With or Without BGV's????

Alright, we all know that since tracks became commonplace within SG, groups have realized that it is much easier to "cheat" vocals by adding another voice to the track mix. This is most common on the older-style songs where a solo will be sung over background "boom-booms" or "doo-wops," where the lead vocalist's harmony part will stay on the track to mix with the live group.

But this can backfire in many ways, and as of late, seems to be doing so at the most inopportune times.

First off, the sheer logistics of mixing a pre-recorded voice with live voices can be a nightmare, especially when the group is mixing from the stage. Unless you have rehearsed the exact distance needed to match the volume of the voice(s) on the track, as well as set your vocals to a similar EQ, your "fifth part" will stick out like a sore thumb.

Then there are groups who completely supplement their live vocals with tracks. In the studio, this is known as "stacking." On stage, it's just plain lazy. It's bad enough that we don't get a live band, now we don't even get live singers?? I paid to see LIVE GOSPEL MUSIC, not Britney Spears.

Yes, I know the problems with touring and the need to be able to give your voices a rest every now and then (just imagine if the Kingsmen could've done this back in the 70's!), but the way I see it, you have three options: learn endurance, book fewer dates, or go back to the studio. The whole point of a LIVE performance is that I wanna hear you LIVE.

This all recently came to light while I was watching the Gaither Vocal Band progress over the years (God bless YouTube!!). In 1993, Michael English, Mark Lowry, and Terry Franklin sang "Home" for the first time live. Bill was thumbing out the piano, and Michael was still feeding Mark the words. This is one of my favorite performances because it is LIVE, RAW, and UNEDITED. It wasn't polished by any means because the musicians (yes, Gaither actually used LIVE musicians) were still trying to find the rhythm halfway through the song, but it was REAL.

Fast forward 13 years....Guy Penrod, Marsh Hall, and Wes Hampton (and, of course, ol' Bill) are singing "Home" on Signature Sound's DVD. Of course, such a big "event" warrants rehearsal. But in this case, it seems somewhat unnecessary since Gaither apparently decided to use the store-bought track with the BGV's already in the mix (I have the same one on tape at home!). What makes me assume this, you ask? Well, the live singers have a tendancy to hold notes longer than the original recording, and when they do so, you can hear the prerecorded vocals cut out earlier. I also am pretty sure that Jonathan Pierce was not present to help sing the last chorus, even though his voice is pretty dominant!!

I am (sadly) not as surprised as I should be. I first noticed this BGV issue in 2002 when Gaither released his Carnegie Hall set. The Vocal Band opened with "I'm Gonna Sing," and the ending vocals not only didn't match what was on the record, but they got noticably weaker after the prerecorded track cut out.

I have included the two clips of "Home" for your own analysis.....

Gaither Vocal Band - "Home" (1993)
Featuring Michael English, Mark Lowry, and Terry Franklin


Gaither Vocal Band - "Home" (2006)
Featuring Guy Penrod, Marsh Hall, and Wes Hampton