Perrys – "Remembering the Happy Goodmans", ReviewsCD Review

Oct

2005

Perrys – "Remembering the Happy Goodmans"

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[13] Comments

Producer: Wayne Haun
Label: Daywind Music
Website: www.perrysministries.com

I have been going over and over in my head the best way to do this review. Being a fan of the Perrys and being a ‘dyed in the wool’ Goodman fan and self-proclaimed "Goodman know-it-all", it’s been hard for me to gather my thoughts together to accurately and objectively review this recording. But nonetheless, here it goes…

I know people recently have gone round and round over if this is a good recording or not or if the Perrys really accomplished what they set out to do, etc. etc. etc. But looking out over the Southern Gospel landscape, there is no other group in gospel music that can sing Goodman songs the way the Goodmans did any better than the Perrys. Even though the Perrys don’t have the exact same charisma or magnetism as the Goodmans did (let’s face it, there will only be ONE Happy Goodman Family, and the Perrys know that!) and even though the vocal structure of the Perrys is a bit different from the Goodmans, they pull it off like no one else can do. When I say the vocal structure is different, here is an example…Rusty Goodman was a bass/baritone/lead and Tracy Stuffle is a bass, though he does stretch himself quite a bit on "HOW MUCH MORE", almost to the point where it sounds like he’s straining, but he pulls it off okay. Also, on songs like "SHOUTIN’ SOUNDS" and "I WOULDN’T TAKE NOTHING FOR MY JOURNEY NOW", Rusty would sing the verses and then fall down into the bass line on the chorus and Howard sang the melody, whereas with the Perrys rendition of these tunes respectively, Loren Harris and Joseph Habedank sing the verses. So, the vocal structure of the Perrys is a little different, which makes it impossible to 100% match what the Goodmans did. But the Perrys came as close as I think anyone ever could.

Of course, the Perrys show they can sing those convention style songs (of which I am such a sucker for) better than anyone on "WHEN THEY RING THE BELLS OF HEAVEN", "WHEN IT ALL START’S HAPPENING" and "LIVING IN CANAAN NOW". The group also does well on "THE EASTERN GATE", though it does lack some of the excitement of the Goodmans version.

Joseph turns in an excellent performance on "WHO AM I?" and Libby turns in what I think is one of her best performances ever on an unusual pick that most people don’t think of when they think "Goodman" which originally featured Johnny Cook called, "OVER THE NEXT HILL". The only song that doesn’t really work for me is "I DON’T REGRET A MILE". Recitations are so hard to do and only a very few number of people have been able to pull them off and keep my interest.

The remaining six tunes, "THE SWEETEST SONG I KNOW", "WAIT’LL YOU SEE MY BRAND NEW HOME", "I’M TOO NEAR HOME", "GOD WALKS THE DARK HILLS", "WHAT A BEAUTIFUL DAY" and "WHEN MORNING SWEEPS THE EASTERN SKY" were pulled from the Perrys recordings, "Hits & Hymns Volumes 1 & 2", which were recorded in 2001 and 2002 respectively. While I completely understand why these last 6 were included, it is like night and day with the remainder of the recording. The first 10 songs, it’s obvious that the group is trying to mimic the sound of the Goodmans, vocally and musically. I mean, they have the movements down to an art, even down to the cymbal crash on the final chorus of "I WOULDN’T TAKE NOTHING FOR MY JOURNEY NOW". Those songs from the "H&H" recordings were not arranged in the same fashion, so they tend to stick out like a sore thumb, and too, former Perry’s vocalist Curt Davis is still in the mix. I would be more accepting of including those songs if they were singled out as "Bonus Tracks". I don’t have the retail copy to know for sure, but I can only assume they were not separated as such.

I would have loved to hear the Perrys redo their versions of "Joy in the Morning" or "What Heaven Means to Me" or break into "John the Revelator", "Meet Me Over on the Other Side", "I Believe He’s Coming Back", "What a Lovely Name" or "Had it Not Been". What would really have been neat would be to have a song or two where the Goodmans would sing, or have one of them do a verse, and then fade the Perrys in with their version. (Kind of like what Greater Vision did on their "Quartets" CD) I remember Roger McDuff did a tribute recording to Jack Holcomb several years ago and he did a couple of duets with Jack using vintage recordings. Something like that would have really been cool.

When artists do these types of tribute recordings, they leave themselves open to a wide variety of opinions because these vintage groups still have fans (like myself) that have very high expectations. There isn’t another group who could pull off the Goodman sound as good as the Perrys. Overall, this is a splendid piece of work and the Perrys, along with all those involved, did a super job duplicating and replicating that Goodman sound that I love so much. It is obvious that this was a labor of love for the Perrys and a commendable recording at the very least.

Personal Favs: WHEN THEY RING THE BELLS OF HEAVEN; WHO AM I?; SHOUTIN’ SOUNDS; OVER THE NEXT HILL; I WOULDN’T TAKE NOTHING FOR MY JOURNEY NOW; LIVING IN CANAAN NOW

Reader Comments

James, thanks for the great commentary on this CD. I love the Goodmans and the Perrys too. I ordered this CD, but am still waiting for it to arrive, so i can't wait to listen to it for sure.

Commented by On 10/03/2005

I rated this recording at 4 Stars. The Perrys have recaptured the feel of the Happy Goodmans, which should do well for them in a commercial sense. They've even adopted a similar production quality with the music tracks that evoke familiar feelings when you listen.

This project can be compared to a painter trying to duplicate a Norman Rockwell painting. The closest you can possibly come is a good imitation. I personally would have preferred to hear the Perrys put their own unique mark on these songs rather than attempting to mimic the originals so closely, but as far as imitations go, they've done a very good job with it.

Commented by David Bruce Murray On 10/04/2005

I highly recommend this project to any Perrys or Goodmans fan. It's hard to beat the orignal recording of anything but the Perrys definitely capture the spirit of the Goodmans on this one. 4 and a half stars,definitely.

Commented by HAMMER On 10/19/2005

Growing up in a fundamentalist Baptist household, the Goodmans were sort of off limits to me in public. Sure, Dad-a quartet man himself-loved them, but you didn't go public with admiring the music of a holy roller in those days. Yet, there records filled our house when none of the other deacons were around. I waited for this release and then was disappointed. As a friend said, "if I want to hear almost exact replicas of the Goodman's, I'd have bought an old Goodman's album." And so it is. I love the Perrys when Loren Harris sings lead and the others sing their parts, but to mimic the Great Goodmans, it just didn't come over as a great project to me. I look forward to their new album and I'll enjoy this one. Just not as much as I thought I would.

Commented by On 10/20/2005

i went last night and listened to the perrys , i can say i know they are not the happy goodmans , as god only made one of them and there will never be another person who can sing like the happy goodmans did , but if any body can it will be the perrys as i have not heard any one who can come any where close to singing like them except the perrys.
Remeber god made us all different and if he had wanted another person to sing just like the Happy Goodmans he would have made a anothe rpair. and as far as i am concerned there is not one.

Commented by On 10/28/2005

To say the Perrys did a great job would be an understatement. IMO, very few groups can capture the sounds of our legends gone on. The Perrys did more than that with this project.
My personal favs are...Who Am I, Wouldn't Take Nothing for My Journey Now, and God Walks The Dark Hills.
Keep Up The Great Work!
God Bless You All!

Commented by On 10/28/2005

As a huge Goodmans and Perrys fan I was enthralled to learn of this project. As a whole I was pleased with it. I have to agree though that I was dissapointed with What a Beautiful Day, Too Near Home, and Sweetest Song I Know. After reading the above reveiw it makes sense. Personally what would've really done it for me, was if they could've found a piano player who did a pretty good imitation of Howard for a few of the songs.

Commented by On 10/30/2005

love the cd ,.love the perry sound
always good to hear some old familiar songs redone in a refreshing way ,.but still sticking to the roots
james metcalf wjfj radio

Commented by On 11/02/2005

Fantastic job! This CD is so good, it has become one of my favorites.

Commented by On 11/05/2005

I can't believe what is being spoken on this page! The whole reason for singing "GOSPEL" music
is that the Lord would save those listening and snatch them from the pit of Hell but instead we are debating if the Perrys did a "good job".
AM I MISSING SOMETHING? We should be praying for this project to reach those who are lost instead of asking are they as good as the "Goodmans".
GOD FORGIVE US!!!

Commented by On 11/07/2005

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