For our second installment in the Mahalia series, we will be looking at "Let's Pray Together". The music and arrangements were handled by legend Marty Paich. Was there any area of music this guy didn't touch??!!?? In any case, I wasn't sure what to expect with his involvement but the result is excellent.
We must keep in mind that my gospel knowledge is quite limited, but I found that Paich retained that authentic sound on this side. One thing is for sure, he gave plenty of space for Miss Jackson to do her thing. As the album plays, the songs get better and better as does her vocal. My favorite would have to be Guardian Angels. She is accompanied by Harpo Marx and much like Black Baby on the previous post, the song focuses on her amazing emotive power.
I want to apologize to Uncle Cliff for not producing "The World's Greatest..." this week. Cliff, you deserve anything you ask for (and as quickly as humanly possible!!). That said, I didn't want to forsake the quality either. And with that segway... this album was ripped at 24/44.1 wav and dithered to 16/44.1 FLAC. I cleaned it up as best as I could, but to go any further would have harmed the music - something I am unwilling to do. So we have a bit of fried chicken in the mix, but frankly with gospel I find it to be a soothing and comforting anomoly. I hope this pleases all of you gospel characters out there... enjoy!!!
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Columbia CL2130
1963
Arranged and Conducted by Marty Paich
A1 Altar Of Peace
A2 One God
A3 Let's Pray Together
A4 Without A Song
A5 Take God By The Hand
A6 Guardian Angels
B1 We Shall Overcome
B2 Song For My Brother
B3 Deep River
B4 No Night There
B5 If I Can Help Somebody
