Living on the Hallelujah Side (1987)

About this title: Bahamian guitarist/vocalist Joseph Spence's humming, flailing, sensational singing and playing combined secular flair and spiritual fervor in a manner close to that of the brilliant Blind Willie Johnson and Rev. Gary Davis. This set of 1970s performances, reissued on CD, included evocative renditions of "A Closer Walk With Thee," "More and More With Jesus" and "When The Saints Go Marching In," plus equally arresting versions of "Irene Goodnight" and the holiday ditty "Santa Claus Is Comin' To Town." Spence was incapable of self-indulgence or fakery; his lines, phrasing, riffs and solos are ... read more

Tracks:

1. I'll Overcome Someday
2. A Closer Walk With Thee
3. Where Shall I Go
4. I'll Be a Freind to Jesus
5. More and More With Jesus
6. Santa Claus Is Coming to Town [Coots/Gillespie]
7. On My Way to Heaven
8. Neighbor Gone Home
9. Jesus on the Mainline [Traditional]
10. Living on the Hallelujah Side
11. When the Saints Go Marching In [Traditional]
12. Irene Goodnight

Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is further described below.