I’m trying to get the blog back to its regularly scheduled programming, after NQC week and real-world business since. By special request from one of you out there, let’s examine one of gospel music’s best-loved mixed groups and come up with an essential 80-minute playlist for the Perrys.
The Perrys have been singing for a few decades, but especially rose to prominence and popularity when they changed to their current “3 men and an alto” format around year 2000. For that reason, and because that’s where my familiarity is stronger for their music, almost all of the songs will come from this most recent time period. You old-school Perrys fans, let me know what I’m missing from the early days! The great thing about the Perrys is that they just seem to get better and better.
Here’s my playlist…what would be yours?
- I Remember the Day, God’s Little People, 1988
- Royal Descendant, Royal Descendants, 1991
- The Hem of His Garment, 25 Years…and More, 1995
- March Around the Throne One Time for Me, Come to the Fountain, 1998
- I’m Still Amazed, Absolutely Positively Live!, 1999
- Praise God, It’s Settled, I’m Saved, Absolutely Positively Live!, 1999
- I Rest My Case at the Cross, Changed Forever, 2001
- Waiting Triumphantly, Changed Forever, 2001
- Calvary Answers for Me, This Is the Day, 2003
- I Wish I Could Have Been There, This Is the Day, 2003
- But I Met a Nazarene, Life of Love, 2004
- His Name Was John, Life of Love, 2004
- When Morning Sweeps the Eastern Sky, Remembering the Happy Goodmans, 2005
- He Will Hide Me, Come Thirsty, 2006
- I Know It Was the Blood, Look No Further, 2007
- The Potter Knows the Clay, Look No Further, 2007
- If You Knew Him, Almost Morning, 2009
- Did I Mention, Almost Morning, 2009
- Blue Skies Coming, Blue Skies, 2011
- Celebrate Me Home, Blue Skies, 2011
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From their early days, I’d personally include “Light Ahead is Gloryland” (1984, Looking Back; 1989, The Best Four You) because I think it’s a stellar song.
There are two which I would both personally and objectively advocate for including – “Not Even a Stone” and “By Faith I Can Touch Him Now,” both from their 1997 Crossings album. They were the group’s first #1 hits, and played a major role in putting them on the map as far as Southern Gospel radio was concerned. It was the foundation off of which they catapulted to superstardom a few years later when they added a baritone. Because of the significance of those two, I’d bump #3 and #5 to make room for them.
I think I could also make a case for swapping “I Will Find You Again” for “His Name Was John,” from the same album (as I recall off the top of my head), given how big the former one was live.
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Great comment! Thanks!
Maybe perhaps more than any other I’ve done so far, this playlist was heavily influenced by my personal opinions on songs, I think. So a lot of the ones I included that others wouldn’t is probably because I just really like those songs. That’s why I need the help!
No problem! There are definitely a couple more that I’d swap out if it was personal preferences alone – for example, I’d find some excuse to work in “Until I Start Looking Ahead.” But I think, given the role it played in launching them to the top, you can make a pretty strong objective case for including their first two #1s. 🙂
I want to get back to making my own playlist of the Perrys. I will try to contrast it with this one, but might check out some of the ones listed here before I do. I need to check and see which projects I need. I will likely zero in on the group after Libbi became the sole female.
I would have to include-Look What I’m Trading For a Mansion and There’s power In prayer.