Paul Porter - A New Day

In an audio interview that is included with his debut single, "What Did You Do?" a soft-spoken Paul Porter answers numerous questions.  Those questions mostly focus on a musical journey that began over thirty years ago and the details behind a near fatal illness in which he was fully healed. Amen.  A New Day, the debut full-length from the lead vocalist of The Christianaires, adds a few modern urban edges, but certainly entails a lot of The Christianaires’ trademark style that blended the traditional quartets with a Motown Records soulful kick.  Porter also sites Motown legend, Stevie Wonder as a ‘secular’ influence and a great artist.

Porter’s parents were both instrumental in his musical maturity.  His mother coaxed a three year old Porter to sing during an Easter Sunday Church service.   His father, a gospel quartet veteran, taught the hard knocks school of quartet harmonizing to all his sons.  By age nine, Porter started lead singing with various quartets in his native Detroit.  Although launched in the 70s, The Christianaires, originally made up of Porter, his brother Tyrone Porter and two cousins Ronald & Arnold Brown, flourished mostly during the 90s when the group signed with Light Records.  While there was one opportunity to record a solo project, Porter mentions "God said it wasn’t the right time." Unfortunately, his chance to fly solo was put off temporarily by a brain aneurysm in 1996, which Porter states was a wake up call and gave Him closeness to God.

It is fitting the CD is entitled A New Day as it marks Porter’s reunion with Light Records and a refreshed outlook on his faith after several years of physical therapy.  The project launches with the energetic "My Redeemer." This song echoes the same sentiment of the classic hymn "I Know That My Redeemer Lives": "Can you feel Him down in movin’ down in your heart."

Two stellar gospel quartet vocalists team with Porter.  The Canton Spirituals’ Harvey Watkins, Jr. joins the duet tandem on the Spirituals’ remake "He’s There All The Time," recapturing the classic gospel quartet and R&B mix The Christianaires also made famous.   This moving track recalls how Porter experienced the Lord’s presence during his illness: "My feeble body was racked with pain. When the doctors - I never will forget when they turned, walked away from me and began to shake their heads. I found out He was right there."  Rance Allen brings his shivering tenor to "If There’s No Tomorrow."  The simple but very profound lyric, "If I don’t live to see the sunrise, The Lord has opened my eyes to let me know He’s already been good to me," reflects a contentment of living for Christ over anything the world offers.

The initial single, "What Did You Do?" mixes both contemporary gospel choir and quartet sensibility.  There is plenty of foot stomping, but there are also some stimulating questions about how we initially responded when first being saved in Christ Jesus.

During the interview, Porter was asked what listeners can musically expect from "A New Day".  He states he wants to cater to a wider audience, and he accomplishes this effort especially on two tracks.  For example, "You’re Blessed" is an edgier urban sound somewhat in the vein of David Hollister and Christopher Lewis.   This track references several verses from the Beatitudes in Matthew 5:3-11: "Blessed are the poor in spirit…the meek…the merciful."   "Get Away and Pray" has neo-soul written all over it but spices it up a bit with a jazzy harmonic vocal run during the breakdown and blues tinged harmonica fills.

Summing up his first solo effort, A New Day should please his long time Christainaires fans and should grab the attention of the modern gospel connoisseurs.   In retrospect of Porter’s career, this soft-spoken man has an ultimate purpose which is loud and clear: "I blessed a lot of people through what I do and it is all through what God lead me to do."