Ben Harper There Will Be Light CD

This is an Enhanced CD, which contains both regular audio tracks and multimedia computer files.
Ben Harper: Ben Harper (vocals, guitar); Clarence Fountain, Jimmy Carter , George Scott, Tracy Pierce, Bobby Butler, Ricke McKinnie, Joey Williams (vocals).
Additional personnel: Jason Yates, Marc Ford , Michael Ward , Juan Nelson, Leon Mobley, Oliver Charles, Rock Deadrick.
Audio Mixer: Jimmy Hoyson.
Recording information: Capitol Studio B, Hollywood, CA.
Photographer: Steve Sherman.
Arranger: Ben Harper & the Innocent Criminals.
Ben Harper's history with the Blind Boys of Alabama has been an evolving one that has moved from being a guest on their landmark Higher Ground offering and touring with them in Europe, to the Blind Boys joining Ben and the Innocent Criminals on-stage at the front and back of the show. This album began as a series of rehearsals for collaboration on a Blind Boys of Alabama record. Recorded in two sessions, the vibe in the room was loose and creative enough that the two acts ended up with an album of collaborative material for joint release. And this is a collaboration in the truest sense of the word. It's not just Ben playing gospel, or the Blind Boys of Alabama singing on a Ben Harper record. These ten tunes -- with seven Harper originals written specifically for the sessions, the rest traditional gospel tunes and covers -- showcase Harper and the Innocent Criminals alongside the Blind Boys of Alabama. The album kicks off with Harper's "Take My Hand," a funky gospel tune that showcases a Fender Rhodes and Harper's wah-wah pedal underscored by the call and response of the Blind Boys repeating the title after each sung line of the verse, before Clarence Fountain takes it out. "Wicked Man" is a Southern soul tune that has a Muscle Shoals groove and a beautiful vocal weave on the refrain. "Church House Steps" is pure gospel groove with a Hammond B3 and a smoking duet between the Blind Boys' layered harmonies and Harper on the verses with full-on blues feel in his singing and playing. There's a killer cover of the Bob Dylan/Danny O'Keefe tune, "Well, Well, Well," with Delta blues bottleneck shimmering through the intertwined vocal lines. The deep, nocturnal sparseness of "Satisfied Mind" is a complete re-reading of the nugget with a swampy backbeat. And this album works beautifully. Nothing sounds forced, all of it loose and comfortable and the vocal performances on both sides are simply stellar. Highly recommended. ~ Thom Jurek
This collaboration between Ben Harper and the Blind Boys of Alabama draws heavily from blues and gospel traditions. Many of the songs on THERE WILL BE A LIGHT, particularly "Take My Hand" and "Mother Pray," are highly devotional. However, unlike many of the spiritual records on the market, this album is musically diverse and non-formulaic. And, despite the finely wrought production, Harper retains an earthy, organic feel throughout this intimate outing, which relies more on subtlety and nuance than blatant preaching.
THERE WILL BE A LIGHT also emulates Depression-era blues very well. "11th Commandment" and "Well Well Well" feature Harper's slide guitar, and his soulful playing harks back to the work of Robert Johnson and Elmore James. Unlike some revivalists, Harper shows that he understands--and has internalized--the Delta blues and gospel traditions. Of course, one can't overstate the contribution the Blind Boys of Alabama bring to this album. Their passionate harmonies add warmth and grace to each and every song.Rolling Stone (p.110) - 3 stars out of 5 - "'Where Could I Go,' which plays like an elegantly spaced Fifties rock ballad, is a wonder....'Well, Well, Well' sounds like a lost, brilliant 78-rpm side."
Entertainment Weekly (p.69) - "[T]his union of the slide-playing roots rocker and the veteran gospel septet feels relaxed and natural." - Grade: B+
Uncut (p.105) - 3 stars out of 5 - "It's as inspirational as you would expect from such a blues-gospel summit to be. Harper contributes stinging slide guitar and adds his own distinctive vocals to those of the magnificent Clarence Fountain."