Kingdom in the Streets

Description

Kingdom in the Streets is the fourth gospel album by the American singer and songwriter Dion DiMucci of Dion & the Belmonts fame, released on Myrrh Records in 1985, a division of Word. Also released by A&M Records. The album was recorded by Eric Schilling at Criteria Recording Studios in Miami, Florida; with Dion DiMucci, Paul Harris, and Schilling producing for Salt Productions.

Meet Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde, 1985-style. Side one of ‘Kingdom in the Streets’ is utterly enchanting, a flawless collection of listenable, danceable tunes from the ’60s. The flip side is a different character, and, with one exception, it has more pedestrian numbers.

On the first side there’s the catchy, campfire sing-along «Still in the Spirit», the doo-wop, r&b-tingled «Crazy Too», and the Dylan-esque rock narrative, «Only God Can Make a Change». Also on side one is «He Hears Them All», which features a great story line with a definite ’60s sensibility and all the earmarks of a pop hit. The slow ballad “He’s in You” boasts another good story, this time in the style of a Gordon Lightfoot.

Alas, the momentum fails on side two. The only tune of merit is the album-closing «You Only Go ‘Round Once». It gets extra stars for being a raucous, rave-up rocker, for the line “You only go ’round once, so you better grab all the Jesus you can,” and for having the best “Ghostbusters” bass line since “Ghostbusters”.

Fortunately, even on the four lesser numbers, Dion’s confident, comfortable voice and unerring command of the music make ‘Kingdom in the Streets’ more Jekyll than Hyde and worth every penny. [Bob Darden, CCM, June 1985]

I Put Away My Idols/Kingdom In The Street, Ace Records 2003, CD re-issue

Gradually the magic that made ‘Inside Job’ such a stunning album began to wane for Dion as the ‘80s wore on. Now don’t get me wrong. Dion’s amazing vocal chops are still clearly evident on ‘I Put Away My Idols’ (1983) and ‘Kingdom In The Street’ (1985), but the accompaniments are a bit softer and more formulaic than on his first two gospel albums. Also there are no songs of the classic quality of «The Truth Will Set You Free» and «Center Of My Life» on these albums. But they’re still worth hearing again even though by the time he’d cut ‘Kingdom In The Street’ there were only three Dion compositions on the set. [Tony Cummings, Cross Rhythms, January 1994]

> Apple Music (https://music.apple.com/us/album/kingdom-in-the-street/1167780560)

LP tracklist:

Side One
A1. “Still In The Spirit” – 3:35
A2. “Crazy Too (Fallen In Love)” – 3:32
A3. “He Hears Them All” – 3:48
A4. “He’s In You” – 3:40
A5. “Only God Can Change A Heart” – 2:55

Side Two
B1. “Daddy Says” – 2:50
B2. “Come To The Cross” – 3:43
B3. “You Can Do All Things” – 4:23
B4. “I’ve Come Too Far” – 3:21
B5. “You Only Go ‘Round Once” – 4:02

Note: Simultaneously released on cassette and 12-inch vinyl LP by Myrrh Records.

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