Since this is Black Music Month, we decided, what better group to represent gospel quartet music this month, by way of video, than The Sensational Nightingales.  Did you know that The Sensational Nightingales were formed around 1942?  Did you also know that members of the group included the legendary Rev. Julius Cheeks, Barney Parks (who by the way is credited with starting the group), Ernest James, Carl Coates, Charles Johnson (of Charles Johnson & The Revivers), the incomparable Joseph "JoJo" Wallace, Howard Carroll and Paul Owens?

So, this month we take a look at another of the videos from MALACO 601 Series. The Sensational Nightingales are one of those groups that you know are solidly rooted in traditional gospel quartet music.  The video Live So God Can Use You is actually a compilation of the videos of songs from other projects by this legendary group.

This video was released in 2005.  However, the many of the songs on the video were recorded years ago.  If you are a fan of The Gales you will realize that all the performances on this video can be found on other videos issued by MALACO.  If you are looking for a video that captures the old and new of The Gales this is the one.

Take a look at the selections of this video – 1. "Live So God Can Use You," 2. "The Prodigal Son," 3. Nicodemus, 4. "Whosoever Will, May Come," 5. "Over In Zion," 6. "His Grace Is Sufficient," 7. "Standing On The Promise," 8. "Come Unto Jesus," and 9. "Jesus Is Your Friend." The personnel on this video includes the late Calvert McNair, Horace Thompson, the late William Woodruff, and JoJo Wallace.

Those familiar with other MALACO recordings will immediately recognize the various venues where the recordings took place.  You will also recognize the outfits from the previous recordings.  Taking into consideration the venues and the outfits you should be able to pin down, at least, the year of the actual recordings of each song.

The venues, as is often the case with MALACO recordings, are perfect for the video.  The stage is very large, so the guys certainly had plenty of room to minister. 

The lighting on the stage is great.  There are many close-ups of the members of the group, musicians and the audience.  In deed, MALACO has chosen some of the best videos of The Gales for this release.   

The quality of the sound is superb.  There are no highs or lows in the sound quality. The recording level is consistent throughout the video. 

Once again, this project is vintage traditional gospel quartet.  If you are looking for a good video that captures the essence of great gospel quartet singing by a legendary group, then you will want to add this video to your collection. 

This is another gospel quartet video that will become a collector’s item.  So, you are encouraged to get your copy while they are still available.  The project represents a piece of gospel music history that you will be very disappointed when in the future it becomes very had to find and costly. 

We The Sensational Nightingales' Live So God Can Use You a 9.5 out of 10.  To purchase your copy of this video click The Sensational Nighingales.   Click on the picture above to view a clip from the video.***