Music in the Air: 70th Anniversary Celebration

Joined by an all-star cast of friends and fellow recording artists, the Dixie Hummingbirds, arguably the most powerful jubilee and traditional-style black gospel quartet of the century, issue Music in the Air in celebration of their 70-year reign. Traipsing across stylistic musical boundaries, the still formidable group pushes the envelope with reconfigured arrangements of traditionals such as "How Great Thou Art" and "Come Ye Disconsolate," the former featuring a powerful a cappella lead by Wynonna Judd in juxtaposition to the interlocked harmony of the 'Birds. While not the dead-on quality of its prime-time recordings, Music in the Air is testament to the quartet's undeniable might and influence in both the sacred and secular worlds of music. Exciting contributions include Mavis Staples's enthused lead on "I Need Thee," a collaboration with the boisterous Shirley Caesar on "Praise Him," and Paul Simon's updated "Love Me Like a Rock," the original hit on which the 'Birds sang backup in 1973. --Paige La Grone