It appears this latest release by the Down East Boys has been the talk of the internet over the last month or so and “so be it”, because it’s an excellent piece of work. Does it match the hype the record company has put out about it by saying it’s comparable to the best of the best by such greats as the Kingsmen, Cathedrals and Gold City? Read on...
The recording starts up with the energetic, “Every Word in the Word”, penned by Phil Cross. Recorded several years ago by Phil Cross & Poet Voices, the Down East Boys pretty much stuck to the original arrangement and it fits the guys very well. The medium tempo, “Hold On” with its bass feature on the chorus, has a blues feel before the pace slows down for the current single, “I Won’t Trade my Crown”. Tenor, Tony Jarman, does a great job interpreting the lyrics on this power-house song.
Baritone, Daryl Paschal, is featured on the medium tempo, “When I Could Do Nothing”, penned by Rodney Griffin, who also penned the uptempo, “His Beloved, the Redeemed” with noted writer, Chris Binion. One of my favorite writers, Sandy Knight, offers one of her compositions with “Suddenly One Morning”. While DEB does a good job on the song, it doesn’t quite match the punch of the Roy Knight Singers version.
Offering a bit of Southern funk, the boys sing the Woody Wright penned, “Under the Blood” and Daryl, along with bass singer, Stuart Cary, do a good job sharing duties on the verses before the pace picks up for the highly enjoyable, radio friendly song, “Waiting for the Day”.
Closing out the recording are two exceptional classics...”Redemption Draweth Nigh”, features an excellent performance by Ricky Carden and the title song, “Amen”, featuring Tony Jarman, which ends the recording with a resounding “AMEN!”
While a lot has been said on various websites about this recording regarding if it truly lives up to the hype, I’ll settle it all now (smile) and say it does not. While it is an excellent recording and dare say it is one of their best in the last few years (I still count their “Mercy” recording from a few years ago as one of their finest), I wouldn’t hold it in the same caliber as the Cathedrals, Kingsmen or Gold City in their glory-days. Ricky has always had a classy sounding quartet and has always released classy recordings, and this latest release is no exception. Overall, a job very well done and a great recording!
Author: .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
Written: 01/01/2012
| 
Category: CD Reviews
Comments: 0
RSS Feed
| (What's an RSS feed?)
|
Ads Sponsored by Southern Spin
