Reviewed by Tony Cummings

For many years a mysterious group in the history of black religious recordings, it now seems that the Biddleville Quintette came from the Biddleville community on the north side of Charlotte, North Carolina. The 16 sides compiled here shows this male group mixing the elements of four-part quartet harmony and congregational singing complete with emotional fervour. Consequently tracks like "As I Live Let Me Live" and "Blessed Be The Tie That Binds" have something of the urgency of the later hard gospel quartets. Also a delight is the long tenor moan lines that float above "I'm Tormented In The Flame". As well as these tracks there are four sides from the Birmingham Jubilee Singers recorded in Atlanta in 1930 and a side from the Silver Leaf Quartette Of Norfolk which complete the repertoire of these groups compiled on other Document CDs.

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