Reviewed by Tony Cummings

As we've said before on this website, Golden Gate Quartet were one of the giants of gospel music whose vast recorded output began in their early days of jubilee music, took in more modern forms of quartet gospel and ended with them recording showbiz standards on European stages. In 1939 they were riding high, recording for Victor, broadcasting for CBS and maintaining their numerous nightclub appearances. The tracks here have plenty of old time jubilee sounds like "What Did Jesus Say?", "Blind Barnabas" and the ever popular "Didn't It Rain" but there are also some pretty dreadful popular songs like the cringingly sentimental "My Prayer" and the wartime propaganda of "Stalin Wasn't Stallin'" in which patriotic Americans are called upon to help the communist dictator (here called "the noble Russian") to stop Hitler. The last four tracks on this 24-song compilation are V-discs, records cut despite the wartime ban on recording, specifically for the armed forces. Amongst them you've got a sentimental ballad "Summer Rain" and yet another recording of their big hit "The Gospel Train".

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