Reviewed by Trevor Kirk

If you know anything at all about soul gospel and similar genres, then you will have no difficulty in recognising the name of Michael Brooks. Founder member of the legendary group Commissioned, Michael has been involved in the US music scene for over 20 years, and this release shows that he's not lost his touch. For this, the first project by Royal Priesthood, 23 voices described as "a high energy young choir with a fresh sound", Michael has written 10 new songs and has roped in various members of his family to help out, including his wife Lisa on "I Say Thank You". Some may find the spoken intros a tad cheesy and a few of the songs seem to end a little early; in fact, by gospel standards, a run time of under 40 minutes for 10 tracks is rather stingy. Even so, this is good quality stuff, worth investigating if your tastes veer towards the African American worship tradition.

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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