Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Three seriously hot gospel artists live at the Gospel Music Workshop Of America's bash. The video is worth the price alone for the truly astonishing O'Landa Draper And The Associates Choir. O'Landa leads his mighty voiced, holler-down-the-church saints through a batch of fearsomely fiery whoop ups while leader O'Landa all extravagant arm gestures, dipping shoulders, hilarious facial expressions and screamed exhortations to follow Jesus is a hypnotic apparition. The Associates are followed by the first lady of gospel Shirley Ceasar who, dressed in a strange creation like a shredded choir robe shows she still has plenty of her old Caravans fire. She gets the diners up from the tables and praising when she does a fiery sermonette leading into the seriously soulful dirge-slow "He's Working It Out For You". Swooping down into the crowd and cameras she rings every bit of emotion out of the song. Can anything beat this? Well, the Rev Milton Brunson & The Thompson Community Singers give it a good go. Furious tempoed numbers get the choir whipping themselves into a lather. All the elderly Brunson does most of the time is look on admiringly. By the time "My Mind Is Made Up" is reached the crowd and onlookers have reached near apoplexy. A more exciting video of raw, black gospel you're unlikely to find.

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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