Radha Botofasina draws richly and deeply from her Cuban and Southern heritage and it all shows on her release, Carry On: The Spirituals, Vol 2. Her mother’s side of the family, from Alabama, was the musical side of the family and impacted on her to the degree that she began piano lessons at the age of five. Then came vocal studies and mentorships from the marvelous Mary Lou Williams and Alice Coltrane. It doesn’t get any better than that.
She developed her skills at piano, organ, synthesizer, harp, and her wonderful voice. She is a world-class touring artist and, on Carry On: Vol 2, she focuses on the vocals and the harp. With a brilliant array of artists in support, she just nails the vocal power found withing this grand collection of Gospels and Spirituals.
The band is anchored around Gemi Taylor is on guitar, John Barnes is on synthesizers, the McCrary Sisters provide some of the backing vocals, Cecil McBee and Jeffrey Connors are on electric bass, Munyungo Jackson is on percussion, along with so many other backing vocalists and instrumentalists, all worthy of note. Their contributions are absolutely fitting.
The songs are traditional Gospel/Spiritual songs that we knew growing up in church, especially the Southern Church. The songs range from defiance of temptation and evil with Satan We Gonna Tear Your Kingdom Down and the courage to mean it when we say the Lord’s Prayer’s “And deliver us from the evil one.” Gemi Taylor’s guitar work is subtle but in lock step with Radha’s harp. That confidence is echoes in I Know the Lord Laid His Hands on Me, with the rollicking piano work of John Lehman and cool, cool viola of Alma Cielo.
The Gospel piano opens Woman at the Well and the vocals of Radha and the backing vocals are swinging and soulful. You have to love the intonation of the backing singers behind Radha’s marvelous lead vocals. The comes My Soul Gonna Shine with some of the most soulful horns ever with baritone saxophones, tubas, and trombone. This very well may be the anchor piece of the whole album and is splendidly followed by Going Back with Jesus. This one, opened with that great piano of Lehman, is heavy on strings and percussion and it works. And through it all, Radha’s voice shine above, below, and through the excellent instrumental artistry of the fine musicians with her. It is the answered prayer that delivers through it all.
Mary Don’t You Weep is about Mary of Bethany, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, who wept over the death of Lazarus. It is a song of promise and hope. Just like Pharoah’s army all got drowned, history shows that prayers do get answered and deliverance does come. It is accompanied by a sweet and soulful swing and Radha is just marvelous. Mind on Jesus/God is God follows with the same confidence but in a slower ballad that is accompanied by Rod Hines on piano. It is powerful and confident, even strident, perhaps. Hines stays on piano for Move On Up a Little Higher. Caleb Buchanan is on upright bass and teams with Cecil McBee Jr on electric bass. A narration from Oran Coltrane concludes the song with a fade of the last passage of the Lord’s Prayer. Hold on for the sweet ride.
The album concludes with Radha’s original, Carry On. Gemi Taylor returns to the guitar with John Barnes on the keyboards and all of the backing singers. The song is introduced by Ethiopian women chanting as they sort Arabica coffee beans. Then comes the powerful lyrics from Radha.
Faith was their might
And the sacred secret of life
Help them to carry on.
Radha ends with faith and power, the power of faith. This was my favorite song of the whole album.
Radha Botofasina’s Carry On: The Spirituals, Vol. 2 is a work of great faith and courage. The music, the lyrics, the emotion, all form a transcendent exaltation of trusting beyond ourselves and of finding meaning amidst absurdity. Maybe it does not work for everyone but it works for me.
~Travis Rogers, Jr. is The Jazz Owl
She developed her skills at piano, organ, synthesizer, harp, and her wonderful voice. She is a world-class touring artist and, on Carry On: Vol 2, she focuses on the vocals and the harp. With a brilliant array of artists in support, she just nails the vocal power found withing this grand collection of Gospels and Spirituals.
The band is anchored around Gemi Taylor is on guitar, John Barnes is on synthesizers, the McCrary Sisters provide some of the backing vocals, Cecil McBee and Jeffrey Connors are on electric bass, Munyungo Jackson is on percussion, along with so many other backing vocalists and instrumentalists, all worthy of note. Their contributions are absolutely fitting.
The songs are traditional Gospel/Spiritual songs that we knew growing up in church, especially the Southern Church. The songs range from defiance of temptation and evil with Satan We Gonna Tear Your Kingdom Down and the courage to mean it when we say the Lord’s Prayer’s “And deliver us from the evil one.” Gemi Taylor’s guitar work is subtle but in lock step with Radha’s harp. That confidence is echoes in I Know the Lord Laid His Hands on Me, with the rollicking piano work of John Lehman and cool, cool viola of Alma Cielo.
The Gospel piano opens Woman at the Well and the vocals of Radha and the backing vocals are swinging and soulful. You have to love the intonation of the backing singers behind Radha’s marvelous lead vocals. The comes My Soul Gonna Shine with some of the most soulful horns ever with baritone saxophones, tubas, and trombone. This very well may be the anchor piece of the whole album and is splendidly followed by Going Back with Jesus. This one, opened with that great piano of Lehman, is heavy on strings and percussion and it works. And through it all, Radha’s voice shine above, below, and through the excellent instrumental artistry of the fine musicians with her. It is the answered prayer that delivers through it all.
Mary Don’t You Weep is about Mary of Bethany, the sister of Lazarus and Martha, who wept over the death of Lazarus. It is a song of promise and hope. Just like Pharoah’s army all got drowned, history shows that prayers do get answered and deliverance does come. It is accompanied by a sweet and soulful swing and Radha is just marvelous. Mind on Jesus/God is God follows with the same confidence but in a slower ballad that is accompanied by Rod Hines on piano. It is powerful and confident, even strident, perhaps. Hines stays on piano for Move On Up a Little Higher. Caleb Buchanan is on upright bass and teams with Cecil McBee Jr on electric bass. A narration from Oran Coltrane concludes the song with a fade of the last passage of the Lord’s Prayer. Hold on for the sweet ride.
The album concludes with Radha’s original, Carry On. Gemi Taylor returns to the guitar with John Barnes on the keyboards and all of the backing singers. The song is introduced by Ethiopian women chanting as they sort Arabica coffee beans. Then comes the powerful lyrics from Radha.
Faith was their might
And the sacred secret of life
Help them to carry on.
Radha ends with faith and power, the power of faith. This was my favorite song of the whole album.
Radha Botofasina’s Carry On: The Spirituals, Vol. 2 is a work of great faith and courage. The music, the lyrics, the emotion, all form a transcendent exaltation of trusting beyond ourselves and of finding meaning amidst absurdity. Maybe it does not work for everyone but it works for me.
~Travis Rogers, Jr. is The Jazz Owl
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