Spirit of the Century is one of the most important and acclaimed albums in the Blind Boys of Alabama's later career. It brilliantly takes their traditional gospel foundation and places it alongside blues, soul, folk and contemporary roots music.

The album has a wonderfully unusual mixture of old gospel songs and secular material. The Blind Boys can move from a traditional spiritual into material associated with artists such as Tom Waits, Ben Harper and Curtis Mayfield, while still making everything sound unmistakably like Blind Boys gospel.

🎵 Sound

The performances are built around the group's extraordinary voices, with:

Rich, gritty gospel harmonies

Hammond organ and piano

Bluesy electric and acoustic guitars

Soulful rhythm section

Occasional roots/folk textures

The contrast between the weathered voices of the singers and the contemporary backing is particularly effective.

⭐ Standout tracks

"Jesus Gonna Be Here" – A superb Tom Waits composition transformed into a dark, bluesy gospel number.

"Way Down in the Hole" – Another Waits song, delivered with enormous authority.

"Run On for a Long Time" – An energetic traditional gospel performance with a driving rhythm.

"Good Religion" – Classic, exuberant Blind Boys gospel.

"Amazing Grace" – A beautifully restrained interpretation that lets the voices do most of the work.

🏆 Why it's special

This is much more than a traditional gospel album. Spirit of the Century helped introduce the Blind Boys to a much wider audience and won the Grammy Award for Best Traditional Soul Gospel Album.