Reviewed by Tony Cummings

Cross Rhythms have long been admirers of Sherwin Gardner. If you know your reggae gospel history, he was the Caribbean visionary who saw to it that the modern sounds of dance hall weren't solely the preserve of artists who extolled the party life with sexually explicit songs. Sherwin's courageous invention of gospel dance hall, along with his expert renditions of other styles of reggae, resulted in a flow of successful albums, culminating with the truly excellent 'Nascent' album for Christafari's Lion Of Zion label in 2012. Sherwin is now pastoring a church in Antigua and 'Greater' was recorded there. The opener "Restoration" features a girl ensemble of seven singers with Sherwin "doing a Kirk Franklin", forgoing singing in favour of shouts and exultations over a simple R&B-cum-dance groove played on keyboards. When Sherwin does get to sing on a slow ballad, we hear that his voice is as good as ever, though mysteriously the track fades out and only returns for a "reprise". Later on on the album, Sherwin brings in a couple of big American guests and Todd Dulaney and Deitrick Haddon add some vocals. But this album left me mystified by Sherwin's abandonment of his reggae roots. There is no trace of the style that first brought him success. Instead, 'Greater' sounds like the kind of stylised, international gospel worship album that churches in Los Angeles, London and plenty of other places are today serving up for their congregations. While the lyrics here are often banal, no doubt Pastor Gardner has a grasp on what his congregation wants and needs. But this is still a hugely disappointing album.

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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