Gotta Have Gospel Volume 2

Gospo Centric

Disk 1: 14 tracks @ 66:04

Disk 2: 14 tracks @ 76:14

There are a couple of things I like about compilations:

•  If you only want a favorite song from a artist you might find it on a compilation disk (unless you pay for it, music downloading is illegal!!)

•  It's a great way to discover new music.

There is a ton of great music on this set, from the soulful “Lost Without You” by Bebe and Cece Winans to the more traditional sounding “I Call The Name” by Alvin Slaughter.

I tend to favor the big choir sound. Tracks from Joe Page & The Colorado Mass Choir, TD Jakes and The Potters House, and John P. Kee and The New Life Choir are more than enough to keep me listening.

On disk one I really liked “Power Belongs to God” by Hezekiah Walker & Love Fellowship with its references, it seems, to Isaiah 55:8, Psalm 92 and in particular Revelations 19:1. I could imagine the heavenly choir sounding like this.

On disk two, I enjoyed the uplifting music from Israel & New Breed, an artist that I was introduced to via this disk. Also featured on disk two is a previously unreleased track “Wake Up,” with Kirk Franklin and Trin-I-Tee 5:7. It doesn't really strike me as a duet as Kirk performs spoken word while Trin-I-Tee serves as back-up singers. Nor was I overly impressed with the track “We Have Not Forgotten” from “American Idol” winner Ruben Studdard.

The Soul Seekers “There Will Never Be Another You” sounds a lot like The Temptations “The Way You Do the Things You Do.”

Tonex's “Since Jesus Came” is just flat out cool.

As an added bonus, for a limited time this compilation comes with a DVD with four music videos, including Kirk Franklin's “Brighter Day.” The video's interesting because it features a cameo from Kurt Warner, at the time on top of the football world having won two MVP awards and leading his team, the St. Louis Rams, to a Super Bowl victory. Today, Warner isn't even a starter for the very mediocre New York Giants. Ironically, the video serves as a reality check that the things that seem to matter most in our culture hardly last.

- Rob S.