Growing up in the Carolinas, I was lucky to hear plenty of Black gospel sounds. There were songs played at family picnics in the park near my house (Freedom Park in Charlotte, North Carolina), church organ grooves on Sunday morning on WPEG FM 98, and the occasional opportunity to go with my family to visit a Black church for an event or concert. I always wanted to sing along. Driving around town with my daughter this evening, this tune came on WBGO 88.3, our local jazz station here in New Jersey. We couldn’t help but sing along. This tune is not just music – it is soul music. To quote Reb Nachman of Braslav:

It is a great thing to hear music from a holy person playing on an instrument for the sake of heaven. Because through this, false fantasies are dismissed, the spirit of depression is dispelled, and the person merits happiness. (Likutei Moharan 54)

Cory Henry, thank you for the happiness. From the album The Revival 2016