New Ernie Haase & Signature Sound DVD Released

According to Ernie’s blog….

“We’re excited to announce our new Christmas DVD, the companion to our “Every Light That Shines At Christmas” CD, which debuted at No. 1 on the Southern Gospel Music Chart and at No. 2 on the Contemporary Christian Music Chart.

The DVD is a recording of the live Christmas show we produced at the Gospel Music Channel back in August. Thanks again to all who joined us for the taping. “Ernie Haase & Signature Sound Christmas” makes its exclusive world premiere on GMC Nov. 28 at 9 pm ET with a replay at 10 pm and also on Nov. 29 at 11 am. There should be airdates in December, too. We’ll let you know!

Our festive and hope-filled new Christmas DVD song collection features traditional favorites, playful remakes and new music, all wrapped up in energetic arrangements and classic EHSS harmonies. This unique recording honors the miraculous birth and life of our Savior, and the childlike wonder that makes Christmas merry every year.”

- Ernie Haase

 

If the DVD is anywhere near as good as the CD, this will be a great DVD and accompanying product to the recent CD. Hopefully i will purchase one and watch it Christmas Eve. That’s the plan anyway!

Kingsmen Quartet Suffer Bus Accident

In an email that dropped into my inbox this evening i learned of the following incident.

I quote,

“Asheville, NC – At approximately 4 a.m., this past Sunday morning, the Kingsmen Quartet were involved in an accident while in route to the date in Angleton, Texas. With approximately 4 miles to go to their destination, their driver had just left an intersection at a 4 way stop when their bus was rear-ended by a passenger vehicle. No one was injured, but the collision rendered the bus inoperable. Music City Coach came to their rescue with another bus and the Kingsmen Quartet were able to fulfill their dates and head towards home.”

- Ray Reese

Keep the Kingsmen and their travel plans in your thoughts and prayers. This serves as a reminder that artists and groups on the road really do need our prayers of protection. Thank God nobody was injured, but it could easily have been different.

Read the article online here.

CathedralsTribute.com Updated

Over at southerngospelblog.com Daniel Mount has an interesting post up on how he has freshened up the Cathedrals Tribute site.

After a quick browse through the relaunched site, it really is a wealth of accurate, concise and interesting information. Perfect for anyone interested in Cathedrals history or wanting to clarify their knowledge of the Cathedrals from a certain period.

Thanks for the hard work Daniel!

You can find the results of Daniel’s labors here.

Catch Legacy Five Online

In an email from Legacy Five, the opportunity has arisen to watch the group perform at El Cajon Wesleyan Church (south of San Diego, CA).

This will be via online streaming and they will be performing on Sunday night, November 22 at 6:30PM Pacific time.

This is a great opportunity to watch the group in its current line-up and to  catch Frank Seamans performing for possibly the last time.

Click here and then select “Watch Live” to see the group.

I guess it’s the closest thing to seeing the group live as i will get, considering i live on the other side of the world!!

YouTube Find – Unclouded Day – The Cathedrals

Mack Taunton sounds really good here. His voice is really full and controlled, SG could do with more tenors like this!  I wish he had stayed longer with the Cathedrals, but at least we have Youtube and its fabulous archive style of classic moments and recordings.

The uploader, BnCSGMusic, has an absolute truckload of stuff on his channel. I really recommend that you check it out. Mind you, it is addictive!!

Album Review- Every Light That Shines At Christmas – Ernie Haase & Signature Sound

Every Light That Shines At Christmas CD Cover

Every Light That Shines At Christmas is the second Christmas project to be released by Ernie Haase & Signature Sound.

I really do enjoy a good Christmas project, be it secular or Gospel, but when you combine rich, sterling 4 – part harmony to Christmas classics, novelty songs and new songs, it really makes for a unique and enjoyable combination. On this particular project we have 16 tracks of Christmas cheer and fun.

1. He Started The Whole World Singing/O Come, All Ye Faithful - Ernie Haase opens this soft and gentle opening cut on the album. I enjoy how the song gradually picks up more and more momentum until the climatic finish. The Voices of Lee feature in this song as well as a children’s choir, which gives it a real Christmas feel. Once the track moves into the second song, O Come All Ye Faithful, there is full orchestration and gives the track a real punchy feel. The vocals are well mixed with the Voices of Lee, sometimes on songs that features choirs, it is easy for the choir to drown out the quartet, but not in this instance.
2. Marshmallow World – A lively and bouncy tune which features the whole group on the opening lines. The best feature of this song is on certain lines the whole group sings the lead, there is no harmony, so when they revert back to the harmony it makes it more pronounced and noticable. Wonderfully arranged and sung.
3. Every Light That Shines At Christmas – The title track is an up tempo and country flavoured gem. On the first few spins of the CD, it reminded me of Glory To God In The Highest of their first Christmas album. Punctuated with horns and other orchestration it makes for a great cut. All the group members are featured on different parts with a collective element shown on the second half of the song, driving it to the big finish. This would be sure to get you up on your feet at live concerts.
4. Redeeming Love - A slower, reflective portrait of why Jesus Christ came to earth, to seek and save. The song starts out featuring Ryan Seaton. I have already covered that Ryan is developing and becoming more and more asserted in his performances, particularly in the live setting.  The song is then taken up by Ernie Haase and he takes it through to the chorus. A great song that is already became a favourite on my list. Some nice high notes and a big ballad finish to this song make it for me. I’d also like to see this live.
5. Changed By A Baby Boy- Another great little gem from this CD. Changed By A Baby Boy features Ryan Seaton with the quartet adding in an echo type backing vocal. It goes over very well live, especially the chorus, it’s a very catchy and simple lyric to sing. Jeff Foster described this tune as having “a decidedly Reggae/Caribbean sound and beat to it”, which i agree with completely. It makes the tune different and very accessible to potential listeners from outside the southern gospel genre.
6. Mr Heat Miser – Arguably the most novel and fun song on the project! A great little tune with some great vocal arrangements and tricks. The most notable aspect would be the trade-off between Ernie and Tim portraying different characters of the song. Tim delivers his very well, stepping well into the “gruff old man” idea.
7. Thank God For Kids – Worth the entire price of the album if i’m honest.  It is beautiful. Doug Anderson has a great voice, and to see it on an iconic country anthem like “Thank God For Kids” was a great decision. Maybe what makes this song is the simplicity in the arrangement and the light accompaniment. I particularly like the way Doug injects his own little stamp on the song with his unique delivery. The harmony parts with Ernie on the verses are also lovely. A brilliant cut and gives this old classic new life.
8. Christmas Is Christmas (Wherever You Are) - A slow and reflective song about those who can’t be together in person at Christmas, yet in spirit we are all together. A children’s choir adds their contribution to the song with some stellar vocals from the quartet.
9. God Rest Ye Merry Gentlemen – A Cappella features on this song and the arrangement is fabulous. Think the delicate and complex arrangements from the Gaither Vocal Band’s a capella project and you get my drift. I love a good bass singer and on this song you can clearly hear Tim’s deep vocals in the mix, possible they have been pushed out a little more, which makes for a great bass undercurrent throughout the song. Tim and Doug sing together at one stage, cascading down the notes together, which is a lovely moment. They build up the finish and take it home by having Ernie reach for the stars vocally and Tim dropping down nice and low.
10. What Child Is This? – A lovely big ballad, which starts of softly and ends softly with big orchestration and high notes throughout the majority of the song. This track has some well arranged vocals and features Doug and Ernie throughout its duration.
11. If It Doesn’t Snow On Christmas – Another fun number from the project. The track opens up with Tim Duncan on vocals which sets off the track with me! it definitely appears to be marketed towards children, their is a noticable clarity and distinction to Doug and Ryan’s diction feature on the later verses.  The whole song just radiates with the one question that many children will have, If it doesn’t snow on Christmas how will Santa use his sleigh?! But Ernie will let him use their bus. According to the lyrics anyway!
12. All I Want Is You - A further a cappella number from the group. It has a great arrangement and feels just right at that part of the CD. I would love the group to do a whole a cappella CD. With these arrangements and talent that they possess, it would be a truly great project.
13. Christmas In Indiana – A mid tempo tune from the pen of Gloria and Benjamin Gaither. This was the first time i had ever heard this tune and it was a pleasant experience. It paints a beautiful picture of family being reunited for Christmas and spending Christmas with a loved one. This is the type of tune i can imagine being on in the background whilst decorating the Christmas Tree or whilst having family over to celebrate.
14. Silent Night – The last a cappella piece on the project. Boy did they leave the best til last. They make it sound so easy yet i’m sure the complex vocal arrangements are hard to do. It sounds great. My favourite part is at the end on the “sleep in heavenly peace” line. Ernie sings softly yet in a really high note, it could be falsetto, more musically aware people can step in and correct me if im wrong! But whatever it is…..it’s sublime!!
15. Light A Candle – This is a song is somewhat similar to “We Need Each Other” of the Dream On album in its collective and “reaching out” nature. It highlights the need to remember that not everyone gets to enjoy Christmas in the way we maybe do. Emphasis is placed upon the need to love, care and respect each other.
16. Amen – Elvis fans may recognise this track. It uses the same basic structure of the song that Elvis used to feature J.D Sumner most nights. It is widely known that Ernie is a big Elvis fan so maybe that is where the influence was derived from.  It goes over well in a live setting. The crowd all become backing vocalists and sing the under current “Amen, Amen, Amen” part whilst the featured vocalist does their part on top. A great way to close out the album.

Easily the best of their two Christmas projects. It is a fun project, with elements of sincerity thrown in. It is a very uplifting and enjoyable CD. A friend of mine who works in a premier menswear shop, commented that they would have no problem playing the CD over the PA system for customers to enjoy. This exemplifies just how flexible Ernie Haase & Signature Sound can be with their music. It has something for everyone, yet it is uniquely EHSS in its musical stylings and delivery.

Vocally they have never sounded better. Bold statement yes, but give the CD a listen and let me know if you agree. I think it’s only natural to get better and better vocally as time goes on with the same group. Ernie Haase and Ryan Seaton in particular sound very good on this album. A fun album for a fun time of year!

Verdict – A must have.  :)

This project is available from www.ehssq.com



Ernie Haase & Signature Sound To Embark On European Tour

Whilst attending the Gaither Homecoming Concert in Glasgow, Scotland last month, we were greeted with the news that Ernie Haase & Signature Sound would be returning to the UK in February 2010. I had been informed of this by a good friend who had attended the Belfast concert a few nights previous. Exciting stuff to say the least.

For the benefit of any UK readers of this blog here is the UK Tour breakdown of venues and tickets -

1. First up is my home country of Northern Ireland. On Friday 19th February 2010 at Assembly Buildings, Belfast, you can catch Ernie and the boys live. Tickets are only £19 and this represents fabulous value for money! Tickets are available from Faith Mission Belfast or Portadown. Tickets are also available from www.erniehaasetour.co.uk
2. The next destination of the tour is in Scotland. The venue is a Church called Findlay Memorial in Glasgow. Tickets are also available from www.erniehaasetour.co.uk and from the Wesley Owen bookshop at their Glasgow branch.
3. Finishing off the tour is a lovely location in London, namely City Temple, Old Hoburn. Again the tickets are available from www.erniehaasetour.co.uk

This is fabulous news for Southern Gospel fans and for fans of Ernie Haase & Signature Sound from within the UK. What it demonstrates for me is the sort of growth and success that Signature Sound have managed to achieve. To undertake a tour of this magnitude is a big challenge. I have only covered the UK segment of the tour, the entire European Tour looks likely to spread over the 11th  to the 21st of February.

From a personal perspective, i am delighted about the prospect of having an EHSS solo concert. Whilst i thoroughly enjoyed the Gaither Homecoming Concerts, i always have hoped and wished that one day EHSS would come back on their own and we would get to experience a full length concert. At last, it seems, i will have another experience to remember and cherish! I plan to attend at least one, most likely two of the concerts, so you can expect a concert review or two in February 2010!

All tickets available from www.erniehaasetour.co.uk, just click on the relevant icon for the venue where you wish to attend. I would book as soon as one can, i would doubt that tickets for these events will hang around. Book now and tick off the days!

Concert Review – Gaither European Homecoming Tour – Glasgow, Scotland

As i had a prior engagement on the Thursday 22nd October the day the Gaither Homecoming Tour rolled into Belfast, i booked tickets for the following concert, on the 24th in the Armadillo in Glasgow Scotland.  Not long after the Gaither Vocal Band had experienced well documented changes, this concert was announced and so i was very, very keen to see what they would deliver.

The artist roster was filled with the likes of Buddy Greene, Janet Paschal, Kevin Williams,  Gordan Moate, Lynda Randle, Gaither Vocal Band and of course Ernie Haase & Signature Sound.

The Concert opened up with Kevin Williams playing, “Uncloudy Day” and getting the crowd focused upon the evenings proceedings. Then Bill came on stage and started singing a few well – known songs and choruses with the crowd. Bill then introduced Janet Paschal.  Janet can stand up there and really sing with such clarity and conviction. She pours out her life through song. I thoroughly enjoyed her set, as did the crowd and Bill Gaither who encouraged an encore of her last song, “God Will Make A Way”. Lynda Randle followed and the crowd warmed to her with her renditions of “God on The Mountain” and a few others. Buddy Greene was a great performer who did a few old hymns, notably “Come Thou Fount of Every Blessing” and shared his amazing harmonica talents with the crowd. It is simply a level above what the YouTube videos show you with his talents. It takes it too be seen live to fully appreciate it. Fabulous stuff.

Gordon Moate was a great entertainer. Whilst i am not a piano player, my father is and he was very much impressed and indeed somewhat blown away with his stunning gifts. It would be easy to divulge into  superlatives at this point so just go and see him live. It is the only thing that makes you realise just how fabulous Gordon is.

Then the moment which for me, had taken a long time coming. Bill introduced Ernie Haase & Signature Sound and before he got his introduction finished people were cheering and clapping.  They opened with “Wonderful Grace of Jesus”. Now immediately with Ernie’s heritage with the Cathedrals, it is easy to assume that this version would be a copy. No way! The arrangement is tweaked enough to make you aware that this EHSS’ version yet retains the beautiful a capella integrity which made the song such a hit for the Cathedrals. Tim Duncan also was sliding down to some lovely rich deep tones. They then hit the energy button and performed one of my personal favourites, “Glory To God in The Highest”. The crowd response was so much that they encored it three times before moving on. There also was a cute moment where Ernie Haase had a little child come up on stage who was dancing in the aisle to dance with them on stage. The child played it perfectly and didnt get stage fright. A lovely moment!

Possibly the highlight of the concert came next. Ernie Haase & Signature Sound performed, “Oh What a Saviour”. One of my all time favourite songs and to have it performed live was something else. They used the same procedure as the NQC, started the song off acoustically and then the track punched in and drove the song to its climatic finish. Ernie really nailed this song and hit the high notes perfectly. Definite highlight of the night. From their new Christmas CD we got to listen to “Changed By A Baby Boy” a lively and punctuated song featuring Ryan Seaton. Ryan really has developed and developed as a lead singer with EHSS and this was clear with his confident, classy and composed delivery. They only performed four or five songs in total but for all you UK readers out there, EHSS are coming back on a European Tour which will include the UK. I will have a later post to explain this.

After this the Auditorium went black and deep bass notes tumbled from the speakers and sub – woofer. The Alpha and Omega track started, five blue-black figures started to sing….it was the Gaither Vocal Band. They sang the longest out of all the groups on the first half and they did not disappoint. The range of material covered “He Touched Me, Make It Real, Satisfied, Mary Did You Know, I Believe In A Hill Called Mount Calvary, Journey To The Sky and Lord Feed Your Children”. Seeing Michael English perform was also a particular highlight and it is just emanates from the man that God has moved, worked and restored. His voice is something else, simply of those extremely talented individuals that can really sing. I loved his solo verses on “Lord Feed Your Children, These Are They and I Believe In  A Hill Called Mount Calvary”.  Mark Lowry was hilarious and i was in stitches during “Jesus On The Mainline”. I’ve seen it a lot on YouTube, yet it was just fabulous in reality.

The homecoming section had all the artists gathered round and featured some songs of the “Together” project which was fun to watch and enjoy. Bill called upon Buddy Greene to share some more, Lynda Randle had another few songs, the audience helped out and sang along when required.

It was a brilliant concert a nd the venue was also superb. Sound quality was loud yet not over powering or painful. The bass was warm and balanced, not booming or distracting. Tim Duncan’s low notes really sounded great. For anyone wondering just how good the “new” Gaither Vocal Band are, GO! you will not be disappointed. They cover such a palate of material that their really is something for everyone to enjoy. Sure there is even a dash of opera in the form of, “Nessun Dorma” performed by David Phelps.

I cannot wait until Ernie Haase & Signature Sound are back in the UK. What they performed and sang in Glasgow was not enough for me. I wanted more!! but I will definitely be catching them once, maybe even twice when they are back!!

The Legacy Continues: Gus Gaches Named Tenor for L5

Gus Gaches is the new Legacy Five tenor. Broken by Nate over at Nate’s Southern Gospel Ponderings. From reading around it would appear that this man is more than a tenor singer, add in the sound engineer element and the writing element and you have quite a utility man in the quartet. I look forward to seeing what Gus brings to the table with Legacy Five. Scott Fowler will have made a great choice and let’s hope this line-up produce even better projects than in the past.

On a another point, i believe we should be congratulating Legacy Five on the very professional way in which they handled this transition phase. Fans were kept informed, up to date and clear on what was happening. A class act. Best wishes for the future Legacy Five and Gus!

Read Legacy Fives’s perspective and other details on the new Tenor at their blog , located here.

Concert Review – Gaither Homecoming Tour – Belfast, Northern Ireland

The following review is from Chloe Brown. She attended the Gaither concert in my home country of Northern Ireland. I was not able to attend this concert as my girlfriend and i had a formal date. The following Saturday however, i hopped on a boat and travelled over to Scotland to see the Gaither Tour and my review will be coming asap. Enjoy!

22nd October 2009 saw the return of the Gaither Homecoming European Tour to Belfast, Northern Ireland.  Since their first visit to Northern Ireland almost thirty-three years ago, Bill and Gloria Gaither have revisited on numerous occasions along with a group of their homecoming friends. Each visit has always received a great response and positive feedback – This year was no different!

With a great line up set to perform, I waited anxiously for the night of the concert to come. As I had only gotten back into listening to Southern Gospel Music within the last eighteen months, I had missed the last Gaither Homecoming European Tour so this was my first concert of any sort – ever. What a brilliant concert to have as my first!

A list of well-known Southern Gospel artists joined Bill and Gloria Gaither on this tour. They were:
Lynda Randle;
Janet Paschal;
Gordon Mote;
Buddy Greene;
Kevin Williams
Ernie Haase and Signature Sound;
and the *ALL NEW* Gaither Vocal Band Quintet which now includes:
Bill Gaither, Michael English, Mark Lowry, David Phelps and Wes Hampton.

Even before the concert had begun, what really impressed me was that the artists were standing in the foyer, signing autographs, posing for pictures and taking time to talk to all their fans! – for me, this really sets them apart from any other performers as not only do they entertain from on stage, they also personally meet and greet their fans. Of course, I was included in the huge gathering of fans.. especially the ones surrounding Ernie Haase and Signature Sound! I know, I know, this sounds a little feeble but since first hearing them, it has always been one of my ambitions to meet and talk to Ernie Haase and Signature Sound in person.. It was great! They are so laid back, kind hearted and genuine good people. I know that they were probably completely exhausted with two and a half weeks of traveling all around Europe, but they didn’t show it at all. They greeted me with a warm ‘Hello’ and handshake, and were more than happy to spend time in conversation and get their photos taken with me.

Kevin Williams warmed the audience up by playing well known Gospel hymns on the guitar and with the help of three large screens displaying the lyrics, the whole audience were able to join in and sing along. Buddy Greene also entertained the crowd with a traditional Irish tune ‘Red Haired boy’ played on the harmonica. Maybe not my favourite tune.. but he’s an amazing harmonica player Soon after, Bill entered the stage and sang the old classic ‘Old Friends’. Despite tiredness, Bill sang exceptionally well. As did everyone else.
For the first half of the concert, each artist and group performed tracks from their own albums, which included Signature Sound Quartet performing two new tracks from their Christmas CD ‘Every Light that Shines at Christmas’ which was released last week.

(EHSS will be returning to Belfast on 19th February 2010 on their solo european tour – tickets and info available on www.erniehaasetour.co.uk)

However, I think I can safely say, what the majority of the crowd was most looking forward to was hearing the superb blend of voices which are now singing together in the *All New* Gaither Vocal Band Quintet. GVBs opening song was ‘Alpha and Omega’ which allowed us to really hear the excellence in each voice and how the voices blend to create a wonderful harmony with both David Phelps (also returning to Belfast on solo tour in 2010 check www.davidphelps.com for further info.) and Wes Hampton singing tenor position. Although this isn’t included on their new CD ‘Reunited’ – I would really have liked it to be as it is a wonderful song with true meanings within it taken straight from Revelation 21.

The Gaither Vocal Band sang other well loved tracks such as ‘I’m Forgiven’, ‘Worthy the Lamb’, ‘Satisfied’ and ‘He Touched Me’. As always, Mark Lowry was in full form and did not disappoint, keeping the audience entertained throughout the performance. I love how Mark is such a funny guy, but he’s not put in the group to be the funny one and to entertain – he also is truly blessed with a beautiful voice. I was glad to see Michael English live in concert as what he’s been through has certainly not been the best and to come out on top at the end is wonderful – a true example of how God works in and changes peoples lives.

Gordon Mote is one man who amazes me – a lot! despite being blind, Gordon is an award winning pianist. He was absolutely brilliant to watch and I can’t get over how gifted he is. I also got to meet him, he has a great sense of humour and is a lovely man to be around. He performed a solo piece while a picture slide show of him and his sons came up on screen, this man is truly blessed with a God given talent, beautiful wife, and gorgeous little boys! God is good

During the interval, the artists were out and mingling with their fans again, I love this aspect of the concert because it makes it feel all the more real, as one minute you’re sitting watching these people on stage and the next you’re shaking their hand and speaking to them!

The second half of the concert was the Homecoming set-up… with each artist and group on stage at all times and joining in with group singing. Songs like ‘Swing down Chariot’, ‘Holy, holy, holy’  were performed by the GVB and EHSS .. taken from the ‘Together’ Album. Janet Paschal sang ‘It won’t rain always’. This song was penned by Bill and Gloria Gaither and Janet is well suited to singing this song as it is tells of how she overcome her battle with cancer. She is now five years free from the illness.
One of my favourite songs, written by Gloria was also performed by all the artists together. This is ‘I then shall Live’. I was so excited and pleased to hear the opening notes of this song being sounded out across the arena.. and of course, I was among the many who joined in with singing!

Sadly, like every good thing the concert had to come to an end.. and for the end track, they performed ‘Because he lives’ with Wes Hampton taking lead vocals. The WHOLE audience took part in this too and it gave me goose-bumps. Not just because everyone there was singing, but because of the message in this great song.

‘ Because He lives I can face tomorrow,
Because he lives, all fear is gone,
Because I know He holds the future
and life is worth the living just because He lives.’
How true those words are

I can say for all who were at the concert in Belfast, it was definitely a great night for all ages, with wonderful songs, artists and singing.. but still without forgetting why they are sang – to proclaim God’s grace, love and care for us
I wish all the artists that were on the tour a safe journey home .. and hope they enjoyed the night as much as I did!