mote returns to the organ seat on "One More Valley," this time for a featured solo. He's joined by Greg Ritchie (drums), Scoot Shelnut (bass guitar), Randy Miller (harmonica), Joel Key (electric guitar), and of course, Varnado (piano). "The Lighthouse" is similar in style to "The Holy Hills" due to the tempo and Les Butler's rhythm guitar in the background. This track isn't particularly unique except for Steve Easter's diving steel guitar at the end that dips below the tonic and then slides back up. My favorite track on the CD is "When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder." Varnado has a slow piano introduction, then a Steve W. Mauldin arranged group of brass instruments kick in to give this cut a touch of a New Orleans jazz feel. Varnado comes back for another solo, followed by a blistering break by Roger Fortner (electric guitar), and then an even more blistering break by Jason Webb (piano). Dennis Murphy has a jungle rhythm moment with his toms before the brass kicks back in to close out the track. Other selections on The Southern Gospel Players, Volume 2 include "If That Isn't Love" with Jeff Easter playing harmonica and "He Keeps Me Singing" with Varnado's hero Roger Bennett on a piano solo. Bryan Sutton has the most impressive guitar solo of the entire CD on "Just A Little While." The CD closes with "The Unclouded Day," featuring Varnado on both piano and vibraphone, Jason Webb on both organ and Fender Rhodes, and Kelly Back on electric guitar. If you'll let your CD keep playing at the end of this track, you'll hear a bit of silence, then a very "special" song. I won't spoil the surprise other than to say the Cadillac Cowboys should be proud. Varnado has drawn from a variety of musical styles while maintaining a consistent thread of quality. Coming up with arrangements and coordinating a large group of players is no small task. If you enjoyed the first SG Players CD, you should like this one as well. There is one difference in that there are no vocals on this CD. (The first one included three vocal solos.) Overall, The Southern Gospel Players, Volume 2 is what you'd expect from the best players in this business...well worth your money. BUY VOLUME ONE! Labels: CD Review July 8, 2006CD Review: Kingsmen (Good Good God) RATING: 4 1/2 Stars Label: Horizon Producer: Roger Talley Vocal Production Assistant: Tim Surrett Website: www.kingsmenquartet.com Song Titles: "He's A Good, Good God," "God Can Save Anybody, Anywhere, Anytime," "Finished Indeed," "Jesus Knows My Name," "A Story That Shall Never Die," "I Found Mercy," "Longing To Go There," "Don't Look At The Water," and "To Count For Jesus" I was so impressed the first time I heard the first two tracks of Good Good God that I went so far as to say that the Kingsmen had the potential to top Brian Free/Assurance's It's So God for the best CD release of 2006. Well, I've heard the entire CD now, and it's not quite there, but very, very close. I'm still not completely sure if it's a genuine Jew's harp or a sound generated by a synthesizer I'm hearing droning on "God Can Save Anybody, Anywhere, Anytime," but whatever...it's a cool effect. (Producer Roger Talley is credited for "keyboards," while no one is credited for playing the Jew's harp, so maybe the answer is right there in the liner notes.) The novelty of this track should make it an immediate choice for a first radio single. Baritone Tony Peace does a great job selling the lyric, but it's the driving energy of the track and details like sudden stops when the group sings, "Mmm hmm," that really makes the song stand out. Let's talk about the rest of the CD...the opening "Good, Good God" is a more typical mid-tempo quartet track, punctuated by piano and guitar fills with an occasional wail from a harmonica. "Finished Indeed" allows lead singer Phillip Hughes to shine. Hughes ranges into low tenor territory with a slightly pinched nasal quality in his upper register. In this instance, I'm using the word "nasal" in a descriptive way...not derogatory. Hughes has a good handle on his tone quality and uses it to great effect. The tempo picks up again for "Jesus Knows My Name" with some interesting chord changes and fiddle fills. "A Story That Shall Never Die" is a solid tune with a good lyric. Jeremy Peace takes it up a notch for the last chorus and tag. Speaking of J. Peace, "I Found Mercy" provides him with an opportunity to take his time and interpret a lyric. It's the best I've heard him sing since he's been with the group. The tune provides a great contrast to the uptempo energy of most of the other selections. Next, a blues piano intro sets up T. Peace for a slow solo intro to "Longing To Go There." This gives way to a mid-tempo groove that seems to be gradually building to a climax over the course of the song, but it never quite delivers. A Junior Brown inspired guitar intro leads into another tune featuring T. Peace titled "Don't Look At The Water." The CD closes out on a contrasting note with the vocalists singing first in unison and then in smooth harmony over slow piano and strings. Ray Reese finally gets a solo on the second verse, his only solo on Good Good God...nice ending track. This CD is put together with the typical Kingsmen fan in mind, but a track like "God Can Save Anybody, Anywhere, Anytime" also has the potential to attract new fans. Drop "Longing To Go There" and replace it with another song or two of "God Can Save Anybody, Anywhere, Anytime" caliber, and we'd be talking about the best recording of the year. As it is, I rank it at number three behind BF&A's It's So God and the five-star Hymns by Mercy's Well. That ain't shabby. It's definitely the best Kingmen CD in several years, on par with 1999's Shelter. Labels: CD Review CD Review: Inspirations (I Know) BUY THIS CD RATING: 2 1/2 Stars Label: Horizon Records Producer: Jeff Collins Website: www.theinspirations.com Song Titles: "I've Never Gotten Over Gettin' Saved," "If You Only Knew," "I Know," "I Have Not Forgotten," "Shed For Even Me," "At His Feet," "When I Walk On Streets Of Gold," "Living Like There's No Yesterday," "Led By The Master's Hand," and "My Best Friend" I Know is another release in what has been a very successful run of recordings produced by Jeff Collins for the Inspirations. As with their live performances, instrumentation is relatively sparse. Although Collins plays the piano for the sessions, he uses a style that is similar to Martin Cook's. Mike Riddle (Primitives), Roger Fortner (McKameys) and David Johnson also participated in creating the musical tracks. An upbeat "I've Never Gotten Over Getting Saved" kicks off I Know, followed by a slower Mike Holcomb feature titled "If You Only Knew." Holcomb has a rich vocal tone and he makes the most of it...speaking some of his lines for added effect. The title track is up next, featuring a very compressed and pitch corrected Archie Watkins. I'm not sure why the CD was named after "I Know." It's the weakest cut on the recording. The next three tracks suffer from a combination of generic lyrics, very basic vocal delivery and predictable instrumentation. "At His Feet" throws in a minor chord or two you haven't heard on the recording previously, but Watkins manages to sound like he's straining vocally yet bored at the same time when singing this song. The last four cuts are much stronger, fortunately. Holcomb steps up with a rhythmic bass lead on the choruses of "When I Walk On Streets Of Gold" that's sure to be good for a couple of encores in concert. He bottoms out effortlessly on a low G on the next to last chorus. "Living Like There's No Yesterday" benefits from a fuller production on the tracks with Melton Campbell doing a great job on the vocal. "Led By The Master's Hand" also has a more aggressive instrumentation, particularly on the intro. Matt Dibler takes the lead on this Albert E. Brumley tune. The strongest track on the CD is the last selection featuring Jack Laws on an old classic titled "My Best Friend." Laws' baritone vocal mixes just the right amount of emotional fervor with a solid, rich tone quality that eludes most vocalists. In concert, Laws may have appeared to be the weak link in the Inspirations when he was the group's full-time baritone duing Campbell's absence a few years back, but his vocal quality is solid and comes across well on this CD. I would have positioned this song on the first half of I Know so listeners could hear it sooner. Many CDs on the market have more original songs, better production quality, and stronger singing than I Know. However, a trademark of the Inspirations has always been to keep the message clear and the delivery simple. In that respect, the quality of I Know is equal to what they've done in the past. Inspirations fans have always been charmed by the group's distinctive style, voting for them repeatedly into winning positions at the annual Singing News Fan Awards. This CD should satisfy all their existing fans and allow the group to continue to receive recognition. My job as a reviewer is to compare against the quality of the best CDs I've heard in Southern Gospel recently, however, so that explains the rating I've given this CD. If the entire CD had been as good as the last four tracks, we'd be looking at a 3 1/2 Star rating. Unfortunately, the quality is inconsistent from start to finish. (If you're an Inspirations fan, don't let the low rating stop you from buying the CD, because I'm sure you'll like it.) Labels: CD Review July 5, 2006First Impression: Kingsmen (Good Good God) I've only heard the first two tracks of the new Kingsmen CD Good Good God, but boy, did it grab my attention. If the remaining eight cuts are this good, I'm going to have to think long and hard about whether or not they've topped Brian Free and Assurance for the best CD of 2006. The first two selections are definitely at that level.
Track two, "God Can Save Anybody, Anywhere, Anytime" is an especially fun adventure. There's a droning July 1, 20062006 Singing News Fan Awards: Final BallotThe July issue of Singing News contains the final ballot for Fan Awards voting. See my first and second round votes HERE and HERE. Naturally, I'm voting for the same ones I voted for previously, but I have to make new choices for my votes that didn't advance.
Here are my votes for the final ballot: Female Singer: Susan Whisnant Male Singer: Arthur Rice Alto: Debra Talley Soprano: Charlotte Ritchie Album: Triumphant Quartet (All the really great choices are gone, unfortunately, but this one is very good.) Song: "He Saw It All" (Booth Brothers) Horizon Individual: Wes Hampton (Gaither Vocal Band) Horizon Group: Crystal River Tenor: Brian Free Lead: Arthur Rice Baritone: Mark Trammell Bass: Eric Bennett Band: Crabb Family Songwriter: Bill Gaither (Why not?) Traditional Quartet: Triumphant Quartet Mixed Quartet: Perrys Trio: Mark Trammell Trio Soloist: Mark Bishop Young Artist: Scott Inman Musician: Mike Hopper Pianist: Jeff Stice Artist Website: Ernie Haase and Signature Sound (Despite the stupid sub-domain URL, it's the most appealing and useful site of the Top 5. The Inspirations site looks absolutely horrid. The fact that it made it into the Top 5 proves many Singing News readers have no sense of taste. This award is more of a Favorite Artist award than a Favorite website award...which begs the question...why is there no overall award for Favorite Artist in the Singing News Fan Awards? By the way, regarding the other websites, Greater Vision's is pretty good. Legacy Five's is very green. Triumphant Quartet's is OK, but long overdue for a fresh look.) On the DJ categories, I decided to vote for the women nominees this round. With no female choices in Small Market and very ordinary male names in all five slots, I went with Jon Wishon there, since he spells his name without an "h." (If you think I'm awful for picking DJ nominees without regard for their talent, what other choice do I have? At least the people in Winston-Salem, NC can compare the two nominees from the same station and perhaps some of the smaller stations from NC that are in the same general area, but the vast majority of fans are like me in that they can hear none or one at best. It's silly to have DJ awards when the people voting can't compare, so I just make my choices at random. It would make more sense to have the artists, record labels, and comp promotions people vote on the DJ awards.) 
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