::ALBUM REVIEW::

If the royal king of the Chicago choir gospel sound, Sir Ricky Dillard, had appointed a prince to succeed his throne and to help further advance his most powerful dominion, Malcolm Williams would be a perfect fit. Seems like Williams has developed a style that significantly compares to Dillard's musical anctics and he has also churned the gospel tide with his own brand of compositions; proving to be more than just the average handsome choir director. In just a two year period, he has left a stamp of his songwriting fingerprints on projects from Mark S. Hubbard, the GMWA Mass Choir and Dottie Peoples - proving to be a worthy commodity and establishing his imminent presence in the gospel field for years to come. Now ready to launch his sophomore project (counting his in-demand independent projects "Renew Me" and "Gotta Make It"), Williams releases "Walking In My Destiny"; a project filled with signature Chicago thrills and the likeable prospects that we expect from the traditional Chicago community choir. With the newly-formed Univocal Records label, founded by industry veteran Shawn Tate, backing the marketing advancements of this one, it is probably, after logical recourse, going to grab hold to a larger audience than the previous releases.

This project features some lavish and memorable moments that help defines the richness of this effort. The album kicker, "Everything That Has Breath" is a traditional showstopper filled with blazing horn arrangements from the Mo' Horns camp and a brilliant showcase of stylistic vibrato phrasing with the right vamp to seal the deal. When Janet Ferrell jumps in towards the end with her vocal ad-libs, the song, with the help of the band and Mo' Horns dominant performance, spills out great attitude. "All To Jesus" recalls the contemporary flair of Chicago's successful grooves from Ricky Dillard and the Chicago Mass Choir, with its spirited organ thumps from Brian Lofton. "My Everything (That's What He Is)" is a down-south infectious church number that bears strong resemblance to Percy Gray's distinctive style of songwriting. Part of that also may be traced to his musicians' involvement including Terry Moore on piano and Sharay Reed on bass. At times, this song feels a bit unfinished or even a bit outdated, but it surprisingly grows on the ear after a few careful listens. And it's hard to pass up the Kim McFarland's appearance on the encouraging, mid-tempo "Due Season". Because of her quietness on the recording scene lately, this song offers up a mysterious nostalgia of her unforgettable performances with the legendary Thompson Community Singers. The song even sounds like something that would have easily made it into their recording playlist. Other honorable mentions include the zesty, churchy "I've Got A Right" (except for the awkward, uncomfortable introduction from soloist Robert Williams), the following "Chicago Bump II", the melodious ballad "A Chance" and the title cut.

With all of the choral excellence and high-rated performances released on "Walking In My Destiny", the nerving inclusions of certain cuts such as "The Lord Never Failed" and the two studio tracks closing out the project are hard to digest. Especially the studio tracks since they lack charm and the proper musical elements to appeal to conditioned ears. DeAndre Patterson duets with Williams on "Until He Saved Me". The foundation is a definite inspiration from the Tommies' super hits. Lyrically, the song is marvelous, but the shortness of the song is a major turn-off - especially when the potential of this one being a favorite was strongly evident. Four minutes on a comprehensive song like this feels more like a cheesy edit than a selection from a live recording session.

With a little bit of wise advice in certain places, this project would have been a sure winner for choir lovers in 2006. But we are bound to see releases from heavyweights in months to come and there's no telling what may spawn our way. And when you compare the brilliance from the former collections from Malcolm Williams, this one may be a bit disappointing at times. There's no presence of an anthem here like "Oh How Majestic", no irresistible arrangement of a Negro Spiritual like "Ezekiel", no thrilling contemporary bounce like "Help Me Praise Him" and no emotional ballad like "Renew Me". Even with all of that said, "Walking In My Destiny" is still a knockout and should accomplish its purpose, which is reviving the hearts of those that thought good choir music was dying while opening more doors for this aggregation's destiny in the public eye of the gospel world.