Tuesday, 3 May 2022

Amazing Grace - ARETHA FRANKLIN***

Mary Don't You Weep/Precious Lord Take My Hand-You've Got A Friend/Old Landmark/Give Yourself To Jesus/ How I Got Over/What A Friend We Have In Jesus/Amazing Grace/Precious Memories/Climbing Higher Mountains/Remarks By Reverend C L Franklin/God Will Take Care Of You/Wholly Holy/You'll Never Walk Alone/Never Grow Old

Aretha Franklin returns to her southern gospel roots with the double album Amazing Grace. Recorded live from the New Temple Missionary Baptist Church Los Angeles she is backed by The Southern California Community Choir. (US:7)

“Here, Franklin, along with James Cleveland & The Southern California Community Choir, let some of the most performed traditional gospel songs unfurl in very patient arrangements, allowing the singers and the band to sincerely backup Franklin's booming, devotional voice, never allowing her to become too self-indulgent. The most impressive thing about the arrangements is that they forsake speed, often a hallmark of the more sanctified gospel recordings, for musical exploration.”

“Aretha takes us to her roots and shows us where that amazing voice came from - the church. I have never known a record have so many spine-tingling moments as this one. It's relentless in its ability to squeeze every last drop of emotion from these traditional gospel songs. The choir, the band and Aretha's voice all combine to produce one of the truly great live recordings. I challenge anyone not to be moved by the music here.”

“Aretha returns back to her roots by singing gospel, and predictably it's one of the best records you will hear in the genre, mainly because no how lacking in faith you are when Aretha sings, you know the gospel singer is still at the front of it all.”

“This is quite probably the most commercially unapproachable release of her illustrious career. It has no elements of pop or scattered elements of secular soul, but is through-and-through genuine southern gospel.”

“This album is fantastic, but it is not for everybody but one for those who love to listen to Aretha's voice. Being a tremendously gifted technical singer, this live set gives Aretha an opportunity to show off every trick in her book. But on this album in particular, her technical talent never overshadows the feeling and emotional impact of the songs, as it sometimes does at other points in her career. The album is a live recording from a Los Angeles Baptist church.”

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