Pastor T.L. Barrett And The Youth For Christ Choir 'Like A Ship... (Without A Sail)' LP

£20.99

First time on CD, and first LP reissue

Beautifully crafted gatefold jacket and 180-gram LP

CD housed in lavish Digipak featuring previously unseen photos

Liner notes written by Peter Margasak (Chicago Reader), which include new interviews with T.L. Barrett, Phil Upchurch and Gene Barge

“Like A Ship evokes the Beach Boys’ ’ ‘Til I Die’ and Gil Scott-Heron’s ‘The Revolution Will Not Be Televised.’ ” – Spin

“When the electric piano and sleigh bells ring in over an almost ghostly rhythm section on disc opener ‘Like a Ship,’ it’s hard to tell whether one’s listening to an artifact from 1971 or one of the myriad collectives that rose from the ashes of freak-folk over 2009 … Pastor Barrett’s definitely a master composer who deserves wider recognition and study.” – Other Music

“The powerful rhythm section lifts Barrett’s simple, melodic keyboard riff high as the boisterous choir fills the air with sorrow and hope … Pastor Barrett could hear the sound on the horizon. The sound of anger, of change, the sound of soul…” – Wax Poetics

Chicago pastor and activist T.L. Barrett’s rare gospel soul classic Like A Ship… (Without A Sail) is finally receiving a much-needed reissue. Long revered by record collectors, this album remains one of the holy grails of gospel soul. Self-released in 1971, Like A Ship was the result of Barrett channeling his passion for music, a determination to keep children off the streets, and his charismatic preaching (which attracted the likes of Earth, Wind & Fire and Donny Hathaway to his sermons at Mount Zion Baptist Church) into the production of the album, a project bolstered by the saxophonist and arranger Gene Barge of the famed Chess Records, and backed by a cast of players that included Richard Evans, Phil Upchurch and the rapturous vocals of the Youth For Christ Choir. Like A Ship is filled with sanctified grooves and spiritual praise delivered with a righteous, infectious chorus.

Tracklisting:

1. Like A Ship
2. Wonderful
3. It's Me O Lord
4. Ever Since
5. Nobody Knows
6. Joyful Noise
7. Medley
8. Blessed Quietness
9. Jingle Bells Pt. 1 (Bonus Track)
10. Jingle Bells Pt. 2 (Bonus Track)
11. These Are The Words (Bonus Track)