::ALBUM REVIEW::

Of all the places in the world one would imagine a gospel concert to be recorded at, the world famous Apollo Theater - where legends are made - is one of those locations that most wouldn’t conjure up at first. Its powerful, majestic reputation in the African-American community for yielding a considerable amount of superstars from its stage has remained a vibrant phenomenon and still continues to shine since its glorious construction in 1914 in the heart of Harlem, New York. Dozens of artists have giving back to the prestigious building with their performances and have even recorded there including Robert Palmer, James Brown, Hall & Oates, Ben Harper with the Blind Boys of Alabama, B.B. King and even the Mighty Clouds of Joy. Of all of those recordings, James Brown’s “Live at the Apollo” (1963), recorded still in Brown’s infancy stages of his career, remains the venue’s pride and joy and is trumpeted as one of his greatest LPs of all time. But multiple Stellar Award-winner Byron Cage goes the extra mile to take the spirit of urban praise-and-worship and a hefty dose of his familiar gospel leanings to the big stage on his latest musical offering - Live at the Apollo: The Proclamation. It’s not the first gospel project to be recorded at the Apollo, as the GospoCentric label suggest otherwise. The Zomba Music Group, the ones responsible for this disc, were also responsible in releasing the gospel compilation Verity Records: Live at the Apollo back in 1997. But we will overlook this new campaign of untruths since we are aware of their passion for thrilling marketing ploys and hype for such a project. It’s not often we see or hear a gospel artist recording at such a historic institution like the Apollo.

Cage solicits the PAJAM crew once again to handle the production work and even gather a strong cast of Detroit-based musicians including Fred Hammond’s former musical director Noel Hall on keyboards, drummer Dana Davis and bassist Terrence Palmer. Opening things up is the funky gospel-infused title cut which rings with a colorful message of joy over the joy found in the name of Jesus. That passion is exalted on the stirring vamp as the background singers deliver intense, vigorous choir-like vocals and Cage jumps into high gear with his worship leading ad-libs. Even though the song ends with The song runs into Keith Williams’ “Worship The Lord” - a song that bubbles with a juicy contemporary gospel drive. Suddenly, the song transitions into a rhythm change featuring an infectious churchy traditional vamp. It feels like a Broadway performance - after hearing the number of sudden changes and build-up hype from Cage, but it’s something we expect in engaging live gospel even though Cage’s newfound praise-and-worship followers may not care for the song’s threaded theatrics.

The passion of the album rests in the serious gospel elements of the intense ballads. There’s more gospel tucked here then on Cage’s GospoCentric debut and 2006's An Invitation To Worship - it almost feels like the Prince of Praise decided to revisit his gospel roots from his AIR Gospel recording days in the ‘90s. Even though the risky change may upset a few critics, songs like Cage’s deliciously-penned “When He Comes Back” and the smouldering soulful “Anyhow” showcase a comfortable Cage doing what he was trained in doing best. The latter features a brilliant duet with R&B crooner Dave Hollister and even features a quick trip back into the Thomas Whitfield vault with a sample of his 1982 hit “Hallelujah Anyhow.” V. Michael McKay continues to thrill with his illustrious songwriting skills on “More Than You’ll Ever Know.” After the success of “Broken But I’m Healed” from An Invitation To Worship, it makes sense to have McKay return once again to create a follow-up. “If You Never”, first heard on Earnest Pugh’s A Worshipper’s Perspective, the song is revived with a deep, heartier Isley Brothers/Quiet Storm vibe. Kim Burrell also guests here and renders an abundance of ministry-infused ad-libs and jazzy vocal aerobics. Towards the end of the eight-minute cut, J Moss is asked to the stage and jumps into the array of things and ends the song on a high note with his youthful display of rolls that feels very reminiscent of former Verity gospel artist Tonex’. Even though “If You Never” feels just right for this kind of a project, it’s something you would appreciate even more in person. You can only imagine the visual expressions and intense delivery this strong cast maneuvers through on such an explosive cut.

Not all here on Proclamation is gospel bred. “Royalty” is one of the album’s shiniest moments and showcases a versatile Cage in a reverent worship posture. With a moving acoustic guitar opening and sensitive string arrangements, the song enters into a fervent and memorable worship experience with all the right ingredients for Cage’s worship followers. It is arguably the anchoring worship gem found here.

There are a few problematic situations that tend to fester throughout the disc. Some of the songs feature awkward endings such as the abrupt, brisk finish on “Worship The Lord” and the incompleteness found at the end of the title track. Then there’s the shortness of the album with just ten tracks being accounted for that hurts listeners from gaining a lot to digest from Cage on this round. “With All Of My Might” is a juicy PAJAM-styled jam that's filled with many rewarding possiblities but with its wordless, repetitive vamp and no understanding of how we got there, it is hard to appreciate what’s at hand. There’s even a few spotty places that finds the choir - led by director DeWayne Woods - not at their best vocally. But Proclamation is an enduring testament of Cage’s first love. After being under late gospel greats like Donald Vails and Thomas Whitfield, it’s hard to escape the richness of such gospel roots. This may be a rewind moment for Cage’s career in the eyes of praise-and-worship gurus, but this is a leap forward for real gospel audiences. There may not be a bit of weaknesses that stick out here - it’s not a great project - but it’s definitely refreshing to hear the singer shedding his skin and revealing the songwriter and artist he really is.

In a video presentation released from the GospoCentric label before the album’s release, Cage announced that he was quite uncomfortable with being branded the “Prince of Praise” and felt that such a title limits him in what he’s called to do. One good listen to Proclamation and after journeying through all of his musical offerings - including the AIR Gospel releases, you can understand why he would make such a statement.