Finding a Voice
By Deborah Evans Price, senior music editor, GospelMusicChannel.com
I absolutely love it when artists refuse to be put in a box. All too often in the Christian music community, we impose our expectations on artists in a way that can sometimes limit their creativity. That’s why it’s always a joy to see an artist step out, follow their creative vision and deliver something fresh and unexpected, which is what David Phelps does on his new Word Records project, The Voice.
Though he rose to prominence in the southern gospel field as a member of the famed Gaither Vocal Band, anyone who has heard Phelps’ glorious tenor knows the man is capable of singing any style of music, and he does just that on The Voice. Since exiting the Vocal Band to resume a solo career, Phelps has walked a fine line between serving the southern gospel fans who have so enthusiastically supported him for years, and wooing new fans with a more progressive style.
On The Voice, the Texas-born artist throws caution to the wind, follows his heart and records a collection of great songs, among them the Righteous Brothers’ pop classic “Unchained Melody,” Foreigner’s timeless power ballad “I Want to Know What Love Is” and opera legend Luciano Pavarotti’s “Nessun Dorma.” His son, Grant, joins him on the gospel chestnut “Angel Band.” He’s also penned some terrific new tunes that fit comfortably alongside those popular standards.
“On some levels people will think it’s a departure, but for me, it really isn’t,” Phelps tells GospelMusicChannel.com “It’s kind of the next step on this journey that I’m on and it feels like such a natural and right thing to be doing now. The whole process has been very rewarding.”
Expectations for an artist with such an amazing voice can be high. Phelps relays a conversation that spurred his desire to record The Voice. “I had someone say to me once at the listening party for one of my previous records, ‘You know what? You haven’t found the song that’s as good as the voice,’” Phelps says. “So we went into this project determined to find the best songs. Whether they had been written 100 years ago or a brand new song, we just wanted to record the best songs and create a platform that I can sing on.”
Phelps wrote three new songs for The Voice –“Higher,” “End of the Line” and “Fly to You.” He also penned lyrics to Beethoven’s “Moonlight Sonata” to create the hauntingly beautiful ballad “Moonlight.”
Phelps says he wrote “End of the Line” after going to the movies with his wife Lori to see the James Bond film Casino Royale. “My dad and I used to watch Bond movies together,” he says. “When Casino Royale came out I went to see it and I fell in love with it. As my wife and I were walking out of the theater, I heard the closing song to the movie and about halfway through it I said, ‘This is my new record! This is the sound I want right here. I’ve got to do something as cinematic as this song.’ So I actually went home and wrote ‘End of the Line.’”
There’s also an interesting story behind “Your Love.” An aspiring songwriter approached Phelps’ wife Lori in a grocery store parking lot and gave her a cassette of a song he wanted David to record. Lori brought the song home and David loved it, but it took seven years before it made it on an album. “It has come up at every project that we have done in the past seven years as a possibility but has never fit,” Phelps says. “Once again I brought it up and everybody just fell in love with it, so I finally got to record this song. It’s an amazing prayer, really a classic kind of song. I called the writer and he was floored and he never had a song cut before by anybody, so he was very happy.”
In recording The Voice, Phelps worked with acclaimed producer Monroe Jones. “There is such a mutual respect there,” Phelps says. “Instead of trying to change who I am, he figures out what the best of that is and is really able to shine a spotlight on that. So it really has made me relax in who I am as a singer and artist. It’s been a great thing.”
Working with Jones, Phelps has created a record that showcases his voice perfectly and gives him a chance to explore new musical and lyrical territory. “I feel like God has been growing me and my eyes have been opened to how big God is and the different ways that he works,” says Phelps. “He’s in every part of our lives, in the love we have for each other and our wives and kids and everything. Coming to those realizations as an artist, I want to sing about all those kind of things.”
Even so, don’t expect him to abandon gospel music to become a pop crooner. “In my family growing up, music was very important and faith was very important,” he says. “It was a natural thing that they have always fit together. There will always be a love of gospel music in my heart because it is so much a part of who I am."
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About the Writer
Deborah Evans Price has covered Christian/Gospel music for Billboard magazine since 1994. She also contributes regularly to Country Weekly, CMA Close Up, Devo’Zine, Christian Single, HomeLife, BMI Music World, and other publications.
A Nashville resident since 1983, Deborah has held editorial posts at Radio & Records, Country News, American Songwriter and Billboard. Amy Grant, Trace Adkins, Brad Paisley, Charlie Daniels, 3 Doors Down, Third Day, Don Henley, Bon Jovi, Chris Rice, Sandra Bullock, Mercy Me, Alan Jackson, Smokey Robinson, Carrie Underwood and Steven Curtis Chapman are among her many interviews. Additionally, she's a sought-after music industry analyst who has been interviewed on CNN, MSNBC, TNN, The Today Show, and ABC PrimeTime Live, among other outlets.
Deborah is a member of the Gospel Music Association's board of directors and a graduate of Leadership Music. She resides south of Nashville with her husband, Gary, and 18-year-old son Trey.
