::ALBUM REVIEW::

Known affectionately as the Rose of Gospel, Dorinda Clark-Cole has enjoyed a considerable following through her associations with the family sibling group The Clark Sisters and is still riding on cloud nine after the double Grammy win for their 2007 swan album Live - One Last Time. She has also done quite well as a solo artist, starting with 2002's bright and energetic debut. Several hit singles generated from the album including “No Not One,” I’m Coming Out,” “You Can’t Hurry God,” and the heartfelt testimony of “I’m Still Here.” The sophomore follow-up, went to number three on the gospel charts, but failed to generate any major hits. Now with the Clark Sisters craze still sweeping the gospel and R&B world by storm, Dorinda Clark-Cole is at it again with Take It Back; her third collection on the GospoCentric label. With Alex Asaph Ward (Kim Burrell, Maurette Brown-Clark) once again at the helm of production duties, along with guest contributors from PAJAM and John P. Kee, the studio-only album promises to follow in the path of her previous offerings.

While the album cover blossoms with images of the fashionable gospel icon dressed in white and sporting a worthy smile, the title track’s theme and sound is far from being safe. The song opens with army-like boot marching and a churchy warfare percussion; finding Clark-Cole delivering smoky jazzy scats and her militant style of preachy exhortations on top of Derrick Starks charismatic number. It’s what we’ve come to expect from the singer - especially since she has a bag full of songs reminiscent of this style (“Right Now God,” “So Many Times”). Stretching out for six minutes, the track even leaves room for Clark-Cole to add extra momentum to what sounds like a live track. Adding to that energy are hefty contemporary gospel offerings like the self-penned “Got to Hold On,” the slow jam bliss of “It’s Okay,” and the youthful PAJAM hip-hop grooves of “Return.” All three are definite stand outs, especially the latter with its urban radio-friendly charm. John P. Kee contributes the funky and groove-layered “Turn It Around;” ultimately bearing the familiar Kee sound and features tight musical deliveries from longtime Kee musicians Tim Mole and Garland Miche’ Waller - and even finds the Prince of Gospel dueting with Clark-Cole.

With only eleven tracks offered, Take It Back still makes room for a few big gospel ballads - a stickler in Clark-Cole’s arsenal. Shawn McLemore pens “Make Me Real;” a soulful choir-infectious beauty that conjures ideas of the Clark Sisters’ classic “Endow Me.” In a live setting, the song would have been more meaty in its performance, but the trimmed studio version is quite befitting for open radio slots. “Yesterday,” not to be confused with Mary Mary’s 2006 hit, is trimmed with sweeping strings from Lloyd Barry’s Nashville String Machine and is brightened with Clark Sister-like background harmonies. While the beauty of the instrumentation mesmerizes, the Carnell Murrell composition sounds like a reprise from Clark-Cole’s “No Not One” and even swarms into unpredictable, challenging turns and shifts towards the end.

Not every corner turned on Take It Back is all peachy cream. “If I Were” mixes all kind of sounds - from strings to keyboard synths - on the opening and later falls apart with its cheesy drum programming and wordless chorus. The over-eccentric “Faithful,” full of heavy drum work and big jazzy changes, lacks a catchy, memorable melody to appropriately open up the album featuring the charisma of Clark-Cole. It feels too much like a reprise or a performance-oriented track rather than a song worth humming to.

Some may call Take It Back the singer’s most diverse and balanced offering to date, especially since she takes bigger risks in merging the Clark Sisters’ tradition with futuristic productions, but with the album being the shortest of both of her previous solo entries and lacking the big live performances, it remains a toss-up for serious fans. Try to consider the album-fillers and the wayward musical trip into sophisticated urban jazz - a underdeveloped style that still is hard to define and even tougher to market.. Maybe there is a definite fear of labeling Clark-Cole a traditional gospel singer, but those kind of songs work perfectly on her preachy voice. A few extra churchy tracks or funky gospel numbers (with enjoyable melodies) would have suffice. But with this being a full studio album and after completing last year’s best-selling album Live- One Last Time, maybe this was a bit of a rush job for Clark-Cole. After listening to Take It Back in its entirety, it wouldn’t be that hard to believe that. Still, it is a mild step forward artistically from 2005's The Rose of Gospel.