Not everybody's cup of tea maybe but I don't think you have to believe that every word they sing is true to appreciate the emotional investment that these singers make in their music. Not to mention the actual power of some of the singing. There are some great voices here. For me a gospel choir at full throttle is a thing of beauty and, yes, power.
Some songs tonight I don't recognise (including a particularly funky "Happy Are The People"--I looked it up on youtube when I got home). Some I'm more familiar with (I've had a 12" copy of the Winans' version of "Let My People Go" since the eighties). And there are some all-too-familiar songs ("Kum Ba Yah" and "Amazing Grace") although the arrangements were a good deal more sophisticated than our primary school versions where out-of-tune recorders always featured prominently.
And no way would I consider joining in with "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" under normal circumstances but somehow, with the Welsh rugby team turning over the English at Twickenham this afternoon for the first time in twenty years, it somehow felt right...
Usual web links: Wikipedia, youtube, myspace
...and more generally: historical background of Gospel music, some Gospel radio stations
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