Admittedly, soul music has a different meaning for different people at different times. During the 1950s and early 1960s, it emerged as a genre created within the African-American community in the USA that blended jazz, rhythm &blues, and gospel music.
It was equally easy to listen to it as it was to dance to. By the 1970s it was defined by a funky R&B beat found in that decade’s urban music style and had a hint of psychedelic rock in its underlying essence. During the 1990s it had morphed into what was to be called neo-soul that borrowed from other musical influences, especially the then-contemporary R&B, hip-hop, electronic, and African world music, of that decade. It’s also notable that there was a very strong female presence found in that radio-friendly format during this era.
For Alabama recording artist Kimberly Williams (www.kimberlywilliamsmusic.com), also known as “Songbird” by the other kids she grew up with because she always was humming and walked around the neighborhood singing all the time, soul music became her way of praising the Lord. “Keeper of My Soul” is the current single released from her ever-growing catalog of gospel music. It opens with a funky blast of bass, drums, keyboards, synthesizers, and choir that prime the pump for the introduction of Ms. Williams’ powerful voice in the first verse that to my ears is what it must be like to hear the angels singing in the heavens. A tad bit after the two and a half minute mark if where she delivers a sermon well worthy of heartfelt shouts of “hallelujah!”
The finale of “Keeper of My Soul” is where Kimberly socks it to the congregation with so much blood, sweat, and tears in her performance as she vamps and improvises with the backing choir it leaves you feeling that she just may blow the roof off the cathedral before she’s done. With a hot horn section blowing right along up to the final notes of the song in a way that could leave a mere mortal speechless they all take it home with so much gusto and gumption you’ll want to hear this tune all over again.
Kimberly is blessed with a clear, pitch-perfect tone that is as inherently sweet as it is undeniably righteous. The musical arrangement that accompanies her is cleverly conducted to bring out all the subtle nuances of her intonation while underscoring her unique ability to perfectly enunciate and articulate each word of her spiritually inspired lyrics. She treats her listeners to a second verse of the song before launching into an ever- escalating chorus the reaches its anticipated crescendo with ease and in a way that few vocalists are able to achieve. If what’s been served up to us in this a little over than four minutes of amazing graceful expression of worship doesn’t make you want to cry “Amen”, then brothers and sisters, dearly beloved, you just may need to search your soul. AMEN!
