It gives me great pleasure to brighten Youtube with the (in my opinion) definitive cover of this B. J. Thomas classic. The Brothers don’t seem to have a studio recording of it, which is interesting since they obviously cut a studio track for themselves to use on this performance. This arrangement hews fairly closely to the Gaither Vocal Band’s interpretation, but the Booths’ harmonies are just unbeatable on this. I would also rate it as one of Ronnie Booth’s best... Read more
Lizzy Long may not be a familiar name to southern gospel listeners, but she’s achieved notoriety on the bluegrass circuit through her work with the likes of Earl Scruggs and Little Roy Lewis. This is her first solo album. Her voice is probably most comparable to Tammy Wynette, but it’s very much her own. It’s pure and rich and keeps your ears coming back for more. Long herself co-wrote a number of the songs for this project, together with Wayne Haun, Joel Lindsey, Lyn Rowell,... Read more
I’ve obtained permission from Michael Booth to post some vintage Booth Brothers music that’s no longer available at any retail outlets. This includes two DVD projects that I was sad to see the Brothers pull from the store, since I think they represent some of the group’s best work with Jim Brady. Over the next week, I will be adding some video performances you may never have seen unless you snapped up a copy of one of the DVDs when... Read more
Some of you might be familiar with a music streaming website known as Grooveshark. With the rise of officially sanctioned outlets like Soundcloud, Spotify, Google Play, and now even Youtube, Grooveshark has passed its usefulness, and judging by their recent farewell letter, they’ve run afoul of some big music companies in the process. This apparently wasn’t just one of those situations where an isolated few artists get grumpy and ask that their music be taken down. It was serious enough... Read more
[05/29: Comments on this topic are closed.] Well, I had determined not to say anything about this mess, but after I read one particular Patheos article about it, it did occur to me that I had something to say. I’ll try to limit this to the specific points I want to make, though I realize how tempting it is to render a verdict on the situation as a whole. I do have my opinions, and I suppose you can read... Read more
The explosion of mobile devices has re-shaped how websites everywhere are designed. As more people read articles on progressively smaller screens, designers are accommodating them and making content more readily accessible at the touch of a finger. While I don’t anticipate making any earth-shattering changes to my little blog, I am curious to know how my readers are viewing it. So here’s a small poll: Read more
I’ve been catching myself up on Pastor Andy Stanley’s recent comments regarding the issue of homosexuality. They’ve created a little stir in liberal media circles, who are triumphantly running pieces that contrast Andy’s more relaxed approach with Stanley Sr.’s hard-line rhetoric. Andy Stanley has a wide following, particularly in the South, and so far he’s managed to tiptoe around hot-button social issues without saying something outright heretical that would alienate his fan-base. (This fan-base includes a number of relatively conservative Christians, including... Read more
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The Enduring Power of Hymns
Much ink has been spilled over the worrying statistical reality that millennials are leaving their parents’ churches, and a lot of them don’t make a return appearance. Mega-church strategists everywhere are no doubt feverishly putting their heads together to figure out how this can still be happening (even after they installed that sick light show and put all their youth pastors in skinny jeans!) Some of these discussions are probably revolving around worship music. Maybe (some of them are still wanly... Read more