::ALBUM REVIEW::

Since her national debut in 1982, the legendary voice of Vanessa Bell Armstrong has charmed a legion of faithful admirers and has continued to showcase the value of her talent in various musical outlets and styles. She's done traditional, contemporary, urban and praise-and-worship, but she remains the same Vanessa Bell Armstrong with the super-silky, flexible vocal pipes that borderlines the musical merits of Aretha Franklin and Chaka Khan. But over the years, Armstrong has failed to maintain loyalty with her fans by "crossing over" to other style formats and has changed the hands of producers in search of something new to do. In the end, these decisions created the long hiatus from her 2001 "Brand New Day" project - exclusively produced by Deitrick Haddon. But the wait has finally been silenced with her EMI Gospel debut release of "Walking Miracle"; featuring a hodgepodge of acclaimed producers covering ten moderate urbanized tracks.

"Walking Miracle" may not be a walk in the park for many of Armstrong's worthiest fans since they may be used to her delivering material best suited for traditional/contemporary gospel (such as "Peace Be Still", "Don't Give Up On Jesus" or Donald Lawrence's compositions featuring Armstrong on "Finale'), but it's a bright return to a more welcoming modern sound best suited for her mature vocals. And while the studio mega-beats set to a rare sophisticated adult-contemporary sound may draw the strongest buzz, Armstrong never shuns from her foundation on most of the tracks and continues to belt and deliver strong, infectious singing as only she can. Opening the album is the tile cut produced by Rodney "Darkchild" Jerkins; geared up with smooth R&B glares and a warm message of thankfulness. "Seasons", another soulful R&B ballad, gets the PAJAM treatment with additional background work featuring J. Moss and wah-wah sounding synth highlights. And then there's more smooth slow jams to dig into such as the mesmerizing "I Still Love You". Lyrically the song reveal rusty moments, but the groove and style of the composition along with Armstrong's commanding nature creates a gratifying experience worth reliving time and time again. "Fall In Love Again" leans on a classy R&B sound usually passed on to urban hit-makers like Mary J. Blige. And while Armstrong is a lifetime legend to most gospel followers and historians, she isn't forced to sound too young here. Cedric Thompson produces "Wait"; a very clean contemporary jam that most definitely fits around Armstrong's charisma and vocal struts. You only hate to know that he only produces one cut here and that there's not another track that bears the fun mood captured here. Fred Jerkins' "Watch Me", filled with urban-laced beats and a smooth summer groove waiting for immediate exposure, sits comfortably on her colorful vocals. And then there's the club-laced "'Til The Victory's Won", which leans on Fred Jerkins' jubilant groove, soft CHIC-influenced piano glides and heavy bass. The song may have worked better on the likes of Kierra "KiKi" Sheard since it bears a youthful appeal, but Armstrong commands the song and shows no weakness on such a zealous track. One listen to this addictive cut is not suffice since Armstrong sounds younger here than any of her other hits and knows how to sweetly merge churchy with urban.

There are just one or two churchy moments on "Walking Miracle"...but nothing too serious to call original. Smokie Norful's "So Good To Me", the album's first single, feels like a carbon coby of other familiar gospel melodies and even bears the same rhythms and occasional punches as 2005's "Suddenly" (which also featured Armstrong on vocals).

If one is in search for one serious hurting moment on "Walking Miracle", take a good look in the linear notes. All of the credits aren't there and her acknowledgments and thank you's have been removed. You almost feel as if EMI was being a bit shady in releasing this album too soon. Another negative thing to observe is the toughness of recognizing the actual shortage of tracks presented. Only ten cuts clocking at forty minutes from Armstrong feels like highway robbery on the surface, but there is a stylistic and artistic uniformity on "Walking Miracle" that makes you feel as if the album is somewhat complete. Most of the cuts glide into the next like chapters to a book - a definite advantage for this album. And while the number of producers gathered here may come across as being a big artistic stretch for Armstrong and may not have been too favorable in giving Armstrong their serious material, the PAJAM and Darkchild tracks launches Armstrong into the hands of new audiences while bringing a likeable gratification to her lifetime supporters.