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Gospel
Blues
Artist: Darrell Mansfield
Indie / Son Records
18 tracks / 55:12
If ever a title summed up exactly what an album was about, it's Darrell Mansfield's Gospel Blues. Indeed, the Gospel and the blues are what these songs are defined by: old-school Southern Gospel and acoustic Delta blues, to be exact. As performed by Mansfield, frequent co-conspirator Glenn Kaiser, and Rob Glickman, that means gravelly, impassioned vocals, Robert Johnson-inspired guitar work, and some pretty mean and low-down harmonica. In the early days of Christian rock, Mansfield and Kaiser pretty much laid down the CCM gauntlet of heavy riff-rock and blues, setting a standard of authenticity and love for the medium that few (other than the likes of Ashley Cleveland or The 77s) have ever come close to.
Reaching way back to the earliest days of recorded blues and Gospel (which were often indistinguishable from one another), Gospel Blues presents 18 tracks for the enthusiasts of both camps. Don't look for anything pretty – with songs like “God Don't Never Change,” “You've Got to Move,” “Trimmed and Burnin,'” and “Nobody's Fault But Mine,” the album might be a musicologist's delight but certainly not a pop enthusiast's cup of green-tea. No frills here - still, this is much of the stuff that made rock and pop possible, which is why we're always drawn back to these roots.
Mansfield's vocals are fiery and strong and his harmonica playing is, of course, legendary. Kaiser's credentials are well-known, being the rough-voiced lead singer and lead guitar player of Christian music's seminal hard-rock outfit – Rez Band. The two men trade off vocals effortlessly and play their respective instruments with the assurance and power of seasoned veterans. If you missed the first incarnations of these wonderful songs – most of which first appeared on a pair of 'Kaiser / Mansfield' projects – then, by all means, don't miss them this time around.
It's good to check your roots.
Artist: Darrell Mansfield
Indie / Son Records
18 tracks / 55:12
If ever a title summed up exactly what an album was about, it's Darrell Mansfield's Gospel Blues. Indeed, the Gospel and the blues are what these songs are defined by: old-school Southern Gospel and acoustic Delta blues, to be exact. As performed by Mansfield, frequent co-conspirator Glenn Kaiser, and Rob Glickman, that means gravelly, impassioned vocals, Robert Johnson-inspired guitar work, and some pretty mean and low-down harmonica. In the early days of Christian rock, Mansfield and Kaiser pretty much laid down the CCM gauntlet of heavy riff-rock and blues, setting a standard of authenticity and love for the medium that few (other than the likes of Ashley Cleveland or The 77s) have ever come close to.
Reaching way back to the earliest days of recorded blues and Gospel (which were often indistinguishable from one another), Gospel Blues presents 18 tracks for the enthusiasts of both camps. Don't look for anything pretty – with songs like “God Don't Never Change,” “You've Got to Move,” “Trimmed and Burnin,'” and “Nobody's Fault But Mine,” the album might be a musicologist's delight but certainly not a pop enthusiast's cup of green-tea. No frills here - still, this is much of the stuff that made rock and pop possible, which is why we're always drawn back to these roots.
Mansfield's vocals are fiery and strong and his harmonica playing is, of course, legendary. Kaiser's credentials are well-known, being the rough-voiced lead singer and lead guitar player of Christian music's seminal hard-rock outfit – Rez Band. The two men trade off vocals effortlessly and play their respective instruments with the assurance and power of seasoned veterans. If you missed the first incarnations of these wonderful songs – most of which first appeared on a pair of 'Kaiser / Mansfield' projects – then, by all means, don't miss them this time around.
It's good to check your roots.
Bert Saraco
http://www.myspace.com/expressimage
http://expressimagephoto.tripod.com
