0724381279328. New condition. CD. The temptation to take on the misguided academic purists in this review is almost overwhelming. Believe it or not there are those who feel that a group of the stature and vision of the Blind Boys of Alabama -- co-founded over 60 years ago by members Clarence Fountain Jimmy Carter and George Scott and filled out by Joey Williams Ricky McKinnie and Bobby Butler -- shouldn t in essence engage let alone record music from genres other than gospel and spirituals i.e. pop music. Suffice to say: who better? Give up the nonsense come to the front of the house and open not only your mind but your heart. On their follow-up to the wildly successful Spirit of the Century the Blind Boys enlist the phenomenally gifted visionary Robert Randolph and the Family Band the great young lions of the Sacred Steel tradition as their backing unit as well as longtime fan über-guitarist and songwriter Ben Harper on a few choice cuts for good measure. The material is stunning even more so than on Spirit of the Century. It was chosen for its ability to be molded into the vocal image of the Blind Boys for its ability to split seams between sacred and secular worlds but also between genres and cultural and societal terrains. In the voices of the Blind Boys the song is the vehicle to transcend the burdens of human existence or to celebrate its preciousness. And what songs: the album opens with the one of the few readings of Curtis Mayfield s People Get Ready that does not fall into maudlin cliché. Instead with Harper playing guitar and the Family Band building a haunting nearly processional series of ambiences and textures Fountain s singing splits the tune wide open toward a spiritual universe where the flesh is not denied but is merely called upon to fall away after serving its purpose. It is no longer an exhortation but a plea a whisper of hope for those who will prepare themselves for the next phase of the journey into places unknown but full of unspoken -- and unspeakable -- promise. Likewise on Prince s The Cross we hear the Blind Boys delving deeply into the composer s intent that to we need not only willingly bear our own suffering but that of others too; we all transcend them on one plane or the next while getting there together. This is followed by the loneliest most prayerful rendition of Jimmy Cliff s Many Rivers to Cross since the original was released in the 60s. Robert Randolph s shimmering in-the-pocket backbeat fills and wanderings over the neck are languid full of water tears in fact; the rhythm section is muted offering a seductively heart-wrenching and syncopated read on the time signature. As the Blind Boys sing to this accompaniment it becomes evident that this song in particular bring the worlds of gospel country and reggae closely together in a seamless heartbreaking testament to acceptance and the plea for redemption and companionship in the arid and lonely places. Surely the nomads of the world can take this version of the song as their anthem. But the proceedings are not all solemn. There s the deep dark celebratory funk of Stevie Wonder s Higher Ground with Harper turning in an amazing wah-wah performance in a woven counterpoint to Randolph s edgy ragged pedal steel fills. This is followed a couple of tracks later by a sharp and steamy slinky rewired read of Funkadelic s You and Your Folks which segues across worlds into a gorgeous rendition of the