V/A - A Stranger I May Be: Savoy Gospel 1954 - 1966 2LP (Honest Jon's)

NZ$50.00

The first of three volumes surveying surely the mightiest Gospel label of them all.
Stomping, rollicking gospel music, intermingling with raw soul, searing blues, hard-rocking doo-wop and jazz, and storming r&b.
Infused and incandescent with the hurting, surging indignation of the Civil Rights movement, here are twenty-four precious scorchers by giants like the Staple Singers and Jimmy Scott, alongside devastating sides by less celebrated names like the Harmonising Five of Burlington, North Carolina, and teen-group the North Philadelphia Juniors, culminating triumphantly with slamming, sanctified versions of Hit The Road Jack and Wade In The Water. Drawn from nigh-impossible-to-find 78s, sevens and LPs, hardly any of these recordings have been reissued since their first release.

Presented in a gatefold sleeve, with full-size booklet; beautifully designed, with stunning, rare photographs and original Savoy artwork. Sound restoration and mastering at Abbey Road; pressed at Pallas.

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Co-curated by Greg Belson, compiler of Divine Disco; with deep, extensive notes by Robert Marovich, author of A City Called Heaven: Chicago and the Birth of Gospel Music (University of Illinois), and host of the award-winning radio show Gospel Memories.

1. Famous Ward Singers - I'm Getting Richer

2. The Harmonizing Five - I Don't Need Nobody But The Lord

3. The Sensational Six - Let Freedom Ring

4. The Gospel Harmonettes Specials - How Much More

5. The Christones - Lord, It's Me

6. The Staple Singers - Low Is The Way

7. Swindell Brothers - Trouble Of Mine

8. The Roberta Martin Singers - I'm Glad I'm A Witness For My Lord

9. Jimmy Scott - Sometimes I Feel Like A Motherless Child

10. Shirley Caesar And The Caravans - He First Loved Me

11. The Blind Boys of Alabama - On Some Day

12. The Hightower Brothers - He That Believed