Reviewed by Philip Crawley

My first reaction when I pulled this one out of the jiffy bag was "oh no, another dime-a-dozen R&B gospel release," but I was pleasantly surprised with this 14-track disk that is currently only available online. Coming out of New York Mark is a gifted singer/songwriter in the gospel vein (but with something of a leaning towards jazz). He bucks the trend of the big men of gospel by having quite a range and competently delivering styles other than the "belt it out". He does turn in a couple of gospel standards; "Higher Ground" and "We Know Not The Hour" but it is in his own compositions that he comes alive - "Superman Jesus" (although with a title that initially made this reviewer cringe!) is a real groove-fest and the down-tempo "Daddy" is, I imagine, set to become Mark's calling card. He finishes with a spoken testimony track (again, paying his gospel dues) and I'm left mighty impressed by a fine new gospel talent. To quote Mark; "You can achieve peace and joy. This is not a farfetched idea. I pray you hear God's message of hope."

The opinions expressed in this article are not necessarily those held by Cross Rhythms. Any expressed views were accurate at the time of publishing but may or may not reflect the views of the individuals concerned at a later date.

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