::ALBUM REVIEW::

Twenty four years since its inception, the Georgia Mass Choir continues to tread forward on the gospel highways. And while the choir has lost some of its luster since its explosive triumphs of the ‘90s (backing Whitney Houston on The Preacher’s Wife soundtrack and movie, performing at the 1996 Olympic Games, Kirk Franklin recording “Joy”, etc.) and have been quiet on the recording scene since 2002's “I Owe You The Praise”, founder and commander-in-chief Rev. Milton Biggham fights to usher the choir forward and has found ways to help keep the choir’s presence alive. On their tenth live recording session “Tell It,” the Georgia Mass Choir balances their repertoire with jamming contemporary outfits and the familiar traditional choir workouts in hopes to draw new listeners to their Southern soulful charm and classic diehards back to their gospel roots. Recorded at Sherwood Baptist Church in Albany, Georgia, the choir bursts out in a fifteen-track project that fumbles through old-school remakes with spicy arrangements and a few surprising stylish twists.

The title cut opens the festivities with its jubilant, uptempo churchy rhythms and Rose Merry Jordan’s infectious lead vocals. While the song captures a number of lyrical snippets from various hymns and classic congregational songs, the song jumps into fresher territory ranks with this contempo-traditional selection. It almost bears the integrity of a Chicago Mass Choir jams like “Holy Ghost Power”. That same energy filters right into Tommy L. Jones’ “Jesus Will Make Everything Alright”; a mesmeric contemporary gospel number that finds guest vocalist Donald Malloy on lead vocals and jumps into a bundle of delightful modulations towards the end. Tracy Harris enters into the picture and trades ad-libs duties with Malloy - creating a memorable soulful extravaganza for the project.

The twists the Georgia Mass Choir experiment with are welcoming and enough to grant them a place in today’s civilization of modern gospel sounds. “Trouble In My Way” is a surprising uptempo rendition of Charles Nicks classic. The funky contemporary grooves, aided by a powerful and talented band, fit well on Ernestine Curry’s lead work and the soulful harmonies of the choir. “Put It Back”, penned by R&B/gospel singer Candi Staton, is another funk creation and finds gospel trailblazer Dorothy Norwood guest leading. The track is loaded with spunky instrumentation from Derrieux Edgecombe’s organ spills to dangerous drum licks from Michael Reid. And Norwood, known for her big energy and personality, uses her gutsy brawny gospel vocals to the best of her ability on this energetic selection. On “I’ve Got To Tell Somebody That Jesus Lives,” Rev. Corey McGhee and Donald Malloy walks through another funk-driven song - something that James Cleveland would have yearned to record in modern times. It has the same energy of “Please Be Patient With Me,” but with a little more flava.

Biggham continues to provide a number of his compositions and narrative exhortations to their latest musical offering. While his three cuts fail to compare with the weightiness of his former creations, “He’s A Battle Axe” walks through the classic moody vibes and heavy bass of “Come On In The Room” and offers a newfound twist to the familiar church chorus. After Biggham takes the song into a rocking sing-a-long, Christine McKay (Biggham’s mother) jumps right in on the closing vamp and elevates the song up a little higher. Biggham also introduces the next generation of his family to the recording world with son Anthony Biggham and 16-year old grand son Samar Biggham on the R&B slow jam-infused “It’s Not Over.”

While there’s a lot to rejoice about on “Tell It”, all decisions here aren’t grand. Dottie Rambo’s “I Go To The Rock”, their live version of the hit they recorded with R&B diva Whitney Houston for The Preacher’s Wife soundtrack, is met with mixed emotions. Of course, it’s more soulful and raw even with Rutha Harris on lead, but it’s not the original. “I’ve Been Delivered” is hard to explain lyrically. It repeats: “If you knew like I knew just what I have been through” and then bursts into “I’ve been delivered, praise the Lord.” Even with its earthy grooves, the lyrics aren’t defined enough for advanced listeners. “Holy Ghost” walks a thin line on theological understandings with the lead vocalist never ceasing to call the Holy Spirit an “it”. Also, some of the ballads aren’t as strong as they could have been. “The Best Of My Story” is probably the most satisfying with its moving lyrics of inspiration, but ballads like “We Worship You” and “I Want To Be In Your Will” feature occasional shaky lead vocals and frustrating repetitiveness. It can also be said that there’s a lack of slow songs, better known as transitional songs, on board. But “Tell It” triumphs over “They That Wait” (1999) and “I Owe You The Praise”, their last two projects, in style and production. It seems like the Georgia Mass Choir may have found their niche’ in the new millennium - proving they may be around for another twenty-something years.