Do you like the early soul singers? Etta James, Nina Simone, Aretha Franklin, etc
this post was submitted on 28 Jul 2025
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I do! They fit the strong lead singer description for sure but what I can't seem to find is it paired with an upbeat choir.
Like imagine being in a pew of a small black church in Georgia. They've got a piano, a bass, and maybe a small drum kit. The singer is going ham and a small choir is backing them up.
My Lord Jesus, glory be! (Glory be! Glory be!)
Lord Jesus always there for me! (Glory be! Yes indeed!)
DAMN why didn't I think to post this exact example of what I want??
Edited my post to include it.
Yes .... it's called a James Brown concert
I've never been to one but I have several friends who said they did. There are also a bunch of videos that show it and if you watch them long enough (because the real life performances are really long) ... it's not an event, it's a spiritual.
I love James Brown but what I'm describing is very much not a James Brown concert, he has a full band with horns and electric instruments
Check out the band Zeal & Ardor. Specifically the song "Devil is Fine". It has grown a bit as a music project but it started as satanic gospel mixed with metal.
This isn't quite what I'm after but I'm pretty into it regardless!
Always happy to share! Glad you enjoyed it!
Try Ray Charles's Self-Titled album from 1957. Some of it feels literally like Gospel songs with Jesus subbed out for a girlfriend.
Pretty close!! If he had a choir behind him it'd be perfect!
Choirs accompanying soul artists is not unheard of, but yeah, it does seem to be more of a tool that's leveraged when the sound feels right for a track, rather than being a core part of the act. The linked song is verging pretty close to "regular" gospel, but the lyrics are a bit too modern and on the nose for church, I'd think.
Yeah this one slaps. Definitely an acceptable level of churchiness!
This is literally the ~~opposite of~~ counterpart to an observation made in an episode of The Simpsons where a Christian Rock artist breaks down and admits that their songs are just regular rock songs with "Jesus" substituted in for "baby".
Edit: better words
Gospel can vary widely in sound. What you're basically looking for is soul, RnB, funk and maybe jazz fusion. Probably artists that combine elements of those things.
That's what I'm struggling with, I don't think any of the "root" genres bring the specific elements I'm searching for. Mainly the call-and-response with a small choir.
The closest I've found is like stomp clap indie folk but no bands really do the choir thing.
Speaking of indie, have you tried some of the newer Justin Vernon (edit: Bon Iver) singles? Prob not exactly what you're looking for, but heavily influenced by gospel, particularly AUATC and PDLIF. I mean, he seems to be a god guy, but it's subtle.
As for call and response, I'm a sucker for sea shanties. Singing them in groups is the best (everyone sings the "response"), but there are some good recordings too. Try the Longest Johns for some well-produced recordings. It's a slippery slope to traditional music though... You've been warned.
Try Emerson Lake and Palmer. A lot of Emerson's keyboard playing was inspired by English hymnal music.
Gospel Prog
Hmmm hymnal music, haven't heard that term but dig into a bit more, thanks! I'll see if I can find any specific artists they've mentioned
It's not the same, but for upbeat choir stuff you might check out The Polyphonic Spree. I only really know this tune of theirs, but it might be worth a listen 👍
Damn I forgot all about these guys! I loved this song in Eternal Sunshine (along with the rest of the soundtrack/OST)
Yeah, that's where I discovered them too! Fabulous soundtrack to a fabulous film, I really should watch it again soon.
I haven't seen it in years but I still listen to Strings That Tie To You regularly
Closest thing I can think of without any research is Dream Theater - The Spirit Carries On. It's from the "Metropolis pt II: Scenes from a Memory" album.
Don't be scared of the title, though: Without the context of the rest of the album, it might seem like it's about heaven and all that gooey christian stuff, but it's a concept album centered around a story of a reincarnated person.
From the live version of the same album you might find the solo-ish section interlude relevant. It's on both Spotify and Youtube
If you're prog-curious, I highly recommend that album. It's pretty "beginner-friendly". It's important to listen to the tracks in order if you want the proper experience, though. I found one link to a Playlist of the live version, but it's incomplete, I highly encourage you to find (🏴☠️) the DVD of Dream Theater - Live Scenes from New York
Without digging into my old love of things like Enya and Adiemus to see if anything actually matches I can recommend Valhallelujah probably still not quite what you were looking for.
Not quite what I'm after but I did love it. Hilarious and well-executed mashup of genres
Motown
I'm afraid there are just one-off songs, not a genre or musician that would do that consistently. It was more popular in the 90s. Jackson made a couple of them like this one.
You might find some of those influences in PJ Morton's music. Sample: https://youtu.be/2F9pL06IC8k
C2C has a really cool electro-gospel song that doesn't have overly religious lyrics, though it captures the vibes excellently: https://youtube.com/watch?v=tvY7Nw1i6Kw
Other gospel/southern vibes: https://youtu.be/xNWhiXxdbWk
Ruthie Foster has some music that might be what you're looking for
Otherwise, I suggest poking around Bluegrass. Supposedly bluegrass sort of split off from gospel like an evolutionary branch, so there are a lot of heavier influences in bluegrass like what you're talking about. Though I assume that most of what you'll find is probably going to be sort of white people quiet church music, but I know for sure there's a fair amount of good time stomp and clap.
Everytime I hear stuff like this it sounds soulless. It's not the same if people aren't singing about What they believe in
Is the only thing to believe in a higher power?
They capitalized the W in "what," so must be so! heh