BY KATHY Y. WILSON

· The Dixie Hummingbirds -- Music in the Air: 70th Anniversary Celebration All-Star Tribute (House of Blues).
"In the beginning, after the word and before Rock & Roll, Disco, Punk, Funk, Metal, Soul, Motown, Country, Doo-Wop, Bebop and the Big Band Swing, there was the Dixie Hummingbirds ... the mighty Dixie Hummingbirds!" So booms the voice of the Black Moses himself, Isaac Hayes, on the opening track of this, a sumptuous, 14-song paean to the 70th anniversary of the long-standing but not forgotten Dixie Hummingbirds.

True, the Hummingbirds have outlasted 13 presidents, four major wars, five generations and the Great Depression, but those chapters of American history have done little to dim the group's influence or fervor. "Loves Me Like A Rock" is even more soulful than its blue-eyed Paul Simon original, thanks to Stevie Wonder. Generally, a celebration of a band of this magnitude amounts to little more than a long, lazy rest on old laurels.

Not true here. The Hummingbirds, still rompin' and stompin' with their trademark, stand-up, quartet-style harmonizing and rollicking bass guitar, show some of their biggest fans (and Pop's biggest names) how they came to endure throughout countless changes in Gospel music alone.

Along with Wonder, there's R&B; crooner Howard Hewitt and the Rev. Shirley Caesar ("Praise Him"), Mavis Staples ("I Need Thee"), once herself a leader in Gospel, Country amazon Wynona Judd (a cappella on "How Great Thou Art") and Bobby Womack ("Everything Is Alright"), among others. But here they merely complement lead singer Ira Tucker Sr.'s sandpaper-rasp of a tenor on Hummingbirds staples such as "Jesus Is Still Alive" and "Slow Moving Train." Tucker's instrument is but part of what makes the Hummingbirds mainstays despite, or perhaps because of, the raging successes of Kirk Franklin, John P. Kee, The Winans and the plethora of Gospel Rap. The group proves that to strip away all the pomp and circumstance reveals one simple and lasting message: Accept the Lord, follow His word, live a righteous life and Heaven is yours.

For example, Wonder's "Have A Talk With God," from his Songs In the Key of Life, is reworked from the original clavinet-fortified, one-man show to a low-down, almost gut-bucket, Sunday morning admonishment that "when you feel your life's too hard, just go have a talk with God." The song implodes into a Prince-like instrumental jam before ending in staccato hand claps and a dime-tight "wop." Amen.
CityBeat grade: A.

· Inner City -- Let's Make It Better (Tyscot).
An offshoot of John P. Kee's far-reaching production arms, Inner City is Kee's answer to New Jack Gospel impresario Kirk Franklin's The Family and Nu Nation. As a point of comparison, however, Kee's Inner City neither lives up to its name by addressing the life-threatening specifics of (the) Inner City, nor does the group's delivery do anything to excite, entice, enthrall or mesmerize. The talent, no doubt, is here, most notablly on "He Will Come Through," "Since You Turned My Life Around" and the Mary J. Blige sound-alike lead on "It's No Secret." Ironically, it's a guest appearance by the Rev. Robert Wise -- whose voice is reminiscent of the great Rance Allen -- on the praise and worship ballad "I Will Pray" that, um, resurrects the disc.

The song or its arrangement aren't much but Wise's voice is convicted and powerful. Conversely, "Take Courage" is a lame attempt, with manufactured beats and the Jodeci-strain of Detroit's Deitrick Haddon, to appeal to young people. But, as most of the others, it falls way short. This group sounds like any other able- and full-bodied black Gospel choir in any medium-sized black church in Cincinnati. That says more about the hometown talent than Kee's insistence on putting his trademarked name on too much mediocre product.
CityBeat grade: C.

· GMWA Men of Promise -- It Shall Come To Pass: Recorded Live In Philadelphia! (Tyscot).
The latest in a series of releases to emanate from the Men's Department of the late Rev. James Cleveland's Gospel Music workshop of America, this all-male choir of more than 500 voices demonstrates that the male voice (think Paul Robeson) can swing from fervor ("I'm Saved"), to tender and gentle ("It Shall Come To Pass"), to an all-out Gospel lark ("He Will Supply Your Needs"). Of course, the novelty here is in hearing men singing all the parts. It's the aural equivalent of watching an all-female band or witnessing the growing popularity of the WNBA.

But this recording is exciting beyond the superficial because the songs absolutely zing -- as much a testament to the choir itself as to the male writers, producers, musicians and arrangers. One highlight is "Redeemed," sung by Calvin Bernard Rhone. The force behind such Gospel powerhouses as Daryl Coley and Tramaine Hawkins, Rhone is himself a talented songwriter/arranger/musician and it's refreshing to hear him step in front of the microphone. His delivery lacks histrionics; instead it's almost understated and the lyrics speak for themselves: "I've been bought with the price/Through the sacrifice of Calvary/Said I've been redeemed/Let the redeemed of the Lord say so."

And no all-male Gospel repertoire would be complete without an a cappella selection. Here that is "Lift Him Up," delivered with all the power and nuance of a historically black college choir. The only clunkers here are "I Shall Wear A Crown" and "Psalm 84." But redemption comes in the melodramatic ending of "Just For Me -- Thank Ya." This album should be owned by every minister of music in any church that celebrates Men's Day. It is a blueprint and an inspiration.
CityBeat grade: B.

· Knee-C -- Jesus Said It! Testimony Service (Jambalaya Records).
1) Attend a small, stuffy storefront church, preferably Church of God In Christ or charismatic.

2)Fuss over your towering, Jazz Festival hairdo. Fiddle some with your girdle.

3) Walk up front.

4) Make sure microphones are plugged in.

5) Press "record" on video and audio machines.

6) Stumble over chatter between songs and fail to whip the crowd into a frenzy.

7) Submit tape(s) to record company.

8) Receive this kind of review.

9) CityBeat grade: F.

10) Repeat steps one through nine.

E-mail Kathy Y. Wilson

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