Mike Jemison is a well-known name in Gospel circles of late, but like most classic soul singers had his soulful chops forged in the blistering heat of the church along with his brother Clarence and his sisters Sylvia, LaDonna and Janice together in the family group known as the Jemisonettes. These new songs are from his latest Gospel effort, "Call On Me", and the upbeat "Hold On, He's Coming" takes it's place as a slice of quality uptempo inspirational soul / gospel for 2010. This song has the potential to be a bubbling hit on the modern soul scene and would make a great compilation piece for the superb "Togetherness" brand. Slap bass, rattling percussion, an elegant piano line and synths paired to a rip-roaring vocal delivery make this a real must-have song.The flip side to this donut single release via Soul Junction is the BRILLIANT "Call On Me", a cool, slinky and very smoky jazzy number on which Mike has the same lilt to his voice as the great and insurmountable Willie Collins. The melody is straight out of the Ronnie McNeir bag and has a mid-late 1980s flavour. The vocals are superb, highlighting the amazing prowess that this man owns. I have played this song over and over - it certainly has the makings of a radio hit on quality black radio. Soul Junction have seriously delivered the goods on single for some time now and for vinyl hams this is a real boon. I would also love to see these available as downloads on sites such as iTunes or Juno as with other vinyl-orientated labels. The CD is starting to suffer in 2010 as vinyl did in the late 1980s with CD, and I for one would seriously encourage this as not everyone today can entertain these quaint little plastic things! Recommended!
Barry Towler
The Vibe Scribe
The Vibe Scribe
