“Alright”
Melvin Crispell III
From the Provident Label Group / Sony Music CD No Failure
At the outset of “Alright,” Melvin Crispell III summarizes his testimony in song: “I’ve been through the storm / “I’ve been through the rain / I’ve been through the heartache / I’ve been through the pain…[but] He never failed me yet.”
Despite losing both parents as a teenager and dealing with the problems associated with the pandemic, Crispell—the Season 9 BET Sunday Best champ—never lost his faith. Even while questioning why things happened the way they did, he maintained his belief because, as another song goes, there is no failure in God.
The exhilaration of that knowledge is apparent in the song’s energy and Crispell’s own high-octane singing and sanctified shouting. There’s more than a hint of old-style revivalism showing in this contemporary piece.
Review by Robert Marovich – JournalofGoseplMusic.com
