Songs of Inspiration II

The second release of inspirational music from the country harmonizers mixes plenty of familiar, traditional spirituals with a few originals. The guitar-driven "I Am a Pilgrim" has the trademark lope of a Waylon Jennings arrangement, while more acoustic fare such as "Children in the Wildwood" and "If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again" has a folkish purity. Alabama join forces with the Del McCoury Band for a revival of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" and with Riders in the Sky for campfire cowboy harmonizing on "Love Lifted Me." The set-closing transformation of "The Star Spangled Banner" into a ballad with swirling strings extends the concept of inspirational music from the spiritual to the patriotic. --Don McLeese

The second release of inspirational music from the country harmonizers mixes plenty of familiar, traditional spirituals with a few originals. The guitar-driven "I Am a Pilgrim" has the trademark lope of a Waylon Jennings arrangement, while more acoustic fare such as "Children in the Wildwood" and "If I Could Hear My Mother Pray Again" has a folkish purity. Alabama join forces with the Del McCoury Band for a revival of "Will the Circle Be Unbroken" and with Riders in the Sky for campfire cowboy harmonizing on "Love Lifted Me." The set-closing transformation of "The Star Spangled Banner" into a ballad with swirling strings extends the concept of inspirational music from the spiritual to the patriotic. --Don McLeese