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SGN Scoops would like to welcome Randall Hamm to the New Music Reviews monthly feature. Randall is no stranger to many of you. He is the Gospel Program Director of WFLQ French Lick Indiana, host of the Sunday Morning Gospel Show for the past 20 years on WFLQ French Lick Indiana and Singing News Top 10 Small Market DJ for the past three years. Be sure to read the rest of Randall’s biography in our Contributors section at the back of the magazine. Artists, please send your CDs for review to Randall Hamm, c/o Q-100 WFLQ-FM, P.O. Box 100, French Lick, IN 47432.
Welcome in to my first Review Column. Hope all is well with you this month! This will be a work in progress, so let’s begin. This month I will review three CDs: Sweetwater Revival’s Heirloom: Hymns and Harmonies project; the latest from Carroll Roberson entitled A Jesus Man and ReUnited’s Timeless.
Sweetwater Revival
Heirloom: Hymns and Harmonies.
2014 Gospeltown Records GTR21127
Producer: Darren Rust and Cathleen Paul
Studio: Gospeltown Records – Minneapolis, Minnesota
Group Members: Katie Paul, Amanda Ellison, Kayla Krizek and Korissa Olson and songwriter Cathie Paxson
Katie Paul and her group are based out of the Minneapolis/St. Paul, Minnesota area. Their latest effort is a hymns CD, entitled Heirloom: Hymns and Harmonies. If you ever wonder what singing will be like in Heaven, just listen to any of their a cappella selections. Pure, heavenly singing! There are 10 cuts, which you will enjoy from cut one, “Jesus Paid It All/Up From The Grave He Arose,” all the way through to cut 10, “God Be With You ‘Til We Meet Again,” a great a cappella rendition that closes out the recording nicely.
Sweetwater Revival’s latest single to radio, “Hallelujah Homecoming,” is not on this project, it comes from their Witness project and reached #24 on the Singing News charts in April. But if you like “A Hallelujah Homecoming,” you’ll love “Dancing On The Golden Streets/When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder.” The same Country upbeat theme is there that will leave you wanting more. And, by the way if you’re driving, watch your speed when listening to this track!
Overall, my Top Tracks on the CD are: “Dancing On The Golden Streets/When The Roll Is Called Up Yonder,” “Dry Bones,” and a great a cappella rendition of “Blessed Assurance.” Check out Sweetwater Revival at sweetwaterrevival.com or on Facebook at facebook.com/SWRMinistries.
Carroll Roberson
A Jesus Man
2015 CRM 11392
Producer: Carroll Roberson
Studios: TMC Studio – Hendersonville Tennessee
Following Carroll Roberson’s last studio release Forever, comes A Jesus Man. The title track is the first single release and is getting quite a bit of airplay. Carroll has been releasing material since 1985 and is celebrating 30 years of preaching and singing the Gospel. Carroll’s biggest hit came 20 years ago with “Wilt Thou Be Made Whole,” one of the Top 20 singles of the year overall for 1995. Carroll has been releasing his material independently since the late ‘90’s and this is his strongest release in a number of years.
For this release Carroll once again writes a majority of the material; however, there’s also a cut written by his brother Stan Roberson “Like A Child Of God,” as well as other writers, including Beth Moore (“God’s Battlefield”), Diane Bal (“In His Time”), and Killen, Baker and Whitson who wrote “When I’ve Learned Enough.” Also, as on most of Carroll’s projects, there’s a cut by Carroll’s wife Donna Roberson, entitled “In His Time.”
The recording begins with “A Jesus Man,” which has Carroll singing about how the world sees Jesus in him and how proud he is to be called a “Jesus Man.” My pick for the strongest tracks are: “Cause The Lord To Smile On You,” “Gods Battlefield,” and the closing track, “When I’ve Learned Enough.”
For me, listening to a Carroll CD is like putting on an old worn overcoat, your favorite shirt or pair of blue jeans. It’s just comfortable. You can sit back and let Carroll minister.
Visit Carroll at carrollroberson.com or on Facebook at facebook.com/CarrollRobersonMinistries.
ReUnited
Timeless
Ind CD10315
Producer: Mark Fuller, Exec Producer Rick Campbell
Studio: Lamp Music South – Whitesburg Georgia
Group Members: Barbara Roach – Soprano, Ron Dailey – Lead, Rick Campbell – Baritone, Joshua Philips – Tenor and Mark Fuller – Bass and Piano. Special Guest: Becca Roach on “Wake Up Church.”
This is not the first studio CD for these artists, but it the first one under their new name ReUnited. Rick Campbell, Mark Fuller, Ron Dailey, Rick Campbell, and Barbara Roach have recorded under the LeFevre Reunion name. The new name says it all: ReUnited, and they truly are. Members that formerly sang with the LeFevres or forms of a LeFevre group are ReUnited to once again to bring us that great LeFevre sound.
Group members are Barbara (Hodge) Roach and Ron Dailey who sang with the LeFevres in 1972, Rick Campbell who sang with Uncle Alf and The LeFevres in the mid ‘80’s, Mark Fuller who played piano for Eva Mae in her last 10 years of ministry and also Joshua Phillips make up ReUnited. A guest on the first single release, “Wake Up Church,” is Barbara’s daughter Becca Roach.
There are 12 great tracks on this project, many of which were recorded by the LeFevres over the years, including the classics “The Lifeboat,” “He Pilots My Ship,” “I Won’t Have To Worry Anymore,” and “I’ve Come Too Far.” Their first single release going out to radio this month is “Wake Up Church,” written by Sylvia Green of the Bradys. What a great choice for the first single! It is upbeat, peppy and instantly singable, but the song also has a great message as well. We have to get up, quit sleeping, because there’s work to do. “Wake Up Church!”
Barbara Roach’s unmistakeable vocals along with guest, Becca Roach make this the late summer’s pick hit of this DJ. Plus, add in Mark Fuller’s unmistakable Eva Mae piano and you’ve got pure joy! This CD brings the LeFevre sound into the 21st century for a whole new generation to discover and enjoy. Visit ReUnited at reunitedmusic.com and on Facebook facebook.com/reunitedsingers
Do you have a new project? Please send your CDs for review to Randall Hamm, c/o Q-100 WFLQ-FM, P.O. Box 100, French Lick, IN 47432.
First published by SGN Scoops digital magazine in July 2015.
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