Artist spotlight

Shirley Murdock delivers a delightfully energetic and spiritually tasty set with SOUL FOOD (Tyscot), on which she serves up delectable gems such as "The F.O.G." (Favor of God). This spiritual jam gets you on your feet and fills your soul with comfort food. Another winner is the foot-stamping, empowering "I Love Me Better Than That," on which the earthy, full-voiced diva serves up a healthy heaping of serf-love that is packed full of the soul that undergirds Murdock's R&B career.

On this jam, she is backed by the Solid Rock Church Fire Choir, featuring Jana Mitten and Paula Ewell. (The CD also has a longer remix version with a cameo by Zapp members.) Murdock slows the pace with the thoughtful ballads "Praise Him" and "Thank You," which she says came from her personal worship time, and with "You Are My Righteousness," which Murdock says has "been in my spirit for 10 years." Best known fur her R&B hits such as "As We Lay," Murdock demonstrates that she has much more to offer as a vocalist who ministers through her voice and lyrics and the sheer sincerity of her delivery of music from the heart.

COPYRIGHT 2007 Johnson Publishing Co.
COPYRIGHT 2008 Gale, Cengage Learning