For many Jamaicans, even non-Christians, nothing gets the blood pumping like a good Revival song. Sister Bless knows that feeling; she was brought up in the Revival church and is an unapologetic disciple of that movement.
On October 14, she makes her recording debut with “Crossover”, which features the uptempo, Afro-centric beat associated with Revivalists. It is produced by George “Brotha George” Wright, one of the leading lights in contemporary gospel music.
Sister Bless, who is from Spanish Town in Jamaica, said the release of “Crossover” is a dream fulfilled.
“I have been singing from as far as I can remember, at the age of eight. My sister and I would sing at church concerts and the people would pay for us to sing again. I knew I had it within me and always wanted to be a gospel singer but never knew the first step to make, until I visited my headquarter church in Mount Vernon (New York) at a convention. I was called upon, so I ministered in song and that's when I was recognized by Brotha George who recorded me and later told me that he saw something in me that no one else had seen. He then took me to the studio and that's where it all began,” she disclosed.
Revivalists are known in Jamaica for wearing white, robe-like garments with their hair covered by turbans. Their attire and reputation for ‘getting in the spirit’ (speaking in tongues, etc) has drawn criticism from traditional churchgoers.
Wright called on some experienced musicians to help guide Sister Bless on her maiden recording. Keyboardists Sidney Mills and Franklyn “Bubbler” Waul, who have worked with Steel Pulse and Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers, and bassist Leebert “Gibby” Morrison of Peter Tosh and Jimmy Cliff fame, played on “Crossover”.
Written By Howard Campbell