Review: “All in One” by Karen Clark Sheard

New label, new sound and it is all good! Those were the types of thoughts that were going through my mind when I listened to All in One, the new album from Karen Clark Sheard.

In case you didn’t know, Karen Clark Sheard and her husband Pastor Drew Sheard recently launched a new record label, Karew Records. All in One is the label’s first release and they are starting off with a bang!

With this album, Karen Clark Sheard is giving us a completely new sound. This music doesn’t sound like anything that you’ve ever heard from The Clark Sisters. It is even a lot more different than anything she’s ever done before as a solo artist.

This album features some high quality production work. Prayed Up, Hold On and Crazy Praise are perfect examples of the new Karen Clark Sheard sound. Karen’s son J. Drew Sheard was involved in some of the production on this album. When you combine the work he did on All in One with the his efforts on James Fortune’s Encore album, I’m pretty confident that you’ll be seeing his name and hearing his work on many more albums in the near future.

What You Won’t Get
If you need to hear traditional church music, you won’t get it with this album. This album really isn’t for choir directors or the church soloists. You’ll need to look to another album for your A & B selections. I’m not saying these are bad things. That’s just my opinion.

I know there are some of you who love to hear Karen Clark Sheard show off her crazy vocal abilities and once again solidify her place as one of the baddest voices on the planet. If you fall into that category, then you might be a little disappointed when you listen to this album. All in One doesn’t include a ballad where Karen just blows us away vocally. Don’t get me wrong; her vocal performances in the songs that are on this album are very good.

What You Will Get
Good music. You’ll get to see how an artist almost reinvents herself. If you enjoy a contemporary Gospel sound, then you will love All in One. Go grab you copy of All in One by Karen Clark Sheard on Amazon.com or iTunes.