Reviewed by Tony Cummings

If I told you that this popular fivesome from Georgia have been called "the Boyz II Men of gospel" and that when they visited the Cross Rhythms studios recently they were able to, at the drop of a hat, deliver intricate harmonies on an acapella jingle, that wouldn't prepare you for the opening track on 'God's Been There'. For "Get Ready" - a song based on Joshua 1:2 - is a piece of modern R&B with a sinuous groove courtesy of some slick programming from Andre Forbes and a lead vocal which sounds a little like Stevie Wonder. After that spectacular start, anyone worried that Tony, Luther, Jamie, Carl and Rodney might abandon their lush harmony sound should fear not. The near-acapella "Thank You" has plenty of delicious harmony while "More Than Enough", based on Romans 8:31 and penned by Martin Luther (no, not that one) Wardlaw is surely one of the best songs the group have ever recorded. Production on 'God's Been There' is good too, though the answer phone skit preceding "More Than Enough" will quickly become a track to skip while the arrangement on the title track is too overblown and theatric for my tastes. But with such fine singing and songwriting talent so clearly evident this is still an album which, with its artful blend of old and new gospel sounds, shows a group near the top of their game.

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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