::ALBUM REVIEW::
by J Matthew Cobb
Posted: October 1, 2009

Not many choir-like ensembles from the ‘90s boast the kind of longevity of James Grear & Company. It’s puzzling to think that with all the urban swag now dominated gospel radio playlists that traditional choir music would still have some kind of precedence in the marketplace. And with stints on the HOB, Liquid 8, Diamante, Born Again and Alliant labels, Grear & Co. continues to fledge onward with their Minneapolis-tinted contemporary gospel sound. After leaving a strong mark on their career with 2005's brilliant Nu Friends: Live project, Grear, Grear teams up with Habakkuk for their next musical assignment Don’t Waste Another Day; a baggy assortment of live and studio tracks featuring strong writers, a few special guests and a handsome set of gospel remakes.

Things kick off with a walk down memory lane on Richard Smallwood’s combustible uptempo rocker “Holy Holy Holy.” It’s a spirited reworking, even though it loses some interest since Smallwood revealed his remake of his own hit on his last project Journey. Still the song features its own set of horn arrangements and extra bass thumps and opens the album with fanfare. “Rain on Me,” a Carnell Murrell contribution, exposes listeners to Minneapolis’s funk origins. It also comes with its own linkage to the Excelsior days, especially since lead singer David Hurst and the cool keyboard trances shed light on a very short chapter in cool, contemporary gospel during the early ‘00s.

Having a handful of very familiar remakes on board usually swallows up an album’s replay value but Grear’s careful selection and smart add-ons give his opportunities a more refreshing update. “Trouble in My Way,” a very-familiar gospel classic, gets a bumpy, infectious drive and a Kurt Carr facelift (in all the right places). After Angela Stewart belts her way through her ad-libs and Grear jumps in with an unpredictable bridge, the song leaps into a sporadic response conjuring both spiritual-charismatic and funky musical rewards. The Sounds of Blackness rendition of 1997's “Hold On (Change Is Coming)” isn’t that much different from the original. Everything sounds the same and there’s no big key changes or super differences. Hurst returns and joins with Jamecia Bennett (daughter of gospel/R&B singer Ann Nesby) to provide a powerful duet uncovering even more soul and grit from the uplifting tune. But more than anything, the song serves as an important reminder of Minneapolis’s pride-and-joy and awakens the success story of one of gospel’s greatest contemporary choirs of all time.

Just as rewarding, F. Darnell Davis (of Excelsior fame) presents two colorful ballads that accents his majestic contemporary choir song writing and easily giving him a comfortable place amongst the avant-garde in modern gospel. “With My Whole Heart” (not to be confused with the Rudolph Stanfield song). Big choir-like harmonies tug on the emotionally-drenched vamp, while Gear emerges from the background to narrate the studio production as if it was a live moment from a Sunday evening service. By far one of the album’s important events, “The Word of God” glows like a Donald Lawrence encourager with its affirming nuggets of inspiration. The lyrics amplify the scriptures and ascends into worshipful gospel, even with its warm melody and keyboard strings, half way through the track. It’s so surprising to see a good song like this, with such radio potential, tucked in the middle of a project.

Even on less-than-great compositions, Grear & Company rarely disappoint. Songs like the relaxed “Your Will,” gliding so much like a Kirk Franklin ballad, and the hip-pop touches on the title track help ease the unfortunate discontentments from the super-long twelve-minute epic “For You (Blood Medley),” the urban experiments of “Runnin’ Back” and the Crock-pot slow-burning efforts on “Faithful Is He.” It’s probably true that Grear’s posse is as versatile as gospel groups normally get. On Another Day, the singers - who each do impressive jobs out front - prove they can tackle pop, soul, funk, spicy hip-hop and worship music, but the album’s gems speak for itself. Give this ensemble some traditional and contemporary groovy choir stuff and you won’t be disappointed.