Superb collection of soaring gospel funk lovingly compiled by the excellent Numero label! Lavishly packaged in a slipcase featuring loads of notes and photos, this is really superb stuff! The best release yet from Numero! Highly recommended! Good God! explores the re-entry of the profane funk into the sacred sound during a unique moment in gospel music. Completing the circular journey of the hallowed rhythm, the tracks featured here are the sanctified message passed through the earthly delights of the groove. Bear witness to the union of unholy drums and a twenty person choir in the form of Detroit's Voices of Conquest. Or travel down-river to Ecorse, Michigan, where the Revival studio still stands, one-time home to the Mighty Walker Brothers, the Apostles of Music, and the Mighty Voices of Wonder. Top it off by having your mind blown by the sound of fire & brimstone set to congas by LaVice & Company, taken from a musical performed in a church basement. You too will become a true believer in the gospel funk! A collection of this nature can only exist in hindsight. “Gospel Funk” is a genre in the same way that deep soul or acid folk are, created by collectors and enthusiasts as a way to define a subsection of another genre. There aren't any labels, artists, or producers that focused strictly on funky gospel music; rather, there were a couple hundred groups that had a funkier number in their repertoire. The Numero Group has spent the last year scouring LPs and 45s for tracks that fit this bill, and have collected 18 standouts from this newly minted genre. The album is a mix of primitive choirs, spacious breaks, congas, elderly rappers impersonating the devil, cast recordings, thumping bass, and JB impressionists, all with a heavy slathering of gospel gravy. Featured artists include by Shackleford Singers, Five Spiritual Tones, Trevor Dandy, Gospel Comforters, Voices of Conquest, Sam Taylor, LaVice & Company, Masonic Wonders, Brother John Witherspoon, Triumphs, Universal Jubileers, Apostles of Music, Modulations, Mighty Voices of Wonder, Mighty Walker Brothers, Horace Family, Preacher & The Saints, and Cliff Gober. Hip-hop producers have scoured record stores for sample-worthy breaks for decades, so unearthing new funk and soul requires real digging. These reissue releases prove that stirring songs exist in the most unorthodox places. While gospel tradition provided much of the raw material for R&B and funk, few songs from those genres crackled with the Bible-thumping power of those found on Good God! A Gospel Funk Hymnal. Powerful and preachy music that marries the Lord's message with the Devil's grooves, this stuff could pack pews sevens days a week.