::ALBUM REVIEW::

Riding high on the pillars of greatness is something that one should work for and aim to aquire through a great deal of persistence. Keith Pringle, under James Cleveland’s coattail, lived in the gospel spotlight playing organ and occasionally providing lead vocals alongside the hailed King of Gospel - most popularly on “I Don’t Feel Noways Tired” with the Salem Inspirational Choir in 1978. All of this experience surely led Pringle to discover his unescapable calling to start up one of the successful and popular community choirs of the 1980s - the Pentecostal Community Choir of Los Angeles, California. The choir went on to record a slew of hits in the early ‘80s including “Call Him Up (Can’t Stop Praising His Name)”, “True Victory” and “When All God’s Children Get Together.” But it was quite easy for Pringle to break away from the choir - like Beyonce did to Destiny’s Child in 2000's - to go solo from time to time. Not only was Pringle gifted with the right skills for choral training but he had the right stuff to become a solo artist. Image, style and, of course, a polished golden voice. To best describe Pringle’s distinctive vocals, there’s a soulful Southern grit that dwells within his upper range and even bears a significant amount of similarities to the late Benny Cummings of Brooklyn, New York.

One of his most treasured LPs, Perfect Peace, showcases a talented singer surrounded around quality production and a sweet gathering of power-packed songs. In the care of album producer and predominant arranger Thomas Whitfield, the album’s stylish position of progressive gospel - rooted in hearty soul, R&B and adult contemporary - places Pringle’s voice in a comfortable environment loaded with excellent musicianship. A list of personnel containing heavyweight musicians such as Earl J. Wright, Rudolph Stanfield and Lanar “Kern” Brantley, along with Whtifield’s magic fingers on the keys, sets the album up for instant gratification.

Opening the album up is the Rudolph Stanfield-penned colorful title cut - a work of art that continues to uphold its standard of beauty since its release. The song glows with its meaty background vocal support from members of the Whitfield Company and their captivating diction. When the billowing vamp enters into the picture, Pringle’s preachy vocals - topped with strong efforts from the bad - rises to a billowing climax. Jeffery LaValley’s “Saved To Serve” is a unique R&B-tinged mid-tempo cut anchored by its jazz overtones. “He That Hath An Ear...Let Him Hear” showcases Whitfield’s ability to draw in the sounds of the day into gospel-like singing. The song, declaring God’s vocalization to the Church, opens with one of Whitfield’s funkiest vibes and possesses a strong tag set to infectious hip-hop energies. The churchy sounds of “Still Say Yes” are fitting for Pringle’s soulful deliveries and still possess the raw infection of a live recording session. But it is the ballad inclusions - different from his previous works with the Pentecostal Community Choir - that pretty much showcase a different Pringle in a calm, comfortable environment and ultimately stick out as the album’s definite drawing cards. The worship ballad “With My Whole Heart” (soothed by dreamlike synths) and his duet with Lydia Wright on the memorable, seven-minute “Don’t Give Up On Jesus” boast of an intimate polished innocence and radiance that remains influential in the world of contemporary gospel music. “With My Whole Heart”, by itself, has been re-recorded by a number of gospel artists including Hubert Powell, Bishop James Morton and Dr. Ed Montgomery’s Abundant Life Choir; showcasing the powerful legacy of this song. The Donny Hathaway-penned “We Need You Right Now” - only recorded by the legendary R&B cronner on the 1980 posthumous In Performance album - is deliciously arranged and compliments the original version. With Whitfield’s acoustic piano renderings and a soul-driven performance that fits perfectly in any Aretha Franklin and Donny Hathaway catalog, the song closes the project on a charging high note.

Perfect Peace is one of those albums that you can listen to from beginning to end without any casual interruption - a testament to Pringle’s amazing talent and Whitfield’s potent direction. The album climbed to number three on the Billboard Gospel charts in 1984.