Dave's Top Eight

1. Jerry Reed...Revisited by Darrell Toney (reviewed 6/07) (5 Stars)
2. Sounds Like Sunday by Janet Paschal (reviewed 5/07) (5 Stars)
3. True To The Call by Kingdom Heirs (reviewed 3/07) (4 1/2 Stars)
4. Revival by Gold City (reviewed 10/06) (4 1/2 Stars)
5. Get Away Jordan by Ernie Haase & Signature Sound (reviewed 2/07) (4 1/2 Stars)
6. Breakin' Chains by Three Bridges (reviewed 5/07) (4 1/2 Stars)
7. Big Sky by The Isaacs (reviewed 4/07)
8. Skywriting by Mercy's Well (reviewed 7/07)

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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Monday, August 06, 2007

Tim Surrett and Balsam Range

This past weekend when the Carolina Quartet was in Burnsville, NC performing and providing sound for all the other performers at the Mount Mitchell Crafts Fair, someone mentioned that Tim Surrett is playing bluegrass again. I did a little digging just now and found out the group Tim has joined is called Balsam Range. They have a website. They've already shared the stage with the likes of Rhonda Vincent and Tony Rice. Not shabby!

There's some audio clips of the band to be heard. (Click here, here, here, here, and then here.) This stuff was recorded in Rutherford County (where I live) at the studios of radio station, WNCW. The website also has some NTG video. (NTG=not too good=shaky, hard to see, shot from a balcony)

The full list of band members includes: Marc Pruett (Banjo), Caleb Smith (Guitar), Darren Nicholson (Mandolin), Tim Surrett (Bass), and Buddy Melton (Fiddle).

Some time ago, I caught some flack from Kingsmen fans for saying Surrett's best music was made during his stint with the Isaacs. Sure, he loves Southern Gospel, and Southern Gospel loves him for all the work he did with the Kingsmen. Vocally, however, Southern Gospel, and the Kingsmen's style in particular was killing him. In a bluegrass setting, he excels.

I guess I got my wish when I said I hoped he'd find his way back to bluegrass.

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posted by David Bruce Murray @ 10:03:00 PM  1 comments/links to this post/ permalink  
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Monday, February 12, 2007

Statesmen As Puppets...Too Funny

Alan Kendall found this clip on You Tube and linked to it from his blog. I don't think there's too much in the way of explanation required. Just watch it.

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posted by David Bruce Murray @ 1:23:00 AM  1 comments/links to this post/ permalink  
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Saturday, January 06, 2007

CD Review: Hope's Call (Live To Love)

RATING: 4 Stars

Label: Daywind Records
Website: www.hopescall.com
Producers: Kevin Ward & Hope's Call

Song Titles: (click links for song clips) "He Lives To Love," "So Glad It Rained," "Love's Call," "He Still Does," "In Jesus' Name," "We're Home," "Never Been Broken," "I Still Am Your Child," "How Lovely Is The One," "Too Far Away," "Good News Bad," "We Shall Behold Him," and "You Are Loved"

Live To Love by Hope's Call is outstanding in almost every area that counts. Vocals, production, and packaging quality in particular are top notch. Most groups feel lucky if they have one or two vocal stars, but Hope's Call has been blessed with three. Each syllable is pronounced with a pre-conceived precision that is appropriate for the lyric, and conveys the message of each song with maximum effect.

Hope's Call members Donna Beauvais, Jessica Harrison and Eddie Harrison have a sound that could be described as Phillips, Craig, and Dean meets Lordsong with a dash of Sandi Patty on the side. If you're looking specifically for traditional Southern Gospel tracks in the vein of "Singing Heaven's Song," you won't find any on Live To Love, but if you've been attracted to the impressive vocal talents of Hope's Call in the past regardless of what style they were singing at the time, you should be delighted.

Unfortunately, several selections on Live To Love tend to be overly wordy and not so memorable, particularly the songs positioned at the beginning and middle of the CD. "Love's Call," which tells the story of Hosea buying his wife off the auction block, is one exception. Don't misunderstand...there's plenty to enjoy. The music is anything but boring and the vocal arrangements would be worth hearing even if Hope's Call was singing their A-B-Cs. It's not until we get to "Too Far Away," positioned at track 10, that we get a really well-written song with a lyrical hook that has the potential to stick in a listener's mind, though. The chorus of "Too Far Away" begins "You're never too far away" and ends "You can never get too far away from God, for God will never get too far away from you." Fortunately, this track is the first radio single from Live To Love.

Now, it's not like the preceding songs are entirely hookless. "He Still Does" uses the song title as a hook, but it's a bit blah to begin with and then it's vamped to death.

To give you an indication of just how wordy most of the new songs are on Live To Love, the classic "We Shall Behold Him" is just shy of six minutes in length, and it's the longest song on the CD by far. But the actual lyric for 'We Shall Behold Him" is the shortest. Dottie Rambo knows how to make an impact without rambling when she writes a song. Of course, it's possible to be effective and still use a ton of words. "Good News Bad" is a good example of a rapid fire delivery grabbing and holding your attention. "Love's Call," which I mentioned above, is also fairly lengthy. Generally speaking, though, it's difficult to create a memorable experience for a listener when too much information is crammed into four minutes.

By the way, I should mention that the first eleven tracks on Live To Love are brand new for 2007. The project closes with 1980's "We Shall Behold Him" and 2003's "You Are Loved" (performed with only a piano for accompaniment). "Good News Bad" provides a few minutes of sonic variety and fun prior to "We Shall Behold Him" with a Delta Blues bass line overlaid with brass, an energetic bridge in the style of a gospel choir, and a non-proper English line that serves as the song's hook: "We need some good news...bad!" Preach it...

I expect Hope's Call will get good mileage from Live To Love. They're just shy of having the total package with this recording, but it should still attract new fans. The great moments are mostly saved for the end, but there's a total of 53 minutes in all. If slick production quality, impressive vocals, and a progressive musical vibe are what you desire, you will get your money's worth with Live To Love.

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posted by David Bruce Murray @ 7:37:00 PM  0 comments/links to this post/ permalink  

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