Brian Free & Assurance - Never Alone | Absolutely Gospel Music

Brian Free & Assurance - Never Alone

2010 was one of Brian Free & Assurance's most productive years. The group released two recordings, Acappella and Never Walk Alone, both of which were produced by Ricky Free and earned the group multiple GMA Dove Awards and Absolutely Gospel Music Award nominations! Check out what group owner Brian Free had to say about the group's latest releases!

AGM: 2010 was a pretty significant year for Brian Free & Assurance - releasing two albums. Your acappella release seemed to be well received. What was the inspiration for making an all acappella recording?

Brian Free: Yes, it's was a busy year recording two projects. We normally do one every year and a half or so. So many people had wanted us to do an Acappella cd to hear just the voices without music. We've almost always done at least one Acappella song on each cd. It was a challenge but a lot of fun. Ricky [Free] worked us hard in the studio, but the results were worth it.

AGM: How many of these songs have you ended up staging at your concerts and events and what has the fan reaction been like?

BF: About half the cd at one time or the other. The fans go crazy over them.

AGM: Ricky, how did you approach song selection and arrangements for an all acappella record?

Ricky: The song selection is always a hard process. Even on records where it's all original material, my Dad has always been very hard on songs when picking them. I guess that's what has made him have so many wonderful songs over the years. As far as how I approached arrangements, I'm a really big fan of Take 6, as is the rest of the group. So for some of the more non-traditional sounding things we wanted to do, we sort of used their style as a reference for the sort of songs we wanted to cut. An acappella record always gives you options. I love getting to layer vocals with 5 and 6 parts, and really spend time making the song come to life with just the vocals.

AGM: Tell us about your brand new project - Never Walk Alone.

BF: Never Walk Alone is the best project we've ever recorded. The songs have ministered to us more than I can say. God truly blessed us with some great songs. After all, it's all about the SONG.

AGM: What songs from the new release seem to be resonating with the guys the most?

BF: I would have to say, "Never Walk Alone," "Remind Me of the Cross," "God Will Close the Door," and "The Part Where You Come In."

AGM: Assurance has always been one of the most progressive quartets in the business. What are the reasons behind staying ahead of the curve for you guys?

BF: We like to challenge ourselves. When you turn your radio on, you hear a lot of gospel music that sounds alike. I want people to know it's us. And more than anything, we need to be careful and concentrate on the SONG more, not necessarily bottle yourself into a style.

AGM: Brian - what's it like having your son sit in the producer's chair for such a pivotal release?

BF: It's a blessing! Ricky has more talent in one finger than I have in my whole body. God has given him many gifts, and I'm so proud to have him sharing them with us.

AGM: Ricky, what's it like producing your Dad?

Ricky: You know producing Dad is so easy. It's obviously any producer's dream when you get to work with vocalists who are just great singers like all four of those guys are. They can always do exactly what you're asking of them because they're great. You would think that when a father and son get involved in an undertaking like making a record that there would be all sorts of family, nit-picky quarrels, but it's really the exact opposite. Over the years, having done four records with them now, he's really learned to trust me. Most of the time I know what he's going to say before he even says it anyways, and it's always a joy to get to work with talent of that level.

AGM: Brian - your group has gained more exposure recently with your tenure as the host of GMC's Southern Gospel program Four. What was that experience like, and have you had any more experiences like that?

BF: Hosting the show Four on GMC has been so much fun. I was honored that they would ask me to do it. I only wish it had gone on for many years. Unfortunately, they have dropped the taping of the show for the future because of some inside changes at the network.

AGM: What's the future hold for Brian Free & Assurance?

BF: I pray that it holds blessings from God. I pray that He will anoint us and the songs we sing to further the kingdom. We're not a SHOW group (although we have a LOT of fun), we're more interested in pointing people to the cross.

Be listening for Brian Free & Assurance's new #1 single "Never Walk Alone" at Southern Gospel radio all across the nation. To find out more on this impressive group, visit http://www.brianfreeandassurance.com!