ABOUT THIS ITEM

One time Chicago pastor and civic crusader TL Barrett's long-forgotten gospel-soul LP "Like A Ship... (Without a Sail)" finally gets some much-needed direction - straight to the hearts of music-lovers worldwide. Long revered in the Windy City amongst the flock and fervent crate diggers, this end-to-end burner remains one of the holy grails of gospel soul. Self-released in 1971, "Like A Ship... (Without a Sail)" saw Jesse Jackson Jr. (Operation Breadbasket) ally Barrett channel his passionate love of music, determination to help keep children off the streets, and wholly engaging preaching (which attracted the likes of Earth, Wind & Fire and Donny Hathaway to his Mount Zion Baptist Church sermons) into a musical offering bolstered by Chess Records' sax hero / arranger Gene Barge and backed by a cast of music players including Richard Evans, Phil Upchurch and the rapturous vocals of the Youth for Christ Choir. Sanctified grooves, breaks, beats, and spiritual praise, delivered with a righteous and infectious chorus.