As one-fourth of legendary gospel quartet
the Winans,
Marvin Winans was used to blurring the divide between contemporary gospel and urban music. It's no surprise, then, that
Alone But Not Alone, his lifetime-in-the-making solo debut, is more R&B than sanctified church praise, a style he favored for the couple of under-the-radar albums he released alongside the church he pastors, Detroit's Perfecting Church. While
Winans may look like a minister in the cover art for
Alone But Not Alone, the album sees him taking off his pastoral hat and turning into a consummate soul man, singing to the common man about his beliefs, his hope, and his purpose in life, all to the sounds of classic R&B, elegantly produced by Nashville veteran
Tommy Sims.
Winans couldn't have asked for a better sidekick -- the two complement each other's talents marvelously, each one turning in some of their most inspired -- and inspiring -- work yet. The guests themselves --
Kim Burrell,
Carvin Winans,
Darwin Hobbs, and the late Ronald Winans, among others -- bring an added touch of class to the singer's already classy get-together, one worthy of a modern-day
Stevie Wonder or
Teddy Pendergrass. With so much mainstream appeal, it's easy to fall prey to inspirational niceties, but, thankfully,
Winans circumvents that, referencing his faith straightforwardly and with conviction, yet seldom coming across as preachy or pushy in the process. Part of the reason the more spiritually framed songs work is the music, which ranks as some of the most soulful to ever come from a member of the
Winans family. When the sound is this alluring, this disarming, one can't help but just go to the church of
Marvin Winans -- one where contemporary gospel and straight-edge soul coexist as if they were meant to worship together all along. ~ Andree Farias