2003 Independent Releases
Review
The exciting year of 2003 has passed and gone and what a year it has been for the quartet industry. As usual, at the beginning of a new year we look back on the past year. In this 2004 issue we will briefly review each of the twelve albums featured in 2002 and conclude by revealing Gloryland Gospel's top 5 albums and 15 groups to watch in 2003. Be sure to check the individual album reviews for information about how to purchase these projects.
While 2003 was a rather heavy year for National releases it was rather normal in terms of Independent projects. Though we were only able to present a small portion of the many projects that hit the streets in 2003 we presented a great mixture of styles and sounds. We began the year with one of the best all around projects to be released in 2003 coming from Rev. Roney Strong & The Sensational Strong Family. These brothers hit hard with the beautiful ballad "I've Got Something Within Me" and the hard driving number "Come See About Me". March brought one of the breakout groups of the 2002 Quartet Convention The Alabama Boys to the table. Their addictive number "Jesus You Brought Me" still registers requests on Gloryland's Quartet radio program.
The 3 projects that brought us to the half way point of the year made major impacts when they were released. First came Texas based group Endurance who still are featured on Gospel Truth Magazines sampler CDs. The month of May brought the sounds of Cleveland's own Christian Brothers. Talk about a project that really just needs to be heard to really take off across the nation. We hit the halfway point of 2003 with The Crume Brother set of Soul Stirrers featuring the return of Rev. Luther Gamble. This sparked a renewed interest in the Crume set of Soul Stirrers across the country.
Though the project was releases many months earlier we finally got around to The Memphis Harmonizers latest release in July entitled "Teach Me". This project served to further highlight this talented group of gentlemen especially their lead vocalists Rev. Melvin Rogers and Ronnie Wilson. In August we featured the Legendary Golden Gate Quartet and one of their two releases in the year of 2003. "Made In Raleigh" brought back the innovative sounds of the Legendary group with a modern flair. This project is still gaining steam in the States. One of the most well known female quartet groups from Memphis is The Brown Singers. With their debut release for Gilliam Records they blew the minds of many quartet fans with their classy quartet project "You Can Make It". Little Lisa has grown to maturity and the group serves as a great compliment.
The final three independent releases brought to the table 3 talented groups with powerful projects. October was the month of the Lighthouse Singers with Jerry Dunbar serving up a reminder of this well rounded group's true talents for production and professionalism. Then we presented the newest offering from the new addition to Dwight Gordon's Quartet Boyz label The Concert Supremes. Clearly one of the most powerful group's to meet on the road these young guys just need to be heard. We closed out the year of 2003 with the return of the Philadelphia based group The Williams Sisters. Offering up a barrage of new and old compositions this project will definitely be a major player in 2004.
Below you will find the Gloryland Gospel top 5 picks of the year 2003 and the top 15 groups to watch in 2003. This list is in no way all inclusive, however if you're looking for the best of the best you will definitely want to add these recordings to your quartet library. The
projects are listed in alphabetical order, the order listed does nor represent their rank. God Bless and we look forward to great things in the year 2003.
Top 5 Independent Releases of 2003
15 Groups to Watch in 2004